MARITIME OIL POLLUTION PREVENTION. RESPONSE, AND CLEAN-UP TRAINING.

SEC. 712. MARITIME OIL POLLUTION PREVENTION. RESPONSE, AND CLEAN-UP TRAINING.Section 1305 of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 (46 App. U.S.C. 1295d), is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: “(c) (1) The Secretary shall assist maritime training institutions approved by the Secretary in establishing a maritime oil pollution prevention, response, and clean-up training program. “(2) Under the program established under paragraph (1)— “(A) the Secretary may provide, to maritime training institutions approved by the Secretary, vessels described in paragraph (4), with title free of all liens, subject to the requirements specified under paragraph (3); and “(B) in return for receipt of such vessels, such institutions shall— “(i) employ the vessels for the training of students and appropriate maritime industry personnel in oil spill prevention, response, clean-up, and related skills; and “(ii) make the vessels and qualified students available to appropriate Federal, State, and local oil spill response authorities in the event of a maritime oil spill. “(3) The requirements referred to in paragraph (2)(A) are as follows: “(i) any vessel provided under paragraph (2)(A) shall be tendered to the approved maritime training institution at a location determined by the Secretary; “(ii) no such vessel may be sold, traded, chartered, donated, scrapped, or in any way altered or disposed of without the prior approval of the Secretary; “(iii) no such vessel may be used in competition with any privately-owned vessel documented under the laws of the United States or any State, unless necessary to carry out the purposes of this subsection; “(iv) any approved maritime training institution in possession of such a vessel which can no longer utilize the vessel for training purposes shall return the vessel to the Secretary, who shall take possession of the vessel at the training institution and thereafter may dispose of the vessel, or provide the vessel to another approved maritime training institution, as the Secretary determines appropriate; and “(v) such other requirements or conditions as the Secretary determines appropriate. 104 STAT. 2999 “(4) The vessels referred to in paragraph (2)(A) are United States-built offshore supply vessels and United States-built tug/supply vessels in the possession of the Maritime Administration as a result of defaults on loans guaranteed under title XI of this Act.”.