[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 16 (Friday, January 24, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4354-4355]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-01200]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Maritime Administration
Voluntary Intermodal Sealift Agreement/Joint Planning Advisory
Group Meeting
AGENCY: Maritime Administration, Department of Transportation.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Voluntary Intermodal Sealift Agreement (VISA) program
requires that a notice of the time, place, and nature of each VISA
Joint Planning Advisory Group (JPAG) meeting be published in the
Federal Register. On January 14, 2020, the Maritime Administration
(MARAD) and the U.S. Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM) co-hosted a
classified VISA JPAG meeting at Scott Air Force
[[Page 4355]]
Base, Illinois. The JPAG is co-chaired by MARAD and USTRANSCOM and is
convened jointly. The U.S. Department of Justice and Federal Trade
Commission were informed of the JPAG meeting prior to its occurrence,
in accordance with VISA program requirements.
Participants in the JPAG meeting were required to possess a secret
clearance due to the classified nature of the event and attendance at
the meeting was by invitation only. MARAD and USTRANSCOM invited
participating VISA carriers and representatives of maritime labor
organizations to attend the meeting. In addition, representatives from
the U.S. Department of Transportation, MARAD, the U.S. Department of
Homeland Security, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and
the Department of Defense (DOD) to include the Office of the Secretary
of Defense, USTRANSCOM, the U.S. Navy, the Military Sealift Command,
and the Surface Deployment and Distribution Command, as well as
operational elements of Geographic Combatant Commands, were in
attendance.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William G. McDonald, Director, Office
of Sealift Support, U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime
Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590;
Telephone (202) 366-0688 or electronic mail to:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Vice Admiral (VADM) Dee L. Mewbourne, Deputy
Commander, USTRANSCOM, and Mr. Kevin Tokarski, Associate Administrator
for Strategic Sealift, MARAD, welcomed the participants. Mr. Tokarski
thanked the industry participants for their continued support. He spoke
of the unique value of the JPAG in maximizing the effective use of
joint resources to meet deployment and sustainment requirements and
expressed confidence that JPAG meetings would serve to prepare
attendees for what could occur during a VISA activation. VADM Mewbourne
discussed the current operational picture and said JPAG operations are
crucial to development of concepts of operations focused on VISA
participants' ability to meet DOD requirements for moving contingency
cargo from CONUS Sea Ports of Embarkation to designated OCONUS Ports of
Debarkation and onward to operational areas.
The purpose of the JPAG meeting was to: (1) Brief members on
current strategic and operational developments; (2) affirm industry's
readiness, ability, and resilience to meet DOD contingency transport
requirements, and; (3) discuss planning assumptions for potential
deployment scenarios. The meeting was rated a success by industry
participants, who offered informed and useful information on the
provision of capacity and resources to meet DOD requirements.
VISA is a USDOT/DoD Emergency Preparedness Program (EPP)
administered by MARAD in partnership with USTRANSCOM. The program is
designed to provide DoD with assured access to vessels and intermodal
capacity to meet contingency requirements in the event of national
emergency. On September 30, 2019, MARAD published a notice in the
Federal Register/Vol. 84, No. 189, 51710, announcing extension of the
VISA program until October 1, 2024.
The following ocean carriers are VISA participants:
American International Shipping, LLC
American President Lines, Ltd.
American Roll-On Roll-Off Carrier, LLC
APL Marine Services, Ltd.
APL Maritime, Ltd.
Argent Marine Operations, Inc.
Beyel Brothers Inc.
Columbia Coastal Transport, LLC
Crimson Shipping Co., Inc.
Crowley Marine Services, Inc.
Crowley Puerto Rico Services, Inc.
Curtin Maritime, Corporation
Dann Marine Towing, LC
Dann Ocean Towing, Inc.
Dunlap Towing Company
Farrell Lines Incorporated
Fidelio Limited Partnership
Foss International, Inc.
Foss Maritime Company
Hapag-Lloyd USA, LLC
JM Ships, LLC
Laborde Marine, LLC
Liberty Global Logistics, LLC
Liberty Glory Corporation
Lynden Incorporated & Affiliates
Maersk Line, Limited
Matson Navigation Company, Inc.
McAllister Towing and Transportation Co., Inc.
McCulley Marine Services, Inc.
Moran Towing Corporation
National Shipping of America, LLC
Northcliffe Ocean Shipping & Trading Company, Inc.
Pacific Maritime Freight, Inc.
Pasha Hawaii Holdings LLC
Patriot Shipping, LLC
Resolve Towing & Salvage, Inc.
Samson Tug & Barge Co., Inc.
Schuyler Lines Navigation Company, LLC
Seabridge, Inc.
Sealift, Inc.
SeaTac Marine Services, LLC
Smith Maritime, Inc.
Stevens Towing Company, Inc.
Stevens Transportation, LLC
Superior Maritime Services, Inc.
TOTE Maritime Alaska, Inc.
TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico, LLC
Trailer Bridge, Inc.
Waterman Steamship Corporation
Waterman Transport, Inc.
Weeks Marine, Inc.
Western Towboat Company
Young Brothers, Limited
(Authority: 49 CFR 1.93(l), 44 CFR part 332)
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Dated: January 21, 2020.
By Order of the Maritime Administrator.
T. Mitchell Hudson, Jr.,
Secretary, Maritime Administration .
[FR Doc. 2020-01200 Filed 1-23-20; 8:45 am]
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