In this issue...
"WWII Mariner Thank You" bill comes out of committee...Members bound for China urged to get visas...M.E.B.A. views represented at TWIC hearing...At the top of our lungs, we put an exclamation point on a full-mouthed, rebel yell edition and jack up the volume with the high-decibel news of the week. Turn a deaf ear to tongue-tied newsletters that'll leave you speechless - they're nothing to shout about! We make some maritime noise and whoop it up with a howling-good issue that'll make you holler. Sound off in a voice loud enough to wake the dead: The TELEX TIMES - It's a scream!

WWII MARINER VETERAN BILL PASSED OUT OF COMMITTEE
A bill that would provide a form of restitution to World War II merchant mariners was approved by a House committee this week. H.R. 23, introduced by Rep. Bob Filner (D-CA) would provide $1,000 per month, tax-free, to World War II merchant mariners or their widows. The bill, called the "Belated Thank You to the Merchant Mariners of World War II Act of 2007," would also grant them "veteran" status boosting their monthly credit by $160, increasing their monthly Social Security check.

Merchant mariners suffered a higher fatality rate than any other branch of the Armed Forces. Despite this, the U.S. Merchant Marine was not included in the 1944 G.I. Bill of Rights. In 1988, they were finally granted veteran status, but some portions of the G.I. Bill have never been made available to merchant mariners and the lost benefits can never be recouped.

The House Veterans Affairs Committee, which is chaired by Rep. Filner himself, checked off on the legislation by voice vote along with four other veterans' benefits measures. The Department of Veterans Affairs opposes H.R. 23 saying that it would cost the Government almost $235 million in its very first year and an extra $1.4 billion over the next decade. The bill will now be referred to the House floor for consideration. However, given the amount of pending legislation in front of Members of Congress, it is improbable that H.R. 23 will have a Floor vote scheduled anytime soon. Though the movement of this legislation is good news, its chances for ultimate passage will be difficult in this session of Congress. However, the bill has M.E.B.A.'s full support and we will contend to battle on behalf of our mariners, past and present.

MEMBERS SHIPPING TO CHINA STRONGLY URGED TO GET VISAS
Members frequenting Chinese ports are strongly encouraged to obtain visas before their vessel departs in order to prevent a potential situation if they must leave their ship for some reason.

M.E.B.A.-contracted companies that have vessels making stops in China include Horizon Lines, Matson Navigation, American President Lines and Maersk. Matson requires its crews to have a visa before departure on a ship visiting China. In some cases, the visa can be acquired through the company. M.E.B.A. union officials are well versed on helping members secure the visas which can be obtained quickly and painlessly. Members hitting Chinese ports usually ship out of West Coast ports. Those Union halls are armed with the necessary paperwork needed for visas. The Branch Agent in L.A. can be contacted for further details.

M.E.B.A. PART OF JOINT STATEMENT AT TWIC HEARING
As part of a coalition of maritime labor unions, M.E.B.A. presented testimony last week before a Congressional subcommittee concerning the development of the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC). The TWIC is a biometric credential that will be issued to transportation workers allowing them unescorted access to secure areas of vessels and terminal facilities.

The House Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation subcommittee, which is part of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, staged a hearing on the matter with Chairman Elijah Cummings (D-MD) overseeing the proceedings. The subcommittee's hearing delved into some of the problems that have pushed back TWIC implementation. They also sought information concerning the appeals process for those applicants denied a card.

Rep. Cummings and other subcommittee members voiced their displeasure over the delays in the program that are preventing a full system startup. Coast Guard regulations require transportation workers to have a card by September 2008.

However, Coast Guard officials have already admitted that technological problems have thrown off the schedule to place electronic card readers at ports across the country to verify TWICs. Without offering a timeline, they have acknowledged that the program will be implemented without the readers at first and that until the technology is installed, TWIC cards will be inspected by hand.

The Transportation Security Administration previously awarded a $70 million contract to Lockheed Martin for the installation of enrollment centers, and cards were supposed to be ready for issuance in March in Wilmington, Delaware. Further delays prevented that plan and the agency has so far not issued an alternate schedule. A number of Subcommittee members expressed their skepticism about Lockheed Martin's role in TWIC development given the company's failures in the recent Coast Guard Deepwater fiasco.

The views of the maritime unions were presented by MM&P Executive Assistant Mike Rodriguez. The unions are concerned that an individual who is not a terrorism risk could be disqualified under the current regulations. Another union concern Rodriguez presented before the subcommittee is the desire that these federal guidelines preempt all state and local control requirements previously set up at various ports. "We believe that the war against terror is and should be treated as a national effort," the statement read, "and the national standards and system put in place through the TWIC program to combat terrorism should take precedence over all others and not be secondary to the systems of each individual facility, port, city or state. America's maritime workforce must have an access control card that they can present at whatever state, port or facility their employment may take them. If they do not, and our government allows numerous additional local requirements to be imposed upon them, we will be unfairly and unjustifiably burdening this American workforce while undermining our country's efficient and reliable interstate and foreign commerce maritime transportation system."

As maritime labor has noted before, they urged that the TWIC and the forthcoming Merchant Mariner Credential (MMC) be combined. Coast Guard is planning to consolidate all of the current merchant mariner documents - the Merchant Mariner Document (Z-card), License, STCW endorsement and Certificate of Registry - into a single document that would be used in conjunction with the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC). However, the unions are calling for the issuance of a single document for mariners - an MMD/TWIC - that, "would serve as a certificate of qualification, an identity document and as a biometric transportation security card. Licensed officers would hold the same combined MMD/TWIC and also be issued a separate license which would serve as the individual's certificate of qualification with all endorsements clearly indicated."

ILWU OFFICE WORKERS SLOWLY NEARING CONTRACT
An office workers local of the ILWU continued talks with management this week in an effort to avoid a potentially crippling strike at the Ports of L.A./Long Beach.

Negotiators for Local 63 have been working on a new contract since May and have continued to do so past the agreement's expiration on June 30th. The 750 clerks in the local are especially hopeful that positive gains will be made on wages, job security and pension benefits. Local 63 handles bookings for the export of cargo and other transport documents. A work stoppage would help freeze loading and unloading operations at the nation's busiest port. M.E.B.A. has demonstrated its solidarity with the ILWU on many occasions in the past and will continue to do so.

"Just a handful of issues are still left on the table," said Local 63 President John Fageaux, Jr.

COAST GUARD PUBLISHES NEW EDITION OF OIL RECORD BOOK
The U.S. Coast Guard has published a new edition of the Oil Record Book (Rev. 01-07). Mariners or operators of all US ships subject to the oil record book requirements may obtain hard copies from any USCG Sector Office or Marine Safety Unit (MSU). Contact information is available at the USCG Units. Use of the old edition of the oil record book should cease upon receipt of the new edition, as the old one does not conform to the current MARPOL requirements. For further information, please contact LCDR Scott Muller at (202) 372-1220.

MARAD CONTINUES TO EXORCISE GHOST FLEET
The Maritime Administration continues to ship out rotting "Ghost Fleet" vessels from the James River in Virginia. One ancient hull was towed away this week and the agency made a deal with a recycling yard to rid the river of another.

On Wednesday, the STATE was removed from the James River Reserve Fleet becoming the 59th ship to leave the site since January 1, 2001. The STATE was formerly a training ship for the State University of New York Maritime College known then as the EMPIRE STATE V. Before that, it was a troop carrier called the USNS BARRETT. It will be recycled at the Bay Bridge Enterprises facility in Chesapeake, Va.

MarAd also announced that North American Ship Recycling is buying the World War II-era vessel HOIST for $61,000. The ship will soon be leaving the James River, headed for the firm's facility at Sparrows Point, near Baltimore, Md.

The HOIST, a Navy rescue and salvage ship built in 1945, served with distinction for 49 years, and entered the James River Reserve Fleet in 1994. In 1964 and again in 1966 it participated in significant undersea searches: first for the lost attack submarine USS THRESHER, and later for the recovery of a hydrogen bomb lost off Palomares, Spain after the crash of a B-52 bomber. The latter events were depicted in the 2000 motion picture Men of Honor, starring Cuba Gooding Jr., as Master Diver Carl Brashear.

MARAD HOSTS SHIPYARD SUMMIT
Leaders of the American shipbuilding industry gathered in Washington, D.C., this week, at the invitation of Maritime Administrator Sean T. Connaughton to review the current status of the American shipbuilding and repair industry, and to address challenges and potential opportunities. Featured speakers at the conference included Representative Gene Taylor (D-Miss.), Retired Coast Guard Admiral Thomas Gilmour of the American Bureau of Shipping, and Coast Guard Rear Admiral Brian Salerno. Attendees included members of Congressional staff, as well as representatives from the industry. The meeting addressed supply and demand expectations, workforce shortages, federal programs-both commercial and military, efforts to compete and owner experiences. "This meeting shows the cooperative spirit between the government and the shipyards to address challenges facing this essential American industry," Connaughton said. "America's shipyards must succeed today and into the 21st century. We must work together to make that happen."

NEXT REGULAR MONTHLY MEETINGS
Monday August 6 - Boston, Seattle;
Tuesday, August 7 - Baltimore, Houston, Jacksonville, San Francisco;
Wednesday, August 8 - Calhoon School, Charleston, New Orleans, Portland;
Thursday, August 9 - L.A., New York, Norfolk, Tampa;
Friday, August 10 - Honolulu.