WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., yesterday attended a hearing of the Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security to consider U.S. maritime policy.

Wicker asked Mark H. Buzby, the current administrator of the Maritime Administration, to comment on the backlog of project funding requests for the nation’s ports. Despite the importance of ports to national security and the nation’s economy, there are no dedicated programs for port infrastructure. Buzby said he believed ports should receive greater attention.

“Ports are the entryway to our economy; they are critical to our economy functioning correctly,” Buzby said. “That would suggest we have increased emphasis in that area going forward, especially as many of our larger ports are aging, and our infrastructure is aging.”

Buzby was not opposed to a dedicated port infrastructure program.

Wicker also asked Buzby about the role of the Maritime Security Program (MSP) in supporting the nation’s strategic sealift capability. The MSP provides stipends to U.S. carriers who provide the U.S. Transportation Command with access to U.S.-flagged, U.S.-crewed commercial vessels to transport cargo during times of war and national emergency. Wicker has expressed concerns that a drop in support for the program could put the U.S. merchant mariner workforce at a strategic disadvantage and impact the ability of our nation’s military to respond to crises during times of war.

Other witnesses at the hearing included:

• Michael Khouri, Acting Chairman, Federal Maritime Commission;
• Rear Admiral James Helis, USMS, Superintendent, U.S. Marine Academy; and
• Craig Middlebrook, Deputy Administrator, Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation