The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee holds a hearing on the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund and the status of maintenance at the nation's ports.
According to the Committee, "the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund collects taxes from shippers to cover the operation of navigational channels. It was created in 1986. Money collected through the taxes goes into a general fund."
Witnesses include: Jo-Ellen Darcy, assistant secretary of the Army for civil works; Michael R. Christensen, deputy executive director of development at the Port of Los Angeles and chairman of the California Marine Affairs and Navigation Conference; Mike Lorino, president of the Associated Branch Pilots; James K. Lyons, director and CEO of the Alabama State Port Authority; and Andrew H. Cairns, board member of the Coasts, Oceans, Ports and Rivers Institute at the American Society of Civil Engineers.