Full Utilization of HMTF Passes in U.S. House
This evening the U.S. House of Representatives passed by a recorded vote the Full Utilization of the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF), H.R. 2440. The vote was 296 in favor and 109 opposed. The voting required a two-thirds super majority of the House in order to pass under “suspension of the rules.”There were seventeen (17) bills presented in the House of Representatives today with fifteen (15) bills passing by voice vote. The Full Utilization of the HMTF was one of two bills…
Flood-Swollen Mississippi River Closed at St. Louis
The U.S. Coast Guard said it closed the Mississippi River near St. Louis to boat and barge traffic on Friday as excessive rains and heavy snow melt this spring swelled the major shipping waterway to near record levels.The river - a key transportation artery for shipments of grain, agricultural chemicals, energy products and other commodities - is closed from river mile marker 179 to 184, the Coast Guard said."The Mississippi is closed to all vessel traffic due to extremely high water levels and fast-moving currents," said U.S.
AWO Elects Foss Maritime's Merritt as Chair
The members of the American Waterways Operators, the national tugboat, towboat and barge industry association, elected a new slate of leaders earlier this month during the association's annual Spring Convention held in Washington, D.C. Scott Merritt, former Chief Operating Officer for Foss Maritime Company, LLC, was elected Chairman. Arthur F. Mead, Vice President and General Counsel at Crowley Maritime Corporation, was elected Vice Chairman. Mr. Merritt succeeds outgoing Chairman Tom Marian…
Ports of Indiana: Big Successes, with Big Projects in the Wings
For Indiana’s state-established, but autonomous Ports of Indiana, 2018 was a record setting year, both for system-wide numbers and among the three individual Ports. These consist of Burns Harbor, on Lake Erie; Jeffersonville, on the Ohio, across from Louisville, KY; and Mount Vernon, also on the Ohio River, about 140 miles downriver from Jeffersonville.Not only were actual numbers robust, but Port officials reported “unprecedented tonnage increases” within the three-port system.
