Full Volume 19 - Federal Maritime Commission

WINDJAMMER CRUISES INC LTD 115
Legislative Background to Public Law 89 7773
In 1966 in the light ofthen recent incidents involving either cancellation
of scheduled cruises with passengers being left at the pier without
recourse to recover their passage money which had been paid in advance
or accidents at sea in which death and injury resulted to passengers
coupled with a significant and substantial increase in the burgeoning
ocean cruise business the Congress saw fit to enact legislation which
among other things was designed to accomplish the dual purpose of
preventing financial loss and hardship to the American traveling public
who after payment ofcruise passage money became stranded by the
abandonment or cancellation of a cruise and of providing assurance of
financial responsibility to pay judgments for personal ury or death to
passengers 4
Public Law 89 777 and Implementing Regulations
As pertinent Section 2 of the ActS provides
a Each owneror charterer of an American or foreign vessel having berth or
stateroom accommodations for fifty or more passengers and embarking passengers at
United States ports shall establish under regulations prescribed by the Federal Maritime
Commission his financial responsibility to meet any liability he may incur for death or
injury to passengers or other persons on voyages to or from United States ports
d Tbe Federal Maritime Commission is authorized to prescribe such regulations as
may be necessary to carry outthe provisions of this section The provisions of the
Shipping Act 1916 shall apply to proceedings conducted by the Commission under this
section
The applicable provisions of Section 3 of the Act6 are
a No person in the United States shan arrange offer advertise or provide passage
on a vessel having berth or stateroom accommodations for fifty or more passengers and
which is to embark passengers at United States ports without there first having been
filed with the Federal Maritime Commission such information as the Commission may
deem necessary to establish the financial responsibility of the person arranging offering
advertising or providing such transportation or in lieu thereof a copy of a bond or other
security in such form as the Commission by rule or regulation may require and accept
for indemnification of passengers for nonperformance of the transportation
d Tbe Federal Maritime Commission is authorized to prescribe such regulations as
may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this section The provisions of this
chapter sball apply with respect to proceedings conducted by the Commission under this
section
Pursuant to the authorization of Sections 2 and 3 of Public Law 89777
the Commission promulgated regulations in General Order 201 to carry
out the regulatory scheme contemplated by the Congress The provisions
of those regulations cited in the Commission s Order of Investigation and
3 80 Stat 1356 1357
tH R Rep No 1089 89th Cong 1st Sess 23 1965
46 U SC I SI1 d
46 U S C I SI1 e
132 F R 3987 Mar II 1967 46 CFR Part 540
19 F M C