Senate passes the Alaska Tourism Recovery Act

[KirkNC]

24 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

We've been told for years and years that it is impossible to carve out cruise ships from the PSVA.  This bill does that.  With that major 'taboo' proven wrong, it is now possible to consider other cruise ship carve-outs without repealing the entire PSVA.  Politically very difficult to accomplish, but no one can now claim it is impossible.

I think a permanent carve out is impossible.

[rkacruiser]

1 hour ago, KirkNC said:

I think a permanent carve out is impossible.

 

Why?

[Aquahound]

1 hour ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

We've been told for years and years that it is impossible to carve out cruise ships from the PSVA.  This bill does that.  With that major 'taboo' proven wrong, it is now possible to consider other cruise ship carve-outs without repealing the entire PSVA.  Politically very difficult to accomplish, but no one can now claim it is impossible.

 

Who has been saying that?  NCL Pride of America has been operating on a PVSA waiver for years.  It had to receive a waiver due to being foreign built.  

[rkacruiser]

1 hour ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

This bill does that. 

 

I agree with all that you said in this post.  But, the Bill needs to pass and be signed into law before any further progress with this issue can continue.  

[rkacruiser]

9 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

I would hardly consider the two situations to be equivalent.

 

So, some of the citizens of the States of Washington and Alaska would not benefit from the resumption of cruises from their States?  

 

Perhaps, the 12th Congressional District of California, the District that Speaker Pelosi represents, may not immediately benefit from the passage of this Bill.  But, as a major political personality within her Party, improving our economy and increasing the number of our citizens gainfully employed supports the agenda of the current Administration.

[Host Jazzbeau]

1 hour ago, ontheweb said:

Yes, but the discussion was about what could be done with the present carve out. 

 

And it should also be noted that the carve out is TEMPORARY.

So is the CSO.  As my Mother used to say, so was the income tax and so were bridge tolls.  Any 'temporary' law or regulation has a tendency to become permanent.

 

 

30 minutes ago, Aquahound said:

Who has been saying that?  NCL Pride of America has been operating on a PVSA waiver for years.  It had to receive a waiver due to being foreign built.  

I didn't want to make it personal by naming names.  I'm aware of the POA exemption and the reasons for it, which are never likely to apply again.  But if you aren't aware of the general PSVA discussions I'm referring to, consider yourself lucky.

[KirkNC]

1 hour ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Why?

Politics 

[rkacruiser]

1 minute ago, KirkNC said:

Politics 

 

I accept your answer.  But, I don't like it.

 

 

[KirkNC]

Just now, rkacruiser said:

 

I accept your answer.  But, I don't like it.

 

 

There’s lots of things I don’t like with reality’ today

[rkacruiser]

1 minute ago, KirkNC said:

There’s lots of things I don’t like with reality’ today

 

Me too!  I find some solace by listening to the music on SiriusXM on the Channels that are relevant to me from yesteryear.  

[KirkNC]

8 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Me too!  I find some solace by listening to the music on SiriusXM on the Channels that are relevant to me from yesteryear.  

I watch Andy Griffith….

 

[Horizon chaser 1957]

22 minutes ago, KirkNC said:

There’s lots of things I don’t like with reality’ today

Thank you for summing up the whole 2020 - 2021 experience in one sentence.

[RuthC]

4 hours ago, St. Louis Sal said:

There was a reason for that. I had done an evening flight to Fort Yukon as an excursion. It was not meant to arrive back so late, but one of the group had “issues” with flying. He knew this, but signed up anyway! He got very sick on the flight up. Really sick 🤮. Sick enough that when we arrived at Fort Yukon they wanted him to remain at the clinic. His wife said absolutely not, they had a flight home next day. After doing our tour and giving him some recovery time (and probably some plane clean up time) we finally loaded back up for the return flight back.  I was lucky enough to be sitting in the co-pilots seat so I missed much of the adventure in the back, both coming and going. By the time we arrived back, the hotel restaurants were closed and so were many other options. Plus, let’s just say my appetite was not great. So pizza it was. 
 

I would take you up on your offer next time.

 

St Louis Sal

You do realize you don't owe anyone here an explanation, I presume. Especially when the comment was so rude. 
I applaud you for responding in such a kind manner. 

[ontheweb]

10 hours ago, KirkNC said:

I watch Andy Griffith….

 

I watch Perry Mason.

[chengkp75]

On 5/14/2021 at 7:29 PM, rkacruiser said:

 

I would prefer American crews earning American labor wages on America flagged ships be maintained.  

 

It seems to me that the recent realities of these requirements, 2021 with the gasoline issues currently and so many previous restrictions that prevent cruise companies from selling itineraries that are forbidden, i.e. cruises to nowhere, it's time for a reexamination of the laws/rules/regulations/whatever that seem to me to be too restrictive for the time in which we live.   

I assume you are referring to the gasoline shortages caused by the Colonial pipeline shutdown?  Well, let me say this about the 2 Jones Act waivers that were granted, there are about 10 Jones Act tankers currently sitting idle around the US East and Gulf Coasts that were not called out to provide the necessary service, simply because the cost was too high.  These waivers should never have been granted.

13 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

We've been told for years and years that it is impossible to carve out cruise ships from the PSVA.  This bill does that.  With that major 'taboo' proven wrong, it is now possible to consider other cruise ship carve-outs without repealing the entire PSVA.  Politically very difficult to accomplish, but no one can now claim it is impossible.

You will note that this bill, nor the accompanying House bill, does not carve out cruise ships as a "special class" of passenger vessel.  The Senate bill, lists a specific list of ships to which it applies, so that no other ship can avail themselves of this waiver.  However, if Senator Murkowski wanted to add the ships from the Alaska Marine Highway to the bill, or a ferry brought up from Mexico, that could be done as well.  However, by granting exemption to a specific set of ships, they leave the bill open to legal challenge from any other cruise line that wishes to operate in Alaska this season.  This is also a time limited waiver.  So, to say that this is a permanent change to the PVSA, creating a special condition for cruise ships is incorrect.  Unless the Congress wants to list every cruise ship that operates in the US on a bill, and then amend that bill each time a new ship is built, you are not going to create a new class of "passenger vessel".

[ontheweb]

10 hours ago, KirkNC said:

I watch Andy Griffith….

 

Because it is set in North Carolina?

[KirkNC]

48 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

Because it is set in North Carolina?

No, just simple viewing.  Not too much thinking involved.

[chengkp75]

On 5/14/2021 at 11:30 AM, NavArch64 said:

IMO, S.593 is a "weird" bill. Read it and decide for yourself.

I'm not sure all of this will be found to be legal, as it claims that just by sending a crew list to Canada, the foreign crew are "deemed" to have "departed the US and entered Canada.  Not sure how we can claim that Canada must allow entry for these crew just because we say so.

 

This bill also extends the foreign ship's right to duty free importation of any supplies, liquor, or spare parts for what is de facto a domestic voyage.  You'd think that in exchange for getting this free pass on operating that the Senators would have extracted at least some cost from the cruise lines.

 

It's also interesting to note that they felt obligated to require AED's (defibrillators) on these ships, when the MLC 2006 (Maritime Labor Convention), requires these on all ships anyway.

[harkinmr]

21 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Isn’t this a temporary measure?  This is my understanding.  

It is.  But some posters apparently don’t “get” that (or it’s limitation to WA to AK only) no matter how many ways it’s explained.  Makes for a very monotonous conversation. 

[harkinmr]

17 hours ago, ontheweb said:

Some people just do not want to read what is written in black and white. And then when you try to explain it to them, they just reply why can't it be different.

This.  

[david,Mississauga]

On 5/14/2021 at 9:43 AM, Mary229 said:

I hope they never bypass Vancouver.  I would rather sail from there than Seattle. 

 

All of my Alaska cruises have been from Vancouver. I think there will always be a market for cruises based there, but if not I won't be going to Alaska any more. 

[JRG]

On 5/13/2021 at 10:21 PM, The-Inside-Cabin said:

Canada may change their rules quickly - they don't want cruise lines to get in the habit of bypassing Vancouver.  

 

I think this poster may be correct.

 

Watch and see if Team Canada starts moving in warp speed to vax and re-open as a counter measure.

 

The battle for Milkshake Money may be at steak here.

 

Edited May 16, 2021 by JRG

[mcrcruiser]

16 minutes ago, david,Mississauga said:

 

All of my Alaska cruises have been from Vancouver. I think there will always be a market for cruises based there, but if not I won't be going to Alaska any more. 

For us Americans   it is far more expensive to cruise from Vancouver  to Alaska than cruising 

 

19 minutes ago, david,Mississauga said:

 

All of my Alaska cruises have been from Vancouver. I think there will always be a market for cruises based there, but if not I won't be going to Alaska any more. 

  It  cost less to  cruise out of  a American port vs Vancouver  if you need to fly to take the cruise .Thus ,there is a  benefit there  because international air is more pricy than domestic air 

[mcrcruiser]

We do like Vancouver & Vancouver island  as we have been to both 6 times each   on 6 Alaska cruises & tours  . I would like it better just as a port stop  & not to fly into Vancouver   .We actually stayed at the Westin  Vancouver Harbor where you can see the ships .It was very pleasant but also very pricy  . Found Seattle to be less costly over all 

 

  

[ontheweb]

35 minutes ago, mcrcruiser said:

 

 

  It  cost less to  cruise out of  a American port vs Vancouver  if you need to fly to take the cruise .Thus ,there is a  benefit there  because international air is more pricy than domestic air 

Yes, we discovered that also when we planned and then booked an Alaska cruise. Seattle worked out much better.