Recreational Boaters Streamlined Inspection Act

Recreational Boaters Streamlined Inspection Act - Requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish an inspection program that uses a videophone system at specified points of entry in Florida through which: (1) a master of a recreational vessel may report to an appropriate official of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for purposes of the Tariff Act of 1930; and (2) a master and the passengers of such a vessel may report to an appropriate DHS official to satisfy requirements for lawful entry into the United States under immigration laws.

Requires the program to be used only in a case in which the master of, and each passenger on, a recreational vessel is a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident.

Provides that the program shall not affect the Secretary's authority to require such individual to wait for a customs inspection or to report the arrival of the vessel to the nearest customs facility or such other place as the Secretary may prescribe by regulations.

[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1509 Introduced in House (IH)]






109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1509

To create an inspection program that uses videophone systems at certain 
points of entry in Florida to satisfy customs and immigration reporting 
                             requirements.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 6, 2005

  Mr. Foley (for himself and Mr. Shaw) introduced the following bill; 
        which was referred to the Committee on Homeland Security

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To create an inspection program that uses videophone systems at certain 
points of entry in Florida to satisfy customs and immigration reporting 
                             requirements.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Recreational Boaters Streamlined 
Inspection Act''.

SEC. 2. PROGRAM FOR VIDEOPHONE SYSTEMS AT POINTS OF ENTRY.

    (a) Requirement to Establish Program.--The Secretary of Homeland 
Security shall establish an inspection program that uses a videophone 
system at each point of entry specified in subsection (c)--
            (1) through which a master of a recreational vessel may 
        report to an appropriate official of the Department of Homeland 
        Security for purposes of section 433 of the Tariff Act of 1930 
        (19 U.S.C. 1433); and
            (2) through which a master and the passengers of a 
        recreational vessel may report to an appropriate official of 
        such Department for purposes of satisfying requirements for 
        lawful entry into the United States under immigration laws as 
        defined in section 101(a) of the Immigration and Nationality 
        Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)).
    (b) Limitation.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall require 
that the program established under subsection (a) may be used only in a 
case in which the master of, and each passenger on, a recreational 
vessel is a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States.
    (c) Points of Entry.--The program established under subsection (a) 
shall be accessible to a master or passenger of a recreational vessel 
at each of the following points of entry in Florida:
            (1) Sebastian Inlet.
            (2) Fort Pierce Inlet.
            (3) St. Lucie Inlet.
            (4) Jupiter Inlet.
            (5) Lake Worth Inlet.
            (6) Boynton Inlet.
            (7) Boca Raton Inlet.
            (8) Hillsboro Inlet.
            (9) Port Everglades Inlet.
            (10) Bakers Haulover Inlet.
            (11) Miami Harbor Inlet.
            (12) Islamorada.
            (13) Key West.
    (d) Effect on Authority of Secretary.--The program established 
under subsection (a) shall not affect the authority of the Secretary of 
Homeland Security to require a master or passenger of a recreational 
vessel to wait for a customs inspection or to report the arrival of the 
vessel to the nearest customs facility or such other place as the 
Secretary may prescribe by regulations.
    (e) Definitions.--In this Act:
            (1) Recreational vessel.--The term ``recreational vessel'' 
        means a vessel--
                    (A) manufactured for operation, or operated, 
                primarily for pleasure; or
                    (B) leased, rented, or chartered to another for the 
                latter's pleasure.
            (2) Videophone system.--The term ``videophone system'' 
        means a system that contains--
                    (A) a telephone that has a two-way visual and audio 
                communication link between two people; and
                    (B) a video transceiver, monitor, facial camera, 
                and document camera.
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