Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act of 2010

Floor Speech

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Ms. MATSUI. I thank the gentleman from Maryland for yielding me time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Senate amendments to H.R. 3360, the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act, legislation that I introduced and which passed the House by a strong bipartisan vote of 416-4 in November of last year. The bill received similar support in the Senate, which passed it with unanimous consent earlier this month.

The Senate amendments to this legislation are also bipartisan in nature, and I urge my colleagues to support the bill before us that would send critical consumer protection language to the President for his consideration. For far too long American families have unknowingly been at risk when embarking on cruise vacations.

Four years ago, one of my constituents, Laurie Dishman, wrote to me for help. Laurie was the victim of a sexual assault while on a cruise vacation. She was given no assistance by the cruise line in properly securing evidence of the assault, no assistance in identifying her attacker, no assistance in prosecuting the crime once back on shore. Devastated, Laurie reached out to me, and I immediately worked with Chairman Cummings, who committed to me to hold hearings on this issue and began to work on this critical legislation.

These hearings made apparent the gross inadequacies of current cruise safety provisions. And with ongoing news coverage of rapes on cruise ships, it is clear that this legislation is both urgent and necessary. My legislation establishes stringent new standards to ensure the safety and security of passengers on cruise vessels. Its reforms include requiring that vessel personnel be able to preserve evidence of crimes committed on these vessels, and provide appropriate medical treatment to the victims of sexual assaults.

Security, safety, and accountability must all be strengthened to hold criminals accountable and end the cycle of serious, dangerous crimes aboard cruise ships.

I would like to thank both Chairmen, Cummings and Oberstar for the good work their committees and staffs have done on this bill and for their tremendous support in making this bill a reality. I would also like to thank my colleagues on the other side of the aisle for their support. This has been a long, difficult road for all cruise victims and their families. And believe me, this legislation is truly a result of their courage, their dedication, and their conviction to preventing further crimes from happening.

I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation and pave the way for safety of all cruise passengers.

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