FLEETS Now Act

This section amends the Better Utilization of Investments Leading to Development Act of 2018 to remove a restriction on the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) from providing assistance for "harbors or ports." It then explicitly adds "Harbors or ports... and related infrastructure" to the list of eligible investments for the DFC. This expands the DFC's ability to finance port and related infrastructure projects abroad.

This section requires the Secretary of State to brief Congress on companies with formal or informal financial ties to China Ocean Shipping Company Shipping Heavy Industry and China State Shipbuilding Corporation. It also mandates the President to submit annual reports for three years detailing subsidiaries, trading practices, Chinese government involvement, and shipyards producing dual-use vessels, specifically identifying those doing business with non-PRC entities.

This section declares it U.S. policy to develop domestic shipbuilding capacity independent of Chinese supply chains. This policy will be implemented through relevant knowledge transfer and skillset development of a shipbuilding labor force in the United States, securing direct investment in U.S. shipyards by allies and partners, and the development of a coherent long-term strategy for supply chain diversification and capacity expansion involving all relevant federal agencies.

Within 90 days, the President must designate a single individual as the primary point of contact in the U.S. Government for attracting international shipbuilding investment, leading cooperation with foreign governments on supply chain diversification, and coordinating international shipbuilding industries to enhance resilience and protect U.S. national security.

This section renames the Assistant Secretary for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs to Assistant Secretary for Water, Environment, and Space Affairs. It significantly expands the responsibilities of this position and establishes a corresponding Bureau, explicitly adding duties related to maritime diplomacy, including the creation and operation of the Allied Maritime Framework and leading engagement in the Maritime Group of Nations.

This section expresses a Sense of Congress that the Secretary of State should initiate an exchange visitor program for technical shipbuilding expertise. It then amends the Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act of 1961 to explicitly authorize interchanges and visits between the U.S. and other countries for various shipbuilding professionals (marine engineers, naval architects, deck-plate professionals, etc.) for a period of two years after enactment.

This section mandates the Secretary of State, in coordination with the Federal Maritime Commission Chair, to detail personnel from the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs to diplomatic posts in specific countries. These investigators will probe unfair shipping practices (price-fixing, market manipulation, unreasonable refusal to deal), denial of port entry to U.S.-flagged vessels, flags of convenience, anticompetitive agreements, and financial relationships of Chinese shipping companies. It also amends existing law to include findings about these unfair practices in Investment Climate Statements and to require disclosure of certain investments by aid-receiving countries.

The President, through the designated shipbuilding coordinator, must engage allied countries to develop a shared framework to enhance collective capacity in designing, producing, and maintaining military and civilian ships. This framework includes mechanisms for information exchange, industrial collaboration, reciprocal port access, co-development of design principles, cost reduction coordination, identification of specialized ship types for cooperation, incentives for foreign direct investment, a joint workforce-development program, R&D sharing, agreements to procure from specialized shipyards, and preventing dual-use technology leakage to China's military.

The Secretary of State is directed to establish a "Maritime Group of Nations" to coordinate regulatory and commerce policies for commercial shipping. This group would include countries of significant maritime importance (based on shipbuilding tonnage, merchant mariners, or commercially owned ships) but explicitly exclude "foreign countries of concern" (i.e., China). Functions include supporting maritime prosperity zones, implementing reciprocal fees on foreign-built vessels, developing standardized reciprocal trade agreements, coordinating positions on IMO regulations, and implementing the shipbuilding expert exchange program.

This section directs the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations to use U.S. influence at the IMO to advocate for several specific changes. These include revising the IMO's Net-Zero Framework to exclude limits on conventional fuels, remove financial penalties/carbon taxes, eliminate penalties on LNG, support an "energy all" approach, withdraw from regional emissions schemes (like the EU ETS), support an "opt-in" model for IMO rules, and remove unreasonable net-zero 2050 targets. It also directs the U.S. to advance U.S. citizens into senior IMO positions, combat China's anti-competitive practices, advocate for consistent enforcement of existing safety rules, and de-link U.S. domestic environmental requirements from international certificates.