[Senate Hearing 107-960]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
S. Hrg. 107-960
NOMINATION OF REBECCA DYE TO BE
COMMISSIONER OF THE FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION
=======================================================================
HEARING
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE,
SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED SEVENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
__________
JULY 31, 2002
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation
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COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
ONE HUNDRED SEVENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
ERNEST F. HOLLINGS, South Carolina, Chairman
DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii JOHN McCAIN, Arizona
JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER IV, West TED STEVENS, Alaska
Virginia CONRAD BURNS, Montana
JOHN F. KERRY, Massachusetts TRENT LOTT, Mississippi
JOHN B. BREAUX, Louisiana KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON, Texas
BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, Maine
RON WYDEN, Oregon SAM BROWNBACK, Kansas
MAX CLELAND, Georgia GORDON SMITH, Oregon
BARBARA BOXER, California PETER G. FITZGERALD, Illinois
JOHN EDWARDS, North Carolina JOHN ENSIGN, Nevada
JEAN CARNAHAN, Missouri GEORGE ALLEN, Virginia
BILL NELSON, Florida
Kevin D. Kayes, Democratic Staff Director
Jeanne Bumpus, Republican Staff Director and General Counsel
C O N T E N T S
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Page
Hearing held on July 31, 2002.................................... 1
Statement of Senator Breaux...................................... 1
Witnesses
Dye, Rebecca, nominee to be Commissioner of the Federal Maritime
Commission..................................................... 1
Biographical information..................................... 3
Appendix
Stevens, Hon. Ted, prepared statement............................ 7
NOMINATION OF REBECCA DYE TO BE
COMMISSIONER OF THE FEDERAL MARITIME
COMMISSION
----------
WEDNESDAY, JULY 31, 2002
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
Washington, DC.
The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 9:30 a.m. in room
SR-253, Russell Senate Office Building, Hon. John B. Breaux,
presiding.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN B. BREAUX,
U.S. SENATOR FROM LOUISIANA
Senator Breaux. The hearing will please come to order.
This morning, our first order of business is going to be a
hearing on the nomination of Rebecca Dye to be our new
Commissioner of the Federal Maritime Commission. We are
delighted that she is here.
Our friend and colleague, Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska is
here, and unfortunately, Senator Stevens has a voice problem
this morning. I am sure it is only temporary, but we are asking
him to save his voice. His statement, recognizing his strong
support for Ms. Dye and her distinguished work as a counsel for
the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee's
Subcommittee on the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation,
will be made a part of the record.
We want to move quickly so Ms. Dye can get back to work on
the port security legislation and other matters that we are
currently addressing. We are delighted to have you here, and if
you would like to introduce any family members you have and
present your statement to the Committee, we would be pleased to
proceed.
Ms. Dye.
STATEMENT OF REBECCA DYE, NOMINEE TO BE
COMMISSIONER OF THE FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION
Ms. Dye. Thank you very much, Senator, and thank you,
Senator Stevens. I appreciate your coming.
My husband David, who is a former staffer on this
Committee, and our Caroline are with me today. They have been a
great help to me, and I appreciate your allowing me to
recognize them.
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee, I am honored to
appear before you today as President Bush's nominee to be a
Commissioner of the Federal Maritime Commission. It is also a
pleasure to appear before this Committee after having worked
with your exceptional staff on both sides of the aisle for many
years. After arriving in Washington from my home State of North
Carolina in 1979, I began my Federal career as a commissioned
officer and attorney in the Coast Guard's Office of the Chief
Counsel. I later served as a law instructor at the Coast Guard
Academy in New London, Connecticut.
After 2 years as an attorney at the United States Maritime
Administration, I joined the staff of the former Committee on
the Merchant Marine and Fisheries in the House of
Representatives as Minority counsel, and then in 1995, I became
counsel for the Coast Guard Maritime Transportation
Subcommittee of the Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure. I have been extremely fortunate during my
career to have the support and encouragement of my family, good
friends, and mentors.
Today, I would like to publicly thank my friends and
mentors in the industry and on Capitol Hill, including former
Congressmen Bob Davis, Jack Fields, Bud Shuster, and especially
the Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman, Don Young, for
his support and guidance over the years.
Mr. Chairman, as I am confirmed as a Commissioner of the
Federal Maritime Commission, my 23 years of diverse experience
in maritime law and policy will allow me to positively
contribute to the Commission's vital mission. I am familiar
with the specific legal authorities administered by the
Commission, in particular the Ocean Shipping Reform Act. I am
also familiar with the business needs and the general concerns
of the various industry stakeholders regulated by the
Commission.
Finally, my experience with the legal authorities and
regulatory regimes administered by the Coast Guard and the
Maritime Administration has given me a broad understanding of
maritime transportation.
I recently heard Federal Maritime Commission Chairman Hal
Creel make the point that few Americans appreciate the
significant role that international ocean transportation plays
in their lives. Even fewer Americans are aware of the
importance of the country's international ocean shipping regime
administered by the Federal Maritime Commission.
The United States relies on ocean transportation for 95
percent of cargo tonnage that moves in and out of the country.
Each year, more than 7,500 commercial vessels make
approximately 51,000 port calls and over 6 million loaded
marine containers will enter U.S. ports.
The Commission's regulation of international liner
transportation is an important component of our Nation's
economic vitality, and it was greatly strengthened by this
Committee's effort in the development and enactment of the
Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 1998. The Ocean Shipping Reform
Act substantially amended the Shipping Act of 1984, the primary
statute administered by the Commission. The goal of the
amendment contained in the Ocean Shipping Reform Act was to
encourage the free flow of U.S. exports and imports through our
greater reliance on the marketplace. The Commission concluded
in its recent report on the effect of the Ocean Shipping Reform
Act on international maritime shipping that the Act is working
well. It has been an enormous benefit to international ocean
shipping.
As you know, Mr. Chairman, the most significant changes
authorized by the Ocean Shipping Reform Act involve service
contracts between ocean carriers and shippers. Under the Reform
Act, service contracts may be kept confidential. While the
contracts are required to be filed with the Commission on a
confidential basis, the contracting parties may keep important
rate information private if they wish. Liner conferences and
agreements among common carriers cannot dictate service
contract terms or prohibit members from offering service
contracts.
This approach to service contracting allows market-based
forces to set shipping rates, but also preserves a regulatory
role for the Commission. It allows ocean carriers to be
responsive to the needs of their customers, and has resulted in
a dramatic change in the way ocean cargo is shipped
internationally. Recent statistics show that in some trade
lanes companies are shipping about 98 percent of their cargo
under shipping contracts.
If confirmed by the Senate, I will be fair-minded and
objective in the execution of the market-oriented statutory
directives of the Ocean Shipping Reform Act. I will also do all
I can to guarantee that shippers, common carriers, ocean
transportation intermediaries, and ports regulated by the
Commission are provided with a fair market environment in which
to operate.
Pursuant to the Commission's other statutory authorities, I
will work to eliminate unfair shipping practices by foreign
governments, and protect cruise ship passengers against undue
financial risk.
Finally, Mr. Chairman, I will do all that I can to assist
in a concerted effort to ensure homeland security.
Mr. Chairman, thank you very much for holding this hearing
today, and I will be delighted to answer any questions you may
have.
[The biographical information of Rebecca Dye follows:]
A. BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION
1. Name: Rebecca Feemster Dye; Maiden name: Rebecca Lynn Feemster
Nickname: ``Becky''.
2. Position to which nominated: Commissioner, Federal Maritime
Commission.
3. Date of nomination: June 12, 2002.
4. Address: (Information not released to the public).
5. Date and place of birth: May 8, 1952, Charlotte, North Carolina.
6. Marital status: Married. Husband's name: David Gary Dye.
7. Names and ages of children: Caroline Lytton Dye, age 13.
8. Education: August, 1966-June, 1970, Hunter Huss High School,
High School diploma awarded June, 1970; September, 1970-June 1972,
University of North Carolina at Greensboro, No degree awarded; August,
1972-May, 1974, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Bachelor
of Arts awarded May, 1974; August, 1974-May, 1977, University of North
Carolina School of Law, Juris Doctorate awarded May, 1977.
9. Employment record: January 1995-Present, Counsel, Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure, 2165 Rayburn House Office Building,
U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, D.C. 20515; February 1987-
January 1995, Minority Counsel, Committee on Merchant Marine and
Fisheries, U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, D.C. 20515,
(Committee was abolished in 1995); June 1985-February 1987, Attorney,
Legislation Division, Office of the Chief Counsel, Maritime
Administration of the Department of Transportation, Washington, D.C.,
1400 7th Street, S.W. Washington, D.C. 20590; August 1983-June 1985,
Law Instructor, United States Coast Guard Academy, New London,
Connecticut; June-August 1983, Attorney, Office of the Assistant
Counsel for Legislation, Department of Transportation, Washington, D.C.
20590; 1980-1983, Attorney, Legislation Division, Office of the Chief
Counsel, United States Coast Guard Headquarters, Washington, D.C.;
1979-1980, Assistant Division Chief, Legal Administration Division,
Office of the Chief Counsel, United States Coast Guard Headquarters,
Washington, D.C.; 1978-1979, Attorney Project Coordinator, Legal
Services of North Carolina, Raleigh, North Carolina; 1977-1978, Special
Counsel, Broughton Psychiatric Hospital, Morganton, North Carolina;
1977, Instructor, Dyslexia School, Dallas, North Carolina; 1976-1977
(Part-time), Sales Clerk, Belk-Leggett Co., Durham, North Carolina;
1975-1976, (Part-time), UNC Law School Library; 1975 (Part-time)
Instructor, Reading Research Foundation, Layfayette, LA.
10. Government experience: None other than those listed above.
11. Business relationships: Member of Board of Directors for Coast
Guard Federal Credit Union (early 1980s); Member of Board of Directors
of House of Representatives Child Care Center (early 1990s).
12. Memberships: North Carolina State Bar; White House Military
Social Aides Association; St. Francis Episcopal Church, Potomac, MD;
Palisades Swim and Tennis Club, Bethesda, MD; Montgomery County
Republican Party Association
13. Political affiliations and activities: (a) List all offices
with a political party which you have held or any public office for
which you have been a candidate. None.
(b) List all memberships and offices held in and services rendered
to all political parties or election committees during the last 10
years. None.
(c) Itemize all political contributions to any individual, campaign
organization, political party, political action committee, or similar
entity of $500 or more for the past 10 years. $1,000--Bush for
President.
14. Honors and awards: Coast Guard Commendation Medal Coast Guard
Achievement Medal.
15. Published writings: ``Slick Work: An Analysis of the Oil
Pollution Act of 1990,'' published in 1992 by the Journal of Energy,
Natural Resources and Environmental Law, Co-authored with Cynthia M
Wilkinson and Lisa Pittman.
16. Speeches: During the last 5 years I have been asked
infrequently to give remarks concerning current developments in
Congress. I speak from brief notes for these appearances, and do not
keep copies of my notes or the dates of appearances.
17. Selection: (a) Do you know why you were chosen for this
nomination by the President? I believe I received this nomination based
upon my qualifications and experience relating to the responsibilities
of the Federal Maritime Commission.
(b) What do you believe in your background or employment experience
affirmatively qualifies you for this particular appointment? I believe
my nearly 23 years of experience in matters concerning maritime law and
policy qualify me for this position.
B. FUTURE EMPLOYMENT RELATIONSHIPS
1. Will you sever all connections with your present employers,
business firms, business associations or business organizations if you
are confirmed by the Senate? Yes.
2. Do you have any plans, commitments or agreements to pursue
outside employment, with or without compensation, during your service
with the government? No.
3. Do you have any plans, commitments or agreements after
completing government service to resume employment, affiliation or
practice with your previous employer, business firm, association or
organization? No.
4. Has anybody made a commitment to employ your services in any
capacity after you leave government service? No.
5. If confirmed, do you expect to serve out your full term or until
the next Presidential election, whichever is applicable? Yes.
C. POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
1. Describe all financial arrangements, deferred compensation
agreements, and other continuing dealings with business associates,
clients, or customers. None.
2. Indicate any investments, obligations, liabilities, or other
relationships which could involve potential conflicts of interest in
the position to which you have been nominated. None.
3. Describe any business relationship, dealing, or financial
transaction which you have had during the last 10 years, whether for
yourself, on behalf of a client, or acting as an agent, that could in
any way constitute or result in a possible conflict of interest in the
position to which you have been nominated. None.
4. Describe any activity during the past 10 years in which you have
been engaged for the purpose of directly or indirectly influencing the
passage, defeat or modification of any legislation or affecting the
administration and execution of law or public policy. In my positions
as Counsel for the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and
for the former Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, I was
employed to develop legislation to carry out the legislative agenda of
the Members of Congress for whom I worked.
5. Explain how you will resolve any potential conflict of interest,
including any that may be disclosed by your responses to the above
items. I am unaware of any potential conflicts of interest at this
time. If any potential conflicts arise at any time I will recuse myself
from consideration of matters involved.
6. Do you agree to have written opinions provided to the Committee
by the designated agency ethics officer of the agency to which you are
nominated and by the Office of Government Ethics concerning potential
conflicts of interest or any legal impediment to your serving in this
position? Yes.
D. LEGAL MATTERS
1. Have you ever been disciplined or cited for a breach of ethics
for unprofessional conduct by, or been the subject of a complaint to
any court, administrative agency, professional association,
disciplinary committee, or other professional group? If so, provide
details. No.
2. Have you ever been investigated, arrested, charged, or held by
any Federal, State, or other law enforcement authority for violation of
any Federal, State, county, or municipal law, regulation or ordinance,
other than a minor traffic offense? If so, provide details. No.
3. Have you or any business of which you are or were an officer
ever been involved as a party in interest in an administrative agency
proceeding or civil litigation? If so, provide details. No.
4. Have you ever been convicted (including pleas of guilty or nolo
contendere) of any criminal violation other than a minor traffic
offense? No.
5. Please advise the Committee of any additional information,
favorable or unfavorable, which you feel should be considered in
connection with your nomination. None.
E. RELATIONSHIP WITH COMMITTEE
1. Will you ensure that your department/agency complies with
deadlines set by congressional committees for information? Yes.
2. Will you ensure that your department/agency does whatever it can
to protect congressional witnesses and whistleblowers from reprisal for
their testimony and disclosures? Yes.
3. Will you cooperate in providing the committee with requested
witnesses, to include technical experts and career employees with
firsthand knowledge of matters of interest to the committee? Yes.
4. Are you willing to appear and testify before any duly
constituted committee of the Congress on such occasions as you may be
reasonably requested to do so? Yes.
F. GENERAL QUALIFICATIONS AND VIEWS
1. Please describe how your previous professional experience and
education qualifies you for the position for which you have been
nominated. I believe my nearly 23 years of experience in positions
directly related to maritime law and policy, including the laws
enforced by the Federal Maritime Commission, qualify me for the
position of Federal Maritime Commissioner.
2. What skills do you believe you may be lacking which may be
necessary to successfully carry out this position? What steps can be
taken to obtain those skills? If confirmed, I believe that my training
and experience has prepared me to carry out successfully the duties of
a Federal Maritime Commissioner.
3. Why do you wish to serve in the position for which you have been
nominated? If confirmed, I believe that my experience and other
qualifications will allow me to discharge successfully the
responsibilities of the position for which I was nominated. I believe
it is an honor to serve the President and the people of the United
States in the position for which I have been nominated.
4. What goals have you established for your first 2 years in this
position, if confirmed? If confirmed, my goal will be to enforce
faithfully the laws and other mandates of the Federal Maritime
Commission.
5. Who are the stakeholders in the work of this agency? The
stakeholders of the Federal Maritime Commission include the U.S.
Senate, the U.S. House of Representatives, the executive branch, vessel
common carriers, shippers of cargo, shipping intermediaries, United
States ports, and United States labor.
6. What is the proper relationship between your position, if
confirmed, and the stakeholders identified in question No. 10? If
confirmed, the proper relationship between my position and agency
stakeholders would be to consider all relevant viewpoints provided by
the stakeholders on matters before the Commission, and to exercise
independent judgment, based on the law and other mandates of the
Commission, to address those matters.
7. Please describe your philosophy of supervisor/employee
relationships. Generally, what supervisory model do you follow? Have
any employee complaints been brought against you? I have employed a
collegial, team approach to personnel management. No employee
complaints have been brought against me.
8. Describe your working relationship, if any, with the Congress?
Does your professional experience include working with committees of
Congress? If yes, please describe. I have been employed for over 15
years in Congress, with two different Committees in the House of
Representatives. During that time I have worked regularly with the
Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation and other committees
of the Senate. My work relationships have been courteous and
professional.
9. Please explain how you will work with this Committee and other
stakeholders to ensure that regulations issued by your board/commission
comply with the spirit of the laws passed by Congress. If confirmed, l
will fully consider all viewpoints of stakeholders, including those of
the Members of this Committee, and ensure that I am fully informed on
the law and the facts concerning any regulation considered by the
Commission.
10. In the areas under the board/commission jurisdiction, what
legislative action(s) should Congress consider as priorities? Please
State your personal views. At this time, I do not have any personal
legislative priorities that I believe should be considered by the
Congress with respect to Federal Maritime Commission. Congress recently
enacted comprehensive amendments to the international ocean shipping
system in the Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 1998, and, if confirmed, my
first priority will be to implement and enforce that Act and the other
laws and mandates administered by the Commission.
11. Please discuss your views on the appropriate relationship
between a voting member of any independent board or commission and the
wishes of a particular President. I believe that a member of an
independent board or commission should consider all relevant viewpoints
and exercise his best independent judgment, based on the law and other
mandates of the commission, on any matter before that board or
commission.
Senator Breaux. Thank you very much, Ms. Dye, for your
statement. You mentioned being concened about homeland security
in your last sentence. Do you think the FMC has a role in
homeland security in any way?
Ms. Dye. Yes, Mr. Chairman. The FMC has been participating
in the cargo container security meetings that are being held at
the Department of Transportation. As you know, information-
sharing and integration and analysis is going to be one of the
cornerstones of our homeland security effort. The Federal
Maritime Commission can play a role in sharing the wealth of
information that they collect.
The Federal Maritime Commission licenses freight forwarders
and non-vessel-operating common carriers, which are the
shipping intermediaries, in some cases that actually oversee
the loading and the sealing of containers.
The Commission, in their licensing efforts, requires
experience for 3 years back on these transportation
intermediaries, and they also require a bond for them to
perform in the United States, so that information I think would
be very valuable in a container analysis data system.
There are about 2,150 U.S. freight forwarders, and nearly
3,000 non-vessel-operating carriers that are licensed presently
by the FMC, so that would be a great advantage.
Senator Breaux. Well, I appreciate that answer. We had a
previous hearing on the Chairman-to-be, Mr. Blust, and Mr.
Creel joined us as well. We talked about that information. If
it just stays with the FMC and is not somehow shared with some
of the law enforcement agencies, whether it is the FBI or the
new Homeland Security Department, it is very important
information, and should not just be pigeonholed and put in a
box somewhere at the FMC.
You have access to information that could be exceedingly
valuable, and I think we should make sure we have a system
whereby it is shared by those who need to have it shared.
Ms. Dye. Yes, sir.
Senator Breaux. We probably have some additional questions
we might submit to you, but for the moment I think that will
suffice with my questions.
I take it that Senator Stevens, if he has questions, they
would be submitted in writing, and we will operate under that
format.
Senator Rockefeller, from the great maritime State of West
Virginia.
Senator Rockefeller. Mr. Chairman, I was searching the map
this morning once again looking for oceans and ports in West
Virginia, and I failed to come up with any, so I only have to
assume that I am going to vote for this nominee.
[Laughter.]
Senator Breaux. Thank you, Senator Rockefeller.
Ms. Dye, thank you so much. I hope that soon we will be
able to call you Commissioner Dye. We will bring it to a vote
just as soon as the Chairman is able to schedule it. We look
forward to working with you in the future.
Ms. Dye. Thank you very much, Senator. I appreciate it.
Senator Breaux. Thank you.
[Whereupon, at 9:45 a.m., the hearing was adjourned.]
A P P E N D I X
Prepared Statment of Senator Ted Stevens
Mr. Chairman, thank you for holding this hearing to consider the
nomination of Rebecca Dye to be a Commissioner on the Federal Maritime
Commission (FMC).
Ms. Dye was nominated on June 13, 2002, by the President to serve
as an FMC commissioner for the remainder of a 5-year term expiring June
30, 2005. Ms. Dye is fully prepared to serve as a Federal Maritime
commissioner from her years as an officer in the U.S. Coast Guard, both
as a legislative attorney in the Chief Counsel's Office in Coast Guard
Headquarters and as a Law Instructor at the Coast Guard Academy in New
London, Connecticut.
In addition to her service to her country in the Coast Guard, Ms.
Dye has distinguished herself as the Counsel for the House
Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Coast Guard and
Maritime Transportation, working for my good friend Chairman Don Young.
Ms. Dye is an excellent choice for this position and will serve our
Nation's maritime interests well. I strongly recommend that this
Committee move her nomination forward.