b'selstocarryout-of-waterlifecraft,The two decades plusislativeDirector,RichardPatch.Ive even when there was no safety justi- with PVA have broughtknown Richard for three decades; in ficationforthemandate.Withthefact, his first job in Washington, D.C., help of dozens of potentially affectedme tremendouswas as personal aide to my Capitol Hill PVAvesselmembers,webeseechedsatisfaction. Theboss,thelateCongressmanWalter Congresstoreconsiderthatlaw.ItJones, Sr., of North Carolina. Richard took several years, but eventually webreadth of experienceshas honed his lobbying skills in Wash-succeededinpersuadinglawmakersand talents that all ofington with the Humane Society of to roll back the requirement before itthe United States and the American ever went into effect. you bring never ceaseSociety for the Prevention of Cruelty to impress me.to Animals. Welcome, Richard. Hes Foryears,pushingagainstindiffer- officially on board, and you will have ence by the Coast Guard, we lobbiedtheopportunitytomeethimwhen that agency to take more seriously thehe attends the PVA region meetings, twin problems of rail jumpers fromMostrecently,afteracampaignofstarting in Phoenix in September.passengervesselsandunscrupulousmanyyears,andwiththedogged vesseloperatorswhothumbtheirleadership of Congressman John Ga- IwillremainwithPVA,butina noses at safety requirements that pro- ramendiofCalifornia,weachievedmorebehind-the-scenesadvisory tect passengers. Battles against theseourgoaloflooseningtheeligibilitycapacity. Working remotely from my misbehaviors will never cease, but be- criteria of the U.S. Maritime Admin- Columbia, S.C., home, I hope to at-cause of PVAs persistence, the Coastistrations Capital Construction Fundtend the Southeast/Original Colonies Guardisnowourallyintamping(CCF). Now, every private PVA vesselregionmeetinginCharleston,S.C., them down. operator who wishes to can establishin mid-October and perhaps the PVA and take advantage or the tax benefitsAnnualConventionatMariTrends WehaveadvocatedbeforeCongressof a CCF. 2024 in Portland, Ore., (home of one and the Executive Branch that ferries,of my daughters) next Jan. 27-30.both privately and publicly owned, areImpleasedtoreportthatPVAcan integral parts of our national transpor- look forward to strong and effectiveThank you! Its been my privilege to tation network and deserve financialadvocacyservicesfromitsnewLeg- represent you in Washington.support from the federal government.Whenthecoronaviruspandemic threated the financial underpinnings of our members, we lobbied hard for emergencyfinancialreliefbymeans of forgivable loans from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), inclusion of dinner boats in the Restaurant Re-vitalization Fund program, and direct payments from the Treasury Depart-ments CERTS grant program.OurPVAassociatemembersthat buildthepassengervesselsoperated byvesselmembershavebenefited fromtheSmallShipyardCapital GrantsProgram,preservationof which is a PVA legislative priority.47 AUGUST 2023'