In April of 2017, the Cruise Passenger Protection Act (H.R. 2172– S.965) was updated and reintroduced by Representatives Doris Matsui (D-CA), Ted Poe (R-TX) and Jim Himes (D-CT) in the House, and Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Edward Markey (D-MA) in the Senate.
This bipartisan bill includes provisions originally introduced in the 2013 CPPA along with new measures designed to strengthen the Man Overboard (MOB) requirements and medical requirements for cruise ships. In addition, this legislation includes wording to revise the antiquated Death on the High Seas Act (DOSHA), which was passed back in 1920. For nearly 100 years now, this legislation has prohibited victims’ families from taking action after the death of a loved one on a cruise.
Members of International Cruise Victims Association (ICV) who have either been victims of crimes themselves or had family members victimized, traveled in July to Washington, D.C. to gather congressional support for this new legislation.
ICV’s dedication to the needs of cruise ship passengers, especially those who have had crimes committed against them, stems from the fact that victims often feel alone and frustrated by jurisdictional uncertainties as well as poor and unfair treatment by cruise companies. As a result, in 2006 ICV began working with Congress to pass legislation to protect the vulnerable and voiceless victims of cruise ship crime. Eventually that work paid off in the form of the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act (CVSSA). This legislation was passed by a 416 – 4 vote margin and was signed into law in 2010.
