republic-os/legal/us/code/title-46/chapter-121/section-12151.md

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LegalText	46 U.S.C. § 12151	Penalties	us	united_states_code	code_section	46	SHIPPING	121	DOCUMENTATION OF VESSELS	12151	46 U.S.C. § 12151	current	119-100	2026-06-26	official	https://uscode.house.gov/download/releasepoints/us/pl/119/100/xml_usc46@119-100.zip	/us/usc/t46/s12151	data/legal/raw/us/code/title-46/usc46.xml	ed4755563d804e51be87a068db40e967fef7719016220ceb2e32f572b219a428	eb1331aa3c08ed87231a3606d86b30d1b5942cdf8542f6a3df8ac1d66e86057f	2bdbb4d720467868fdd2b791714d2d2eb2e0099aca18d4645fbe45fef5ff8f69	2026-07-04	official	legal us-code

46 U.S.C. § 12151 - Penalties

Text

(a) In General.— (1) Civil penalties.— Except as provided in paragraph (2), a person that violates this chapter or a regulation prescribed under this chapter is liable to the United States Government for a civil penalty of not more than $15,000. Each day of a continuing violation is a separate violation.

(2) Activities involving mobile offshore drilling units.— A person that violates section 12111(d) or a regulation prescribed under that section is liable to the United States Government for a civil penalty in an amount that is $25,000 or twice the charter rate of the vessel involved in the violation (as determined by the Secretary), whichever is greater. Each day of a continuing violation is a separate violation.

(b) Seizure and Forfeiture of Vessels.— A vessel and its equipment are liable to seizure by and forfeiture to the Government if—

(1) the owner of the vessel or the representative or agent of the owner knowingly falsifies or conceals a material fact, or knowingly makes a false statement or representation, about the documentation of the vessel or in applying for documentation of the vessel;

(2) a certificate of documentation is knowingly and fraudulently used for the vessel;

(3) the vessel is operated after its endorsement has been denied or revoked under section 12152 of this title;

(4) the vessel is employed in a trade without an appropriate endorsement;

(5) the vessel has only a recreational endorsement and is operated other than for pleasure;

(6) the vessel is a documented vessel and is placed under the command of a person not a citizen of the United States, except as authorized by section 12131(b) of this title; or

(7) the vessel is rebuilt outside the United States and a report of the rebuilding is not submitted as required by section 12139(b) of this title.

(c) Engaging in Fishing After Falsifying Eligibility.— In addition to other penalties under this section, the owner of a documented vessel for which a fishery endorsement has been issued is liable to the Government for a civil penalty of not more than $100,000 for each day the vessel engages in fishing (as defined in section 3 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1802)) within the exclusive economic zone, if the owner or the representative or agent of the owner knowingly falsified or concealed a material fact, or knowingly made a false statement or representation, about the eligibility of the vessel under section 12113(c) or (d) of this title in applying for or applying to renew the fishery endorsement.

(Pub. L. 109–304, § 5, Oct. 6, 2006, 120 Stat. 1508; Pub. L. 112–213, title III, § 309, Dec. 20, 2012, 126 Stat. 1566.)

Notes

Historical and Revision Notes RevisedSectionSource (U.S. Code)Source (Statutes at Large) 12151(a)46:12122(a). 12151(b)46:12122(b). 46 App.:14 (last proviso).R.S. § 4136 (last proviso); Feb. 24, 1915, ch. 57, 38 Stat. 812; Pub. L. 103–182, title VI, § 686(a)(4), Dec. 8, 1993, 107 Stat. 2220. 46 App.:883a (2d, last sentences).July 14, 1956, ch. 600, § 2 (2d, last sentences), 70 Stat. 544; Pub. L. 86–583, § 2, July 5, 1960, 74 Stat. 321. 12151(c)46:12122(c). In subsection (b), in restating 46 App. U.S.C. 883a (2d, last sentences), the penalty of $200 for the owner and master of the vessel is omitted because subsection (a) provides a general civil penalty for violation of this chapter. The authority to remit or mitigate a penalty under section 2107(b) is omitted because section 2107(b) applies to subtitle II and this section is in subtitle II.

Editorial Notes

Amendments2012—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 112–213 designated existing provisions as par. (1), inserted par. (1) heading, substituted “Except as provided in paragraph (2), a person that violates” for “A person that violates” and “$15,000” for “$10,000”, and added par. (2).