Senate Bill Calls for Screening of Containers at Foreign Ports

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wo senators have introduced legislation they said would create an Office of Cargo Security within the Department of Homeland Security and it would expand the power of U.S. security officials to screen cargo containers in foreign ports.

The $835 million GreenLane Maritime Cargo Security Act was brought to the floor by Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), chairwoman of the Senate’s Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, and Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Transportation, Treasury, Judiciary and Housing and Urban Development Appropriations subcommittee.

“Our bill will help close one of the most dangerous vulnerabilities facing our nation — a terrorist organization using cargo containers to bring weapons and terrorists into the United States,” Murray said when she introduced the bill Nov. 15.

For the full story, see the Dec. 5 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.