The United States House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries is a defunct

committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...

of the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

. The Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries was created on December 21, 1887, replacing the Select Committee on American Shipbuilding and Shipowning Interests. The House Rules defined its jurisdiction as those matters concerning the

United States Merchant Marine United States Merchant Marines are United States civilian mariners and U.S. civilian and federally owned merchant vessels. Both the civilian mariners and the merchant vessels are managed by a combination of the government and private sectors, an ...

. This included all matters relating to transportation by water, the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mult ...

, life-saving service, lighthouses, lightships, ocean derelicts, the Coast and Geodetic Survey, the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a conduit ...

, and fisheries. Legislation referred to the committee also included matters involving seamen (their assignments, wages, treatment, and health) and officers (their titles, conduct, and licensing); the naming, measuring, licensing, and registering of vessels; navigation and related laws; pleasure yachts; collisions at sea, as well as international arrangements to prevent them; coasting districts; maritime schools; and, taxes, fines, and penalties on vessels. The committee has also regulated shipping in the Philippines and Hawaii. As did most committees of the House, the Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee created subcommittees to handle portions of its jurisdiction. In 1919 the committee was given jurisdiction over wireless telegraphy and in 1932 its name was changed to the Committee on Merchant Marine, Radio, and Fisheries. After a dispute with the

Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce The Committee on Energy and Commerce is one of the oldest standing committees of the United States House of Representatives. Established in 1795, it has operated continuously—with various name changes and jurisdictional changes—for more tha ...

, the jurisdiction over radio services was transferred to that committee in 1935 and the term "radio" was dropped from the name of the Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee. During his tenure in office, Congressman

Mario Biaggi Mario Biaggi (October 26, 1917 – June 24, 2015) was an American politician, attorney, and police officer. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from New York from 1969 to 1988. Prior to his political career, Biagg ...

was Chairman of the US House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Navigation. In 1995, most duties of the committee were transferred to the Committee on Resources and subsequently abolished.

Chairmen

References

Records of the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries (1887– 1986)
Records of the Judiciary Committee and Related Committees, Guide to the Records of the U.S. House of Representatives at the National Archives, 1789–1989 (Record Group 233),

National Archives and Records Administration The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It i ...

{{NARA Merchant Marine and Fisheries 1887 establishments in Washington, D.C. 1995 disestablishments in Washington, D.C.