USMMA Alumni Endorses SHIPS for America Act

WRITTEN STATEMENT FROM CAPTAIN JAMES TOBIN, PRESIDENT AND CEO, THE U.S. MERCHANT MARINE ACADEMY ALUMNI ASSOCIATION AND FOUNDATION

SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD FOR THE HEARING ON “SEA CHANGE: REVIVING COMMERCIAL SHIPBUILDING”

BEFORE THE SENATE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TECHNOLOGY’S SUBCOMMITTEE ON COAST GUARD, MARITIME, AND FISHERIES

OCTOBER 28, 2025

On behalf of more than 13,000 living graduates of the United States Merchant Marine Academy, I thank Senators Todd Young and Mark Kelly for their bipartisan leadership in advancing the SHIPS for America Act and for keeping America’s maritime strength squarely on the national agenda.

As the maritime threat from China becomes clearer by the day, America must focus on regaining and sustaining dominance of the seas. In any future major-power conflict, our nation’s ability to project and sustain power across the Pacific will depend on the reliability of military sealift—and on the men and women trained to operate it.

More than 80 percent of the US Navy’s Strategic Sealift Officers are service-obligated graduates of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA), whose mission is to educate and train the licensed officers who command our commercial fleets in peacetime and, in wartime, transport the armaments, fuel, and supplies required for victory.

The SHIPS for America Act rightly emphasizes rebuilding the industrial base— shipyards, vessels, and the skilled workforce that sustains them. But a true maritime resurgence also requires rebuilding the human base—specifically, the licensed, militarily obligated Merchant Marine Officers trained at USMMA who will crew those ships in times of war.

To ensure a ready cadre of sealift-qualified officers, Congress established the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, New York, more than eight decades ago. Today, its 1940s-era campus must be modernized to meet 21st-century security demands. Recognizing this urgent need, the SHIPS for America Act provides for the modernization of the USMMA’s infrastructure—a critical link in the chain of America’s maritime readiness.

This bipartisan support in the Senate aligns with efforts at the Department of Transportation (DOT), which is advancing a comprehensive Campus Modernization Plan consistent with the requirements specified in the SHIPS for America Act

This is government at its best: Congress, the Administration, and DOT all pulling in the same direction to strengthen both the maritime industrial base and the human base— the licensed, militarily obligated Merchant Marine Officers who will carry the load when it matters most.

If the United States is serious about maritime resurgence, it must invest not only in ships and shipyards, but also in the service obligated midshipmen training at USMMA who will command them into contested waters.

Respectfully submitted,

Captain James F. Tobin, ’77
President and CEO
U.S. Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association and Foundation

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