OCEAN MINERALS 39 
 
location of processing plants in the United States. The Administration testified
that the language of the "Grandfather rights" provisions was too
strong and
inferred moral if not legal obligation to the U.S. Government to compensate
companies for losses due to UNCLOS III treaty provisions that were less advantageous.
The Administration requested that the data for issuances of licenses be changed
to July 1, 1981, and the date for earliest commercial recovery be changed
to July 1, 1982. The U.S. Government also requested that provisions of the
Clean Water Act be applied to regulation of polluting discharges from seabed
mining and related at-sea processing. 
 The bill was reported with amendments from the Committee on Energy and Natural
Resources on May 1, 1979, from the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation
on July 27, 1979, and from the Committee on Foreign Relations on July 30,
1979. A joint report of the three committees was published August 9, 1979~
Amendments listed in the report accomplished the following: 
 1. Changed the authority for regulatory functions from the Secretary of
the Interior to the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration 
(NOAA). 
 2. Set the date for licenses at July 1, 1981, and earliest date for commercial
recovery at January 1, 1982. 
 3. Called for mining and processing vessels to be constructed and documented
in the United States. 
 4. Laid out requirements for a work plan. 
 5. Softened the language of the "Grandfather rights" provisions.

 6. Struck the provision for stable reference areas. 
 The bill was referred jointly to the Committees on Finance and Environment
and Public Works to consider provisions which dealt with international revenue-sharing.
The excise tax proposal called for a 3.75% tax imposed on the imputed value
of the nodules removed from the deep seabed. The imputed value for this purpose
was 20% of the fair market value of the commercially recoverable metal and
minerals contained in the nodules which* represents the estimated proportional
share of the costs of the mining process itself in relation to the total
costs involved in mining, transporting, processing, and marketing the nodules.
The proceeds of the tax were to be paid into a Deep Seabed Fund established
under Title 
V of the legislation. The committees reported the bill without amendment
on October 
3, 1979. 
 On December 14, 1979, the Senate passed S. 493 after agreeing to the above
amendments. 
 H.R. 2759.— On March 8, 1979, Representative Murphy introduced
H.R.
2759, the Deep Seabed Hard Minerals Resources Act, into the House of Representatives
of the 96th Congress. It was referred jointly to the Committees on Foreign
Affairs, Interior and Insular Affairs, Merchant Marine and Fisheries, and
Ways and Means. 
 Hearings were held by the Committees on Merchant Marine and Fisheries and
Interior and Insular Affairs beginning in May. Testimony was given by representatives
of the Administration, industry, environmentalists, and the public. The witnesses
and testimony were basically the same as for S. 
493. 
 Although the industry basically supported domestic legislation as an alternative
to the establishment of an international regime, there were some provisions
with which it differed. It opposed setting dates for liscenses and permits
for the mid-1980's because provisions would make it impossible to commit
large sums of additional funds, although the data for first commercial recovery
has been set at about 1985. Industry requested that the "Grandfather
rights"
provisions be strengthened. Industry was opposed to stable reference areas
being set aside. It accepted the profitsharing provisions and those provisions
called for U.S. flag requirements and U.S.based processing. 
 The Committee on Interior and Insular~ Affairs reported the bill on August
2, 1979, with the following amendments: (1) Interior was made lead agency,
(2) a workplan was required, (3) U.S. documentation of mining and processing
vessels and at least one transport vessel was required, (4) "Grandfather
rights" provisions were amended, but not to the extent requested by
the Administration,
and (5) the dates for issuance of licenses and for earliest commercial recovery
were amended as requested by the Administration. 
 The Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries reported the bill on August
17, 1979, with the following amendments: (1) Requirement for applicant certification
and work plan were required, (2) a disclaimer of obligation for U.S. Government
to compensate industry losses was added to the