S.Amdt. 2458

SA 2458. Ms. McSALLY submitted an amendment intended to be proposed
to amendment SA 2301 proposed by Mr. Inhofe to the bill S. 4049, to
authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2021 for military activities
of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for
defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military
personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which
was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

At the end of subtitle E of title X, add the following:

SEC. ____. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE 46.

(a) In General.--Chapter 303 of title 46, United States
Code, is amended--
(1) by redesignating section 30308 as section 30309; and
(2) by inserting after section 30307 the following:

``Sec. 30308. Death of a member of the Armed Forces from a
collision on the high seas.

``(a) Definition.--In this section, the term `nonpecuniary
damages' means damages for loss of care, comfort, or
companionship.
``(b) Members of the Armed Forces.--In an action under this
chapter, if the death of a member of the Armed Forces
resulted from a collision occurring on the high seas beyond
12 nautical miles from the shore of the United States while
the decedent was serving physically on board a United States
military vessel, the personal representative of the decedent
may bring a civil action in admiralty or at law against the
person or vessel responsible. The action shall be for the
exclusive benefit of the decedent's spouse, parent, child,
dependent relative, or estate. Compensation is recoverable
for nonpecuniary and pecuniary damages.
``(c) Jury Trial.--A claim under this section may be tried
with a jury.
``(d) Governing Law.--In an action under this section, the
maritime law of the United States shall apply.
``(e) Rules of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall
be construed to--
``(1) affect the immunity of the United States or a State
from tort-based claims; or
``(2) allow a civil action to be brought against a member
of the Armed Forces.
``(f) Effective Date.--This section shall apply to any
death occurring after January 1, 2017.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis at the beginning of
such chapter is amended--
(1) by redesignating the item relating to section 30308 as
the item relating to section 30309; and
(2) by inserting after the item relating to section 30307
the following:

``30308. Death of a member of the Armed Forces from a collision on the
high seas.''.
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