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The Secretary of Transportation, through MARAD, provides federal assistance to six State Maritime Academies (SMAs). Assistance is provided in various forms which include: • Cooperation and assistance to SMAs in providing instruction to individuals to prepare them for service in the merchant marine of the United States, developing courses on the operation and maintenance of new vessels, on equipment, and on innovations being introduced to the Merchant Marine of the United States (46 U.S.C. 51501); • Use and repair of government owned training vessels, training ship fuel cost reimbursement payments and reimbursement of training ship sharing costs (46 U.S.C. 51504); annual payments for maintenance and support (46 U.S.C. 51505); and • Student Incentive Program (SIP) payments which provide subsistence to Cadets attending any one of six State Maritime Academies (SMAs) to become licensed officers in the United States Merchant Marine (46 U.S.C. 51509). MARAD is revising its regulations to update SIP enrollment eligibility criteria, align service obligation compliance procedures, provide for updated policy changes, such as the change concerning the determination that there is no Federal Employee Liability coverage for maritime academy cadets, and the elimination of obsolete provisions, such as those relating to funding levels and SIP quotas.