Coast Guard Drug Enforcement Act of 1988

(Reported to House from the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, amended, H. Rept. 100-814 (Part I))

Coast Guard Drug Enforcement Act of 1988 - Extends indemnification protection from penalties or damages to Naval commanding officers and personnel acting under their orders aboard Navy vessels on which Coast Guard law enforcement detachments are assigned when such vessels fire at or into another vessel that does not stop following an order to do so. (Currently, such indemnification applies only to Coast Guard officers and personnel aboard Coast Guard vessels.)

Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to make the Customs Forfeiture Fund available: (1) to reimburse the Coast Guard with respect to expenses for seizures and forfeitures; and (2) to reimburse the Customs Service or the Coast Guard for expenses for bringing seized vessels into compliance with environmental laws before disposing of them by sinking and for equipping vessels, vehicles, aircraft, and structures for law enforcement functions.

Amends the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act to prohibit the intentional manufacture, distribution, or possession of a controlled substance aboard a vessel of any nation by a U.S. citizen or resident alien. (Currently, such prohibition applies to any person aboard a vessel of, or subject to the jurisdiction of, the United States.) Requires that claims of vessel nationality or registry be raised at the time of boarding by the Coast Guard.

Authorizes the Commandant of the Coast Guard to indemnify any Coast Guard member or employee against personal liability for actions taken within the scope of his or her official law enforcement duties.

Amends the Suits in Admiralty Act and Public Vessels Act to bar specified types of claims against the United States or a Federal employee for an act or failure to act within the scope of employment, including (in the case of the former) claims: (1) for damages caused by the fiscal operations of the U.S. Treasury or by the regulation of the monetary system; and (2) arising out of the combatant activities of the armed forces during time of war.

Amends the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) to prohibit the seizure and forfeiture of any vessel, vehicle, or aircraft for possession of a controlled substance in violation of the Act unless the violation appears to have been committed with the knowledge or consent of the owner or other person in charge of the conveyance. Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to prohibit such a seizure and forfeiture unless the owner, operator, or pilot participated in, had knowledge of, or was grossly negligent in preventing or discovering the violation. Prohibits such a forfeiture for possession of a narcotic unless it appears that the owner, master, or pilot of such vessel, vehicle, or aircraft was, at the time of the alleged illegal act, a consenting party or privy thereto.

Makes procedural modifications to the seizure and forfeiture provisions of the CSA, incorporaing certain due process requirements.

Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to pay claims by owners or other persons in charge of vessels engaged in trade, business, or scientific research for losses resulting from seizure or forfeiture for a violation of the drug possession laws unless such owner or other person was a consenting party or privy to the violation.

Requires the President to include with the annual budget submitted to the Congress a report on expenditures for illegal drug enforcement programs for the preceding and upcoming fiscal years.

Authorizes the Coast Guard specifically to enforce and assist in the enforcement of all U.S. laws over, on, and under water subject to U.S. jurisdiction and the high seas. Adds maritime air surveillance or interdiction to the Coast Guard's primary law enforcement duties.

Requires the Secretary of Transportation and the Secretary of the Treasury to enter into an agreement to increase the effectiveness of Coast Guard and U.S. Customs Service activities to interdict illegal drugs on the Great Lakes. Encourages the Secretary of State to begin negotiations with Canadian officials on an agreement to increase cooperation and information sharing between the United States and Canada with respect to law enforcement efforts on the Great Lakes.

Directs the Secretary of the Navy to: (1) make available to the Secretary of Transportation, on a continuing basis, three E-2C Hawkeye radar surveillance aircraft of the Navy for law enforcement activities of the Coast Guard; and (2) assign qualified pilots and crew to operate such aircraft until Coast Guard personnel are available to perform that function.

Authorizes appropriations for acquisition, construction, and improvements of the Coast Guard for FY 1989 and for operating expenses for FY 1990 through 1992.