S. 2299 would modify the age requirement for the Maritime Administration’s (MARAD’s) Student Incentive Payment (SIP) program, which provides financial support up to $8,000 per year to cadets enrolled in the Strategic Sealift Officer Program at state maritime academies. Under current law, a student must be between the ages of 17 and 25 at the time of enrollment to be eligible for SIP assistance. S. 2299 would extend eligibility to students that meet the age requirement for enlistment in the Navy Reserve, which is generally between the ages of 17 and 39, at graduation.
Using information from MARAD, CBO estimates that only a small number of people would qualify and apply for SIP assistance under the expanded eligibility rules and that the costs to fund those applicants would total less than $500,000 over the 2022-2026 period. In addition, CBO estimates that it would cost the agency less than $500,000 to amend the SIP program’s guidelines, forms, and regulations. In total, CBO estimates that implementing S. 2299 would cost $1 million over the 2022-2026 period; such spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
