---
kind: "section"
citation: "46 U.S.C. § 57517"
title: "46"
title_heading: "Shipping"
number: "57517"
heading: "Recovery of excess profits"
release: "119-102"
date: "2026-07-12"
url: "https://uscodex.org/usc/46/57517"
units:
  - "Subtitle V — Merchant Marine"
  - "Part F — Government-Owned Merchant Vessels"
  - "Chapter 575 — Construction, Charter, and Sale of Vessels"
  - "Subchapter II — Charters"
---

# §57517. Recovery of excess profits

- (a) **In General.—** A charter under this chapter shall provide that if, at the end of a calendar year subsequent to the execution of the charter, the cumulative net voyage profit (after payment of the charter hire reserved in the charter and payment of the charterer’s fair and reasonable overhead expenses applicable to operation of the chartered [vessel](/usc/46/53501.md?p=9)) exceeds 10 percent a year of the charterer’s capital necessarily employed in the business of the chartered [vessel](/usc/46/53501.md?p=9), the charterer shall pay to the [Secretary](/usc/46/53101.md?p=8) of Transportation, as additional charter hire, half the cumulative net voyage profit in excess of 10 percent a year. However, any cumulative net voyage profit accounted for under this subsection is not to be included in the calculation of cumulative net voyage profit in any subsequent year.
- (b) **Terms To Be Defined and Used.—** The [Secretary](/usc/46/53101.md?p=8) shall define the terms “net voyage profit”, “fair and reasonable overhead expenses”, and “capital necessarily employed” for this section. Each advertisement for bids and each charter shall contain these definitions, stating the formula for determining each of these three amounts.

## Source credit

(Pub. L. 109–304, § 8(c), Oct. 6, 2006, 120 Stat. 1667.)

## Notes

| Historical and Revision Notes |  |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Revised<br>Section | Source (U.S. Code) | Source (Statutes at Large) |
| 57517 | 46 App.:1199. | June 29, 1936, ch. 858, title VII, § 709, 49 Stat. 2010; Pub. L. 97–31, § 12(111), Aug. 6, 1981, 95 Stat. 163. |