(a) Agent includes a General Agent, Berth Agent, or Ship Manager, designated as such under a Service Agreement or Ship Manager Contract to manage and conduct the business of vessels which the United States is owner, pro hac vice, or time charterer.

(b) Citizen of the United States means a person (including receivers, trustees and successors or assignees of such persons as provided in 46 U.S.C. 50502), including any person (stockholder, partner or other entity) who has a controlling interest in such person, any person whose stock or equity is being relied upon to establish the requisite U. S. citizen ownership, and any parent corporation, partnership or other entity of such person at all tiers of ownership, who, in both form and substance at each tier of ownership, satisfies the following requirements:

(1) An individual who is a Citizen of the United States, by birth, naturalization or as otherwise authorized by law;

(2) A corporation organized under the laws of the United States or of a State, the controlling interest of which is owned by and vested in citizens of the United States and whose chief executive officer, by whatever title, chairman of the board of directors and all officers authorized to act in the absence or disability of such persons are citizens of the United States, and no more of its directors than a minority of the number necessary to constitute a quorum are noncitizens;

(3) A partnership organized under the laws of the United States or of a State, if all general partners are citizens of the United States and a controlling interest in the partnership is owned by citizens of the United States;

(4) An association organized under the laws of the United States or of a State, whose chief executive officer, by whatever title, chairman of the board of directors (or equivalent committee or body) and all officers authorized to act in their absence or disability are citizens of the United States, no more than a minority of the number of its directors, or equivalent, necessary to constitute a quorum are noncitizens, and a controlling interest in which is vested in citizens of the United States; and

(5) A joint venture, if it is not determined by the Maritime Administrator to be in effect an association or partnership, which is organized under the laws of the United States or of a State, if each co-venturer is a citizen of the United States. If a joint venture is in effect an association, it will be treated as is an association under paragraph (a)(4) of this section, or, if it is in effect a partnership, will be treated as is a partnership under paragraph (a)(3) of this section.

(b) General agency agreement means the agreement developed to ensure the availability of qualified and eligible general agents.

(c) NDRF means National Defense Reserve Fleet site.

(d) Ship manager contract means the agreement developed to establish roles and responsibilities for managing vessels owned by MARAD.

(e) United States means the States of the United States, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any other territory or possession of the United States.