What is the test for a private right of action under Section 5(b)(2) of the Maritime and Coast Guard Act?

Because the parties agreed that 5(b)(2) did not expressly provide a private right of action, the panel, applying Cort v. Ash, 422 U.S. 66 (1975), considered the statute's language, structure, context, and legislative history to determine whether a private right of action was implied. The panel determined that nothing in the text or structure of 5(b)(2) reflected a clear and unambiguous intent to create a private right of action. To begin, the panel determined that 5(b)(2) lacked rights-creating language. The panel noted that the statute prohibits non-federal entities from imposing fees or other charges (the obligation) and refers to vessels only as an object of that obligation. This distinguished 5(b)(2) from statutes that target a class of beneficiaries as their subject.