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No person in the United States shall arrange, offer, advertise, or provide passage on a vessel having berth or stateroom accommodations for fifty or more passengers and which is to embark passengers at United States ports without there first having been filed with the Federal Maritime Commission such information as the Commission may deem necessary to establish the financial responsibility of the person arranging, offering, advertising, or providing such transportation, or in lieu thereof a copy of a bond or other security, in such form as the Commission, by rule or regulation, may require and accept, for indemnification of passengers for nonperformance of the transportation.

If a bond is filed with the Commission, such bond shall be issued by a bonding company authorized to do business in the United States or any State thereof, or the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands or any territory or possession of the United States.

Any person who shall violate this section shall be subject to a civil penalty of not more than $5,000 in addition to a civil penalty of $200 for each passage sold, such penalties to be assessed by the Federal Maritime Commission. These penalties may be remitted or mitigated by the Federal Maritime Commission upon such terms as it in its discretion shall deem proper.

The Federal Maritime Commission is authorized to prescribe such regulations as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this section. The provisions of the Shipping Act of 1984 [46 App. U.S.C. 1701 et seq.] shall apply with respect to proceedings conducted by the Commission under this section.

At the port or place of departure from the United States of any vessel described in subsection (a) of this section, the Customs Service shall refuse the clearance required by section 91 of this Appendix to any such vessel which does not have evidence furnished by the Federal Maritime Commission that the provisions of this section have been complied with.