Vessel Repair Enhancement Act of 2009 - Expands, for capital construction fund provisions, the definition of "qualified vessel" to include: (1) a vessel documented under U.S. laws and maintained or repaired in a privately owned shipyard in the United States; and (2) any floating dry dock and related shipyard infrastructure (including marine railways) located in the United States and used to build, maintain, or repair U.S.-documented vessels.
Amends federal merchant marine law and the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) allow capital construction funds to be used for maintenance or repair of vessels documented under the laws of the United States; (2) establish the order of withdrawal for purposes of the tax treatment of qualified withdrawals from such funds; and (3) disallow a basis reduction for maintenance or repair withdrawals.