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DHS/USCG | RIN: 1625-AA16 | Publication ID: 2012 |
Title: Implementation of the 1995 Amendments to the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping (STCW) for Seafarers, 1978 | |
Abstract: The International Maritime Organization (IMO) comprehensively amended the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping (STCW) for Seafarers, 1978, in 1995 and 2010. The 1995 amendments came into force on February 1, 1997. This project implements those amendments by revising current rules to ensure that the United States complies with their requirements on: The training of merchant mariners, the documenting of their qualifications, and watch-standing and other arrangements aboard seagoing merchant ships of the United States. In addition, the Coast Guard has identified the need for additional changes to the interim rule issued in 1997. This project supports the Coast Guard's broad role and responsibility of maritime safety. It also supports the roles and responsibilities of the Coast Guard of reducing deaths and injuries of crew members on domestic merchant vessels and eliminating substandard vessels from the navigable waters of the United States. The Coast Guard published an NPRM on November 17, 2009, and Supplemental NPRM (SNPRM) on March 23, 2010. At a June 2010 diplomatic conference, the IMO adopted additional amendments to the STCW convention which change the minimum training requirements for seafarers. In response to feedback and to the adoption of those amendments, the Coast Guard developed a second Supplemental NPRM to incorporate the 2010 Amendments into the 1990 interim rule. | |
Agency: Department of Homeland Security(DHS) | Priority: Other Significant |
RIN Status: Previously published in the Unified Agenda | Agenda Stage of Rulemaking: Final Rule Stage |
Major: No | Unfunded Mandates: No |
CFR Citation: 46 CFR 10 46 CFR 11 46 CFR 12 46 CFR 15 | |
Legal Authority: 46 USC 2103 46 USC chs. 71 and 73 DHS Delegation No. 0170.1 |
Legal Deadline:
None |
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Statement of Need: The Coast Guard proposed to amend its regulations to implement changes to its interim rule published on June 26, 1997. These proposed amendments go beyond changes found in the interim rule and seek to more fully incorporate the requirements of the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping for Seafarers, 1978, as amended (STCW), in the requirements for the credentialing of United States merchant mariners. The new changes are primarily substantive and: (1) Are necessary to continue to give full and complete effect to the STCW Convention; (2) Incorporate lessons learned from implementation of the STCW through the interim rule and through policy letters and NVICs; and (3) Attempt to clarify regulations that have generated confusion. |
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Summary of the Legal Basis: The authority for the Coast Guard to prescribe, change, revise, or amend these regulations is provided under 46 U.S.C. 2103 and 46 U.S.C. chapters 71 and 73; and Department of Homeland Security Delegation No. 0170.1. |
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Alternatives: For each proposed change, the Coast Guard has considered various alternatives. We considered using policy statements, but they are not enforceable. We also considered taking no action, but this does not support the Coast Guard's fundamental safety and security mission. Additionally, we considered comments made during our 1997 rulemaking to formulate our alternatives. When we analyzed issues, such as license progression and tonnage equivalency, the alternatives chosen were those that most closely met the requirements of STCW. |
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Anticipated Costs and Benefits: In the SNPRM, we estimated the annualized cost of this rule over a 10-year period to be $32.8 million per year at a 7 percent discount rate. We estimate the total 10-year cost of this rulemaking to be $230.7 million at a 7 percent discount rate. The changes in anticipated costs since the publication of 2009 NPRM are due to the 2010 amendments to the STCW Convention: Medical examinations and endorsements, leadership and management skills, engine room management training, tankerman endorsements, safety refresher training, and able seafarer deck and engine certification requirements. However, there would be potential savings from the costs of training requirements as the Coast Guard would accept various methods for demonstrating competence, including the on-the-job training and preservation of the "hawsepipe" programs. We anticipate the primary benefit of this rulemaking is to ensure that the U.S. meets its obligations under the STCW Convention. Another benefit is an increase in vessel safety and a resulting decrease in the risk of shipping casualties. |
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Risks: No risks. |
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Timetable:
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Additional Information: The docket number for this rulemaking is USCG-2004-17914. The docket is located at www.regulations.gov. The old docket number is CGD 95-062. Includes Retrospective Review under E.O. 13563. | |
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis Required: Yes | Government Levels Affected: None |
Small Entities Affected: Businesses | Federalism: No |
Included in the Regulatory Plan: Yes | |
International Impacts: This regulatory action will be likely to have international trade and investment effects, or otherwise be of international interest. | |
RIN Information URL: www.regulations.gov | Public Comment URL: www.regulations.gov |
RIN Data Printed in the FR: Yes | |
Agency Contact: Mark Gould Project Manager, CG-OES-1 Department of Homeland Security U.S. Coast Guard 2703 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE., STOP 7509, Washington, DC 20593-7509 Phone:202 372-1409 Email: mark.c.gould@uscg.mil |