[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 189 (Thursday, September 30, 1999)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 52723-52725]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-25448]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Coast Guard

33 CFR Parts 100, 110, and 165

[CGD05-99-068]


OPSAIL 2000, Port of Hampton Roads, VA

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DOT.

ACTION: Advanced notice of proposed rulemaking; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard requests public comment on the temporary 
establishment of several exclusion areas and anchorage grounds before, 
during, and after OPSAIL 2000 in the Port of Hampton Roads, Virginia, 
from June 14 through June 20, 2000. The Coast Guard anticipates 
rulemaking establishing Special Local Regulations to control vessel 
traffic within the Port of Hampton Roads 2 days prior to the event on 
June 14 and 15, 2000; establishing several exclusion areas; 
establishing new and/or assigning currently designated Anchorage 
Grounds for participating/spectator vessels; and establishing temporary 
safety zones for fireworks displays.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before November 15, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to the Port Operations Department 
(CGD05-99-068), Coast Guard Marine Safety Office Hampton Roads, 200 
Granby Street, Norfolk, Virginia 23510, or delivered to the 7th floor 
at the same address between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays.
    The Port Operations Department of Marine Safety Office Hampton 
Roads maintains the public docket for this rulemaking. Comments, and 
documents as indicated in this preamble, will become part of this 
docket and will be available for inspection or copying at the Coast 
Guard Marine Safety Office

[[Page 52724]]

Hampton Roads, between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m., Monday through Friday, except 
Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lieutenant Commander S. Moody or 
Lieutenant L. Greene, Port Operations Department, Coast Guard Marine 
Safety Office Hampton Roads (757) 441-3294, between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m., 
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Request for Comments

    The Coast Guard encourages interested persons to participate in the 
early stages of this rulemaking by submitting written data, views, or 
arguments. Please explain your reasons for each comment so that we can 
carefully weigh the consequences and impacts of any future requirements 
we may propose. Persons submitting comments should include their names 
and addresses, identify this rulemaking (CGD05-99-068) and the specific 
section of this document to which each comment applies. Please submit 
two copies of all comments and attachments in an unbound format, no 
larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for copying and electronic 
filing. Persons wanting acknowledgment of receipt of comments should 
enclose stamped, self-addressed postcards or envelopes. The Coast Guard 
will consider all comments received during the comment period.
    The Coast Guard plans no public hearing. Persons may request a 
public hearing by writing to the Port Operations Department at the 
address under ADDRESSES. The request should include the reasons why a 
hearing would be beneficial. If it determines that the opportunity for 
oral presentations will aid this rulemaking, the Coast Guard will hold 
a public hearing at a time and place announced by a later notice in the 
Federal Register.

Background and Purpose

    Opsail 2000 is sponsoring the OPSAIL 2000 Parade of Tall Ships, as 
well as a fireworks display. These events are scheduled to take place 
on June 16 and 17, 2000 respectively, in the Port of Hampton Roads, on 
the waters of Chesapeake Bay and the Elizabeth River. The Coast Guard 
expects a minimum of 10,000 spectator craft for this event. The 
anticipated rulemaking will provide specific guidance on temporary 
anchorage regulations, vessel movement controls, safety and security 
zones that will be in effect at various times in those waters during 
the period June 14--20, 2000. The Coast Guard may seek to establish 
additional regulated areas, Anchorage Grounds, and safety or security 
zones once confirmation of the exact number of vessels and dignitaries 
that will be participating in OPSAIL 2000 becomes available.

Schedule of Events

    At the current time, marine related events will include the 
following:
    1. June 15 and 16, 2000: The arrival of more than 200 Tall Ships 
and character vessels at Lynnhaven Anchorage.
    2. June 16, 2000: Parade of approximately 200 Tall Ships and 
character vessels from Cape Henry to Town Point Park, Downtown Norfolk.
    3. June 17, 2000: Fireworks display scheduled to take place 
adjacent to the Norfolk and Portsmouth Seawalls.
    4. June 20, 2000: Scheduled departure for the majority of the 
vessels.

Discussion

    The Coast Guard estimates there will be over 10,000 spectator craft 
and commercial vessels (passenger vessels and charter boats) in the 
area during June 16 through 20, 2000. The safety of parade participants 
and spectators will require that spectator craft be kept at a safe 
distance from the parade route. The Coast Guard intends to establish 
multiple limited access areas for the vessel parade, and to temporarily 
modify existing anchorage areas within the port area to provide for 
maximum spectator viewing areas and traffic patterns for deep draft and 
barge traffic.
    The most severe traffic restrictions will be in place during the 
Parade of Sail, which will begin the morning of June 16 and end that 
evening. These restrictions will affect all vessels. The only other 
restriction anticipated for commercial deep draft and barge traffic 
will be during the fireworks display on Saturday night, June 17. The 
Coast Guard anticipates having vessels available on request to escort 
deep draft and barge traffic through congested areas of Town Point 
Reach during all other periods of June 16-20, 2000.

Regulatory Evaluation

    At this early stage in what is still just a potential rulemaking, 
the Coast Guard has not determined whether any future rulemaking may be 
considered a significant regulatory action under section 3(f) of 
Executive Order 12866 or the regulatory policies and procedures of the 
Department of Transportation (DOT) (44 FR 11040; February 26, 1979).
    The Coast Guard expects the economic impact of any future 
rulemaking to be minimal. Although the Coast Guard anticipates 
restricting traffic from transiting a portion of the Elizabeth River, 
Newport News channel and some anchorages during the vessel parade, the 
effect of any future rulemaking will be minimized because of the 
limited duration of the event and the extensive advance notifications 
that will be made to the maritime community via the Local Notice to 
Mariners, facsimile, the internet, marine information broadcasts, 
Hampton Roads Maritime Association meetings, and Hampton Roads area 
newspapers, so mariners can adjust their plans accordingly. The Coast 
Guard anticipates that the majority of the maritime industrial activity 
in the Port of Hampton Roads will continue, relatively unaffected by 
any future rulemaking.

Small Entities

    Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), the 
Coast Guard must consider whether any potential rulemaking, if it led 
to an actual rule, would have a significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities. ``Small entities'' include small 
businesses, not-for-profit organizations that are independently owned 
and operated and are not dominant in their fields, and governmental 
jurisdictions with populations of less than 50,000.
    The Coast Guard does not anticipate that its potential rulemaking 
will have anything but a minimal impact upon small entities, but 
expects that comments received on this advance notice will help it 
determine the number of potentially affected small entities and in 
weighing the impacts of various regulatory alternatives for the purpose 
of drafting any rules.

Assistance for Small Entities

    In accordance with section 213(a) of the Small Business Regulatory 
Enforcement Act of 1996 [Pub. L. 104-121], the Coast Guard wants to 
assist small entities in understanding this advance notice so that they 
can better evaluate the potential effects of any future rulemaking on 
them and participate in the rulemaking. If you believe that your small 
business, organization, or agency may be affected by any future 
rulemaking, and if you have questions concerning this notice, please 
consult the Coast Guard point of contact designated in FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT. The Coast Guard is particularly interested in how 
any future rulemaking may affect small entities. If you are a small 
entity and believe that you may be affected by such a rulemaking, 
please tell how, and what flexibility or compliance alternatives the 
Coast Guard should consider to minimize the burden on small entities 
while promoting port safety.

[[Page 52725]]

Collection of Information

    The Coast Guard anticipates that any future rulemaking will not 
provide for a collection of information under the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

Federalism

    The Coast Guard has analyzed this advanced notice under the 
principles and criteria contained in Executive Order 12612. From the 
information available at this time, the Coast Guard cannot determine 
whether this potential rulemaking would have sufficient federalism 
implications to warrant the preparation of a Federalism Assessment.

Unfunded Mandates

    Under the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-4), the 
Coast Guard must consider whether this potential rulemaking will result 
in an annual expenditure by state, local, and tribal governments, in 
the aggregate of $100 million (adjusted annually for inflation). If so, 
the Act requires that a reasonable number of regulatory alternatives be 
considered, and that from those alternatives, the least costly, most 
cost-effective, or least burdensome alternative that achieves the 
objective of the rule be selected. The Coast Guard does not anticipate 
that any future rulemaking will result in such expenditures, but 
welcomes comments addressing the issue from interested parties.

Environment

    The Coast Guard anticipates that any potential rulemaking would be 
categorically excluded from further environmental documentation in 
accordance with Commandant Instruction M16475.1C. Any such rulemaking 
would be designed to minimize the likelihood of maritime disasters with 
their attendant environmental consequences and to enhance the safety of 
participants, spectators, and other maritime traffic. Therefore, any 
potential rulemaking should have no environmental impact. The Coast 
Guard invites comments addressing possible effects that any such 
rulemaking may have on the human environment or addressing possible 
inconsistencies with any Federal, State, or local law or administrative 
determinations relating to the environment. It will reach a final 
determination regarding the need for an environmental assessment after 
receipt of relevant comments.
J.E. Schrinner,
Captain, U.S. Coast Guard, Captain of the Port Hampton Roads.
[FR Doc. 99-25448 Filed 9-29-99; 8:45 am]
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