[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 237 (Monday, December 10, 2001)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 63650-63651]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-30478]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Coast Guard

33 CFR Part 181

[USCG-2001-10299; CGD 95-041]
RIN 2115-AE37


Propeller Injury Prevention Aboard Rental Boats

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of withdrawal.

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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard is withdrawing its proposed rulemaking 
regarding requirements for manufacturers to prevent propeller strike 
injuries and terminating rulemaking under the following Regulatory 
Identification Number: (RIN) 2115-AE37 (USCG-2001-10299; CGD 95-041). 
The Coast Guard lacks sufficient data to demonstrate that the benefits 
of requirements for manufacturers clearly outweigh the costs and 
burdens.

DATES: This withdrawal of the March 26, 1996 (61 FR 13123) advance 
notice of proposed rulemaking is made on December 10, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Randolph Doubt, Project Manager, 
Recreational Boating Product Assurance Division, Office of Boating 
Safety, 202-267-0981.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Regulatory History

    Initial Notice of Request for Comments. To gather information from 
the recreational boating public and industry, we published a notice of 
request for comments in the Federal Register in May 1995 (60 FR 25191). 
We asked the recreational boating public to comment on: (1) The 
economic and other impacts of establishing a requirement for propeller 
guards on recreational houseboats and other displacement (non-planing) 
vessels; (2) suggestions on alternatives to propeller guards that 
should also be considered; (3) recommendations on the applicability of 
regulations; and (4) concerns of the livery and charter industries.
    We received over 100 comments during the 60-day comment period. 
Various parties, including the National Association of State Boating 
Law Administrators (NASBLA) requested an extension of the comment 
period. To accommodate this request, we published a notice to reopen 
the comment period for an additional 120-days in August 1995 (60 FR 
40545). We received 1,994 comments to this notice, including more than 
1,800 form letters that supported a requirement to use propeller guard 
technology or jet pump propulsion on rental houseboats. An additional 
69 comments also supported developing such a requirement. Fifty-seven 
comments objected to such a requirement. The information received was 
voluminous, but too general to help us develop a regulation.
    Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. We published an advance 
notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) in March 1996 (61 FR 13123) that 
asked questions to gather current and specific information about the 
injuries involving propeller strikes and rented boats. We also 
announced a series of meetings across the country to enable the public 
to express their views. Some of the questions specifically sought out 
the following information: the appropriate Federal and State roles in 
reducing propeller strike incidents; whether government intervention is 
appropriate; and if so, whether it should be directed at the vessels, 
their manufacturers, their operators, their owners, or the companies 
leasing such vessels.
    Second Notice of Request for Comments. After reviewing available 
research and the comments from the public, and consulting with the 
National Boating Safety Advisory Council (NBSAC) at its November 1996 
meeting, we published another notice of request for comments in April 
1997 (62 FR 22991) and provided a 90-day comment period. We solicited 
comments on the effectiveness of specific devices and interventions 
that may reduce the number of recreational boating accidents involving 
rented powerboats in which individuals are injured by the propeller. We 
also asked for information about other devices or interventions 
(propeller injury avoidance measures) that may reduce the severity of 
injuries to individuals involved in propeller-strike accidents.
    The devices or interventions we asked about included: (1) Swimming 
ladder locations and interlocks; (2) large warning notices to make the 
operators, passengers and swimmers more aware of the dangers; (3) 
propeller location wands; (4) clear vision aft to alert operators to 
the presence of swimmers near the propeller; (5) propeller shaft 
engagement alarms to alert passengers and swimmers of a rotating 
propeller; (6) conversion of a standard inboard, outboard, or inboard/
outboard engine with a jet pump propulsion engine; (7) ignition cut-
off/auto throttle and neutral returns to stop the propeller when the 
helm is vacated or unattended; and (8) education specifically directed 
to the location and dangers of propellers. We also solicited comments 
on propeller guards, and any other devices that might reduce the 
occurrence or severity of injuries due to propeller strikes. Based on 
requests from the public, we published a notice that extended the 
comment period an additional 210 days in August 1997 [62 FR 44507].
    Summary of Comments. In response to the ANPRM and the notices, we 
received 2,027 comments, more than 1,800 of which were form letters and 
none of which contained information sufficient to support proposing 
requirements for manufacturers of new recreational boats, nor did they 
help us determine the estimated burdens and costs to boat 
manufacturers. Of the total

[[Page 63651]]

comments received, 95% were in favor of initiating a Federal 
regulation.
    NBSAC Consultation. At the April 30, 2000 NBSAC Subcommittee 
meeting, we presented the results of our research on accident report 
statistics: vessels most frequently involved with injuries are open 
recreational motorboats in the category ``16 feet to less than 26 feet 
in length.'' We announced our intention to initiate a regulatory 
project that would require owners of this category of recreational 
vessels to attach pre-printed warning labels at strategic locations on 
their vessels. We would also propose requirements for owners to attach 
a propeller guard on a smaller number of rental, non-planing 
houseboats. The Subcommittee report included the Coast Guard rulemaking 
project description. The Subcommittee presented its report to the full 
Council at the May 1, 2000 meeting and the Council accepted the 
Subcommittee's report without amendment.
    At the October 2000 NBSAC Subcommittee meeting, the Subcommittee 
reviewed the preferred alternative from its April 2000 meeting and 
recommended that we propose, instead, an expanded list of interventions 
for vessels in the category ``16 feet to less than 26 feet in length.'' 
As a result, we developed and presented a number of propeller injury 
avoidance measures to NBSAC for their review. Again, the full Council 
accepted the Subcommittee report.
    At the April 2001 NBSAC Subcommittee meeting, we presented the 
expanded list of alternatives from which owners of the affected vessels 
can choose for their vessels. After discussing the alternatives and 
their cost, the Council recommended that the Coast Guard, instead, 
develop four specific regulations:
    (1) Require owners of all propeller driven vessels 12 feet in 
length and longer with propellers aft of the transom to display 
propeller warning labels and to employ an emergency cut-off switch, 
where installed;
    (2) Require manufacturers and importers of new planing vessels 12 
feet to 26 feet in length with propellers aft of the transom to select 
and install one of several factory installed propeller injury avoidance 
methods;
    (3) Require manufacturers and importers of new non-planing vessels 
12 feet in length and longer with propellers aft of the transom to 
select and install one of several factory installed propeller injury 
avoidance methods; and
    (4) Require owners of all non-planing rental boats with propellers 
aft of the transom to install either a jet propulsion system or a 
propeller guard or all of several propeller injury avoidance measures.

Withdrawal

    We are withdrawing the rulemaking because of (1) the lack of 
substantive information about the benefits to society of a requirement 
for manufacturers to prevent propeller strike injuries, and (2) to 
simplify the development of a series of new regulatory projects 
initiated in response to the recent, broader NBSAC recommendations. For 
these reasons, we are terminating further rulemaking under RIN 2115-
AE37 (USCG-2001-10299).
    We have placed the public docket (CGD 95-041) for this project into 
an electronic docket under the Department of Transportation Docket 
Management System (DMS) under a new docket number: USCG-2001-10299. 
This new docket number will allow the public to access the early docket 
records electronically. These early docket records serve as background 
for new regulatory projects the Coast Guard is initiating in response 
to recommendations from the NBSAC in its April 2001 meeting.
    We are publishing a notice of proposed rulemaking elsewhere in this 
issue under RIN 2115-AG18 (USCG-2001-10163). This rulemaking is the 
first of a series of separate regulatory projects initiated in response 
to the recent NBSAC recommendations.

    Dated: October 15, 2001.
Terry M. Cross,
Rear Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard, Assistant Commandant for Operations.
[FR Doc. 01-30478 Filed 12-7-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-15-U