[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 126 (Tuesday, July 1, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39369-39371]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-16192]



  Federal Register / Vol. 68, No. 126 / Tuesday, July 1, 2003 / 
Notices  

[[Page 39369]]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

[USCG-2003-14878]


Automatic Identification System; Expansion of Carriage 
Requirements for U.S. Waters

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002 requires 
certain vessels to carry an Automatic Identification System. In an 
interim rule published elsewhere in today's Federal Register, the Coast 
Guard is requiring Automatic Identification System carriage as agreed 
to by the international community in amendments to the International 
Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974, and as directed by the 
Maritime Transportation Security Act. That rulemaking, however, covers 
only vessels on international voyages and certain vessels on specified 
waterways of the United States. This notice solicits comment on how 
best to address implementation on the remaining navigable waters of the 
U.S. for vessels not on international voyages.

DATES: Comments and related material must reach the Docket Management 
Facility on or before September 29, 2003.

ADDRESSES: To make sure that your comments and related material are not 
entered more than once in the docket, please submit them by only one of 
the following means:
    (1) By mail to the Docket Management Facility (USCG-2003-14878), 
U.S. Department of Transportation, room PL-401, 400 Seventh Street SW., 
Washington, DC 20590-0001.
    (2) By delivery to room PL-401 on the Plaza level of the Nassif 
Building, 400 Seventh Street SW., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone 
number is 202-366-9329.
    (3) By fax to the Docket Management Facility at 202-493-2251.
    (4) Electronically through the Web Site for the Docket Management 
System at http://dms.dot.gov.
    The Docket Management Facility maintains the public docket for this 
notice. Comments and material received from the public will become part 
of this docket and will be available for inspection or copying at room 
PL-401 on the Plaza level of the Nassif Building, 400 Seventh Street 
SW., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays. You may also find this docket on the Internet 
at http://dms.dot.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions on this notice, 
contact Mr. Jorge Arroyo, Office of Vessel Traffic Management (G-MWV-
1), U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters, telephone: 202-267-6277, fax: 202-
267-4826 or e-mail: [email protected]. If you have questions on 
viewing or submitting material to the docket, call Ms. Dorothy Beard, 
Chief, Dockets, Department of Transportation, telephone: 202-366-5149.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Request for Comments

    We encourage you to participate by submitting comments and related 
material. If you do so, please include your name and address, identify 
the docket number [USCG-2003-14878], indicate the specific question of 
this document to which each comment applies, and give the reason for 
each comment. You may submit your comments and material by mail, hand 
delivery, fax, or electronic means to the Docket Management Facility at 
the address under ADDRESSES; but please submit your comments and 
material by only one means. If you submit them by mail or hand 
delivery, submit them in an unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 
inches, suitable for copying and electronic filing. If you submit them 
by mail and would like to know they reached the Facility, please 
enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard or envelope. We will 
consider all comments and material received during the comment period. 
Your comments and any other matters you bring to our attention during 
the comment period will be taken into account in Coast Guard actions 
regarding the issues raised in the Questions section below.
    Note, matters pertaining to AIS licensing, equipment certification, 
and frequencies are subject to Federal Communications Commission 
regulations and are not addressed in this notice, see FCC Public Notice 
DA 02-1362 in the docket for further information.

Background and Purpose

    The Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002 (MTSA), Public Law 
107-295, was enacted November 25, 2002, and requires that four specific 
categories of vessels be equipped with and operate an Automatic 
Identification System (AIS). These categories are--
    1. Self-propelled commercial vessels 65 feet or more in length;
    2. Vessels carrying more than a number of passengers for hire 
determined by the Secretary of the agency in which the Coast Guard is 
operating;
    3. Towing vessels of more than 26 feet in length and 600 
horsepower; and
    4. Other vessels for which the Secretary determines AIS is 
necessary for safe navigation of the vessel. (46 U.S.C. 70114(a)(1)(A)-
(D)).
    Under the MTSA, vessels that must be equipped with AIS must use it 
in all navigable waters of the United States, unless the Secretary 
finds that AIS is not needed for safe navigation on specified navigable 
waters. If such a finding is made, the Secretary may waive the AIS 
requirements in those waters (46 U.S.C. 70114(a)(2)(B)). The MTSA also 
allows the Secretary to exempt a vessel from the AIS requirement if the 
Secretary finds that AIS is not necessary for the safe navigation of 
the vessel on the waters on which the vessel operates (46 U.S.C. 
70114(a)(2)(A)).
    In an interim rule published elsewhere in today's Federal Register, 
titled ``Automatic Identification System; Vessel Carriage Requirement'' 
(Docket USCG-2003-14757, RIN 1625-AA67), the Coast Guard will require 
the following vessels to install and operate AIS:
    (1) Vessels subject to the International Convention for the Safety 
of Life at Sea, 1974, (SOLAS) and on international voyage, under the 
schedule set forth in SOLAS chapter V, regulation 19.2.4;
    (2) Vessels not subject to SOLAS that are 65 feet or more in 
length, in commercial service and on an international voyage, by 
December 31, 2004; and
    (3) The following Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) and Vessel Movement 
Reporting System (VMRS) users:
    (i) Self-propelled vessels of 65 feet or more in length, in 
commercial service;
    (ii) Towing vessels 26 feet or more in length and more than 600 
horsepower;
    (iii) Vessels of 100 gross tons or more carrying one or more 
passengers for hire; and
    (iv) Passenger vessels certificated to carry 50 or more passengers 
for hire.
    These vessels must comply: by December 31, 2003, within VTS St. 
Marys River; by July 1, 2004, within VTS Berwick Bay, VMRS Los Angeles/
Long Beach, VTS Lower Mississippi River, VTS Port Arthur and VTS Prince 
William Sound; by December 31, 2004, within VTS Houston-Galveston, VTS 
New York, VTS Puget Sound, and VTS San Francisco.
    The Coast Guard recognizes the benefits of AIS and has been a 
leading

[[Page 39370]]

proponent of AIS technology since its inception. AIS is an effective 
navigation and communications tool for reducing collisions, enhancing 
situational awareness, and playing a part in U.S. maritime domain 
awareness. Its corollary function, as a surveillance tool, has taken on 
greater import in these times of heightened vigilance and proactive 
homeland security. Achieving accurate, real-time maritime domain 
awareness is of vital interest to the Coast Guard and the Nation. 
Congress passed the MTSA and the international community, upon the 
initiative of the Unites States and through the actions of the 
International Maritime Organization (IMO), amended SOLAS to accelerate 
the implementation of AIS.
    Our AIS interim rule (USCG-2003-14757), published elsewhere in 
today's Federal Register, is the first step in that process. That 
interim rule will implement AIS in accordance with the schedule agreed 
to at the IMO Diplomatic Conference held in December 2002 on vessels on 
international voyages (see table below), and it also imposes an AIS 
requirement on all commercial VTS and VMRS users.

          Table--SOLAS AIS Schedule (Chapter V, Regulation 19.2.4) for Vessels on International Voyages
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                Constructed                            Type of vessel                  Implementation date
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On or after July 1, 2002...................  All..............................  July 1, 2002.
Before July 1, 2002........................  Passenger ships (carrying 12 or    July 1, 2003.
                                              more passengers).
                                             Tankers..........................  First survey for safety
                                                                                 equipment on or after July 1,
                                                                                 2003.
                                             Ships, other than passenger ships  July 1, 2004
                                              and tankers, greater than or
                                              equal to 50,000 gross tonnage.
                                             Ships, other than passenger ships  First safety equipment survey
                                              and tankers, greater than or       after July 1, 2004, or by
                                              equal to 300, but less than        December 31, 2004, whichever
                                              50,000 gross tonnage.              occurs earlier.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The process of deploying this technology into all existing and 
future VTS areas is well underway. The Coast Guard intends to expand 
the safety and security benefits of AIS by extending the shore-tracking 
surveillance capability throughout our Nation's waterways as a major 
element of maritime domain awareness and homeland security.
    Design and installation of the expanded capability is underway but 
not yet fully operational. Therefore, we want to take this opportunity 
to ask some questions of the public to (1) assist us in developing an 
overall AIS strategy, and (2) address expanded carriage of AIS beyond 
SOLAS vessels, VTS and VMRS areas, and certain other commercial and 
non-commercial vessels that are omitted from the AIS interim rule 
(USCG-2003-14757) published elsewhere in today's Federal Register.

Questions

    We need the public's assistance in answering the following 
questions, and any additional information provided on this topic is 
welcome. In responding to each question, please explain your reasons 
for each answer as specifically as possible so that we can carefully 
weigh the consequences and impacts of any future actions we may take.
    In preparing your response to these questions, please indicate your 
position in the maritime industry as well as the type of vessel, cargo, 
and charter agreement specific to your situation, if applicable.
    (1) Recognizing that AIS may ultimately be required on all 
navigable waters, what particular waterways or ports should be 
implemented before others?
    (2) Are there particular waterways where the AIS requirements 
should be waived? Why?
    (3) AIS is not specifically mandated (by the MTSA) on all vessels. 
The MTSA, however, does allow the Secretary to require AIS on any 
vessel if deemed necessary for safe navigation. Should other vessels 
(e.g., commercial vessels under 65 feet in length, towing vessels under 
26 feet and 600 horsepower, dredges and floating plants, recreational 
vessels, offshore facilities, or Mobile Offshore Drilling Units) be 
required to have AIS?
    (4) SOLAS expects nations to implement their AIS carriage on their 
domestic fleet (vessels over 500 gross tonnage and passenger vessels 
not on international voyage) not later than July 1, 2008. However, the 
MTSA requires AIS by December 31, 2004. Knowing this, should certain 
vessels be granted temporary exemptions regarding the compliance dates 
in MTSA?
    (5) Under what circumstances, if any, should a vessel be exempted 
from the AIS requirements per the MTSA exemption?
    (6) SOLAS defines a passenger vessel as carrying 12 or more 
passengers. VTS regulations define VTS users as passenger vessels over 
100 gross tons carrying 1 or more passengers or those certificated to 
carry 50 or more passenger. The MTSA allows the Secretary to determine 
the threshold number of passengers when determining which passenger 
vessels are required to have AIS. Should we expand AIS carriage beyond 
what is already defined in SOLAS and our rule?
    (7) Should the Coast Guard encourage or require the use of systems 
such as electronic chart display and information system (ECDIS) and 
electronic chart system (ECS) to display AIS information to enhance 
navigation safety? Are there other systems that could be used for this 
purpose?
    (8) Would you be more likely to install an ECDIS or ECS on your 
vessel, to display AIS information, if the system could be used to 
comply with an existing requirement to carry nautical charts?
    As noted previously, comments regarding these questions, and any 
other pertinent matters brought to our attention during the comment 
period, will be taken into account in our future actions regarding the 
issues raised by these questions.

Public Meeting

    The Coast Guard is considering having two public meetings on this 
topic, in addition to the public meeting announced in the AIS interim 
rule, published elsewhere in today's Federal Register. We would like 
your comments on the questions and particular issues that should be 
addressed at these meetings, as well as where the meetings should be 
held. Send your comments requesting a public meeting to the Docket 
Management Facility at the address under ADDRESSES. We will announce a 
time and place for each meeting by a later notice in the Federal 
Register.


[[Page 39371]]


    Dated: June 23, 2003.
Thomas H. Collins,
Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard Commandant.
[FR Doc. 03-16192 Filed 6-27-03; 8:45 am]
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