[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 115 (Wednesday, June 16, 2004)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 33574-33575]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-13469]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

33 CFR Parts 101 and 104

[USCG-2004-17086]


Application for Continuous Synopsis Record (CSR) (Form CG-6309)

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Notice of Forms availability; announcement of approval date and 
clarification.

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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard announces the approval of the collection of 
information associated with the Application for a Continuous Synopsis 
Record by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The Coast Guard 
also makes clarifications to the Notice of Availability of this 
application, published in the Federal Register on February 27, 2004, 
and addresses the comments received from the public.

DATES: Form CG-6039, Application for Continuous Synopsis Record, was 
approved on April 2, 2004 (OMB control number 1625-0002). Form CG-
6038A, Amendments to the CSR and Index of Amendments to the CSR, was 
approved on April 23, 2004 (OMB control number 1625-0017).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have any questions regarding 
this notice or the CSR contact Lieutenant Commander Kirsten R. Martin, 
telephone (202) 267-0503, e-mail [email protected] or Chief 
Warrant Officer Jim Upthegrove, telephone (202) 267-0102, e-mail 
[email protected], U.S. Coast Guard Office of Compliance (G-
MOC-1). If you have questions on viewing or submitting material to the 
docket, call Andrea M. Jenkins, Program Manager, Docket Operations, 
telephone 202-366-0271.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Privacy Act: Anyone can search the 
electronic form of all comments received into any of our dockets by the 
name of the individual submitting the comment (or signing the comment, 
if submitted on behalf of an association, business, labor union, etc.). 
You may review the Department of Transportation's Privacy Act Statement 
in the Federal Register published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477), or 
you may visit http://dms.dot.gov.

Public Comments

    The Coast Guard received two general comments from the public. One 
commenter expressed concern with the short submission time for the 
application of the Continuous Synopsis Record. The Coast Guard 
recognizes the difficult timelines for compliance with the requirements 
for the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code. The 
Coast Guard Marine Safety Center has identified through all practical 
means those vessels subject to International Convention for the Safety 
of Life at Sea, 1974 as amended (SOLAS) requiring International Ship 
Security Certificates (ISSCs) and Continuous Synopsis Records (CSRs) to 
be onboard prior to July 1, 2004. These vessels are receiving priority 
scheduling at each step of the process. We have instituted a concurrent 
issue process for ISSCs and initial CSRs to enable Coast Guard field 
units to deliver both documents upon satisfactory completion of the 
onboard verification exam. Upon receipt of an approval letter for their 
vessel security plan, owners and operators are strongly encouraged to 
coordinate closely with their local Officer in Charge, Marine 
Inspection (OCMI) and the Continuous Synopsis Record Desk (CSR Desk) 
without delay to ensure timely onboard verification and document 
issuance.
    The other comment stated that there was possible confusion 
regarding what vessels are required to carry an ISSC and a CSR. The 
requirements of the ISPS Code, including ISSCs and CSRs, are applicable 
to those vessels identified in Chapter I of SOLAS, which defines cargo 
ships as ``any ship which is not a passenger ship'' and specifically 
exempts ``cargo ships of less than 500 gross tonnage'' and ``ships not 
propelled by mechanical means.'' Some members of the maritime community 
have confused the requirements of the ISPS Code with the requirements 
of the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002 (MTSA). While the 
ISPS Code and the MTSA closely parallel one another, there are several 
instances where they diverge considerably. Among them are 
applicability, and the requirements for documents such as ISSC and CSR. 
Barges or non self-propelled vessels are not subject to SOLAS, and 
therefore do not have to carry a CSR.

Clarification

    We received some requests from the public and industry to clarify 
certain wording in the Notice of Availability that was published in the 
Federal Register February 17, 2004 (69 FR 9206). The following 
clarifications are provided to assist both the public and pertinent 
implementation and compliance agencies, including the Coast Guard.
    ``Gross Tonnage,'' means the gross tonnage measurement of the 
vessel under 46 U.S.C. chapter 143 Convention measurement (referring to 
International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships, 1969, also 
known as ITC). This parameter is also described as ``GT'' or ``GT 
ITC''. It follows that any wording that refers to ``tons'' should be 
read as ``tonnage.'' Also, in accordance with SOLAS definitions, the 
way to refer to a passenger vessel's applicability requirement, shall 
read ``more than 12 passengers'' instead of ``12 or more passengers.''
    Furthermore, some definitions were mentioned in the notice and were 
provided as a ready source of information. The Coast Guard has found 
that they might be a potential source of confusion as it could be 
interpreted that these definitions are new or revised definitions of 
existing terms. To clarify this, the intent of this notice is to adhere 
to the existing definitions as defined in the Maritime Transportation 
Security Act of 2002 (MTSA) and SOLAS. These definitions are already 
clearly defined and are applicable for the CSR Notice of Availability.

Collection of Information

    This notice calls for no new collections of information under the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520). The CSR notice

[[Page 33575]]

published on February 27, 2004 [USCG-2004-17086; 69 FR 9206], proposed 
modifications to two existing OMB-approved collections of information-
1625-0002 (formerly 2115-0007) and 1625-0017 (formerly 2115-0056). The 
February 27, 2004, CSR notice stated that--
     Certain vessels are required to carry onboard a CSR by the 
solas chapter XI-1;
     This requires information to be provided, by the public, 
to the coast guard; and
     These reporting and recordkeeping requirements are a 
collection of information.
    The Coast Guard did not receive any collection-of-information-
related comments to the February 27, 2004 (69 FR 9206), document. We 
received approval from OMB on April 2, 2004, and April 23, 2004, for 
collections 1625-0002 (form CG-6039, Application for Continuous 
Synopsis Record) and 1625-0017 (form CG-6038A, Amendments to the CSR 
and Index of Amendments to the CSR) respectively. As these collections 
were approved on an ``emergency'' basis, they are scheduled to expire 
on August 31, 2004. When this document is published, we will resubmit 
these collections to OMB for three-year approval. You are not required 
to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a 
currently valid OMB control number.

    Dated: June 7, 2004.
Joseph J. Angelo,
Director of Standards, Marine Safety, Security & Environmental 
Protection.
[FR Doc. 04-13469 Filed 6-15-04; 8:45 am]
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