[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 96 (Thursday, May 19, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28947-28949]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-9936]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

[USCG-2005-21187]


Identity Security and Modernization of the Merchant Mariner 
Credential Statutes

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard believes that identity verification is a 
critical element of port security, recognizing that we must know and 
trust those who are provided unescorted access to our port facilities 
and vessels. The Coast Guard will hold a public meeting to accept 
comments concerning the President's proposal to implement the 
recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Report in the area of Merchant 
Mariner Credentials and to modernize these statutes (hereinafter 
referred to as ``the proposal''). The proposal may be viewed in the 
docket for this notice. The Coast Guard also seeks written comments on 
the proposal.

DATES: The public meeting will be held on Friday, June 17, 2005, from 9 
a.m. to 5 p.m. This meeting may close early if all business is 
finished. Members of the public who desire to make an oral statement 
may sign up on the day of the meeting. Written comments and related 
material must reach the Docket Management Facility on or before June 
29, 2005.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held in the Gallery Ballroom of 
the Arlington Hilton Hotel, 950 North Stafford Street, Arlington, VA 
22203. Further directions regarding the location of the Arlington 
Hilton may be obtained by phoning (703) 528-6000.
    You may submit written comments identified by Coast Guard docket 
number USCG-2005-21187 to the Docket Management Facility at the U.S. 
Department of Transportation. To avoid duplication, please use only one 
of the following methods:
    (1) Web Site: http://dms.dot.gov.
    (2) Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590-0001.

[[Page 28948]]

    (3) Fax: 202-493-2251.
    (4) Delivery: 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.
    (5) Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions on this notice, 
call or e-mail mark Gould of the Coast Guard at (202) 267-6890 
([email protected]) or Gerald Miante of the Coast Guard at (202) 
267-0221 ([email protected]). If you have questions on viewing or 
submitting materials to the docket, call Andrea M. Jenkins, Program 
Manager, Dockets Operations, telephone 202-366-0271.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We encourage you to submit comments 
concerning identity security and modernization of the Merchant Mariner 
Credential Statutes in the five areas identified below under Agenda. 
All comments received will be posted, without change, to http://www.dms.dot.gov and will include any personal information you have 
provided. We have an agreement with the Department of Transportation 
(DOT) to use the Docket Management Facility. Please see DOT's ``Privacy 
Act'' paragraph below.
    Submitting comments: If you submit a comment, please include your 
name and address, identify the docket number for this rulemaking (USCG-
2005-21187), indicate the specific provision of the proposal to which 
each comment applies, and give the reason for each comment. You may 
submit your comments and material by electronic means, mail, fax, or 
delivery 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 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 that they reached the Facility, please enclose a stamped, 
self-addressed postcard or envelope. We will consider all comments 
received during the comment period.
    Viewing comments and documents: To view the proposal, comments, or 
any other documents mentioned elsewhere in this notice as being 
available in the docket, go to http://dms.dot.gov at any time and 
conduct a simple search using the docket number. You may also visit the 
Docket Management Facility in 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.
    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.
    Agenda of meeting on June 17, 2005: Under current law, merchant 
mariners' documents issued by the Coast Guard serve as a form of 
government issued identification. Yet, some of these credentials 
contain limited identifying information and are relatively easy to 
forge. The President's proposal to implement the recommendations of the 
9/11 Commission Report in the area of Merchant Mariner Credentials 
represents an update and rationalization of the Coast Guard's 
antiquated mariner credentialing and suspension and revocation 
authorities. It takes into account the findings and recommendations of 
the 9/11 Commission Regarding the importance of preventing terrorists 
from obtaining, and using, government identification cards. It is an 
important component of the Coast Guard's effort to instill a culture of 
security within a system previously focused almost exclusively on 
safety efficiency.
    This proposal also enhances the Coast Guard's ability to be 
flexible and agile in establishing appropriate criteria and processes 
for issuing merchant mariner credentials and in recovering them from 
unqualified holders or those who present a significant security risk. 
This public meeting is intended to collect comments from any interested 
person or organization on the President's proposal (which may be viewed 
in the docket for this notice).
    After a short introduction, the public will be invited to provide 
oral comments in the following topic areas:
    1. Homeland Security--The 9/11 Commission found that terrorists 
used government-issued identification to facilitate their attacks upon 
the United States. The Commission recommended that the security of such 
forms of identification be enhanced. Congress responded by enacting 
laws requiring that security be considered by credentialing agencies, 
for example, the Maritime Transportation Security Act, Section 102 (46 
U.S.C. 70105) and the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act, 
Section 407 (46 U.S.C. 7703). This proposal continues to apply those 
existing authorities in the reorganized new chapters while providing 
flexibility to respond to developing security threats.
    2. Modernization--The existing statutes contain numerous outdated, 
obsolete and confusing provisions, for example, in Sec.  7313 the 
``coal passer'' rating and in Sec.  7306 six separate classifications 
of ``able seaman''. The proposal eliminates this antiquated and 
redundant terminology and improves the Coast Guard's ability to 
administer the credentialing statutes for the benefit of mariners. As 
the industry evolves, the proposal will allow us to respond with 
appropriate training and qualification requirements for mariners in the 
future.
    3. Organization--The proposal replaces the current five chapters of 
Title 46, which randomly intermingle credentialing requirements, with 
two chapters, one on issuance and one on suspension and revocation of 
credentials. We believe this will be easier for mariners and other 
users of the code to understand and apply, as well as easier for the 
Coast Guard to administer.
    4. Clarification--With limited exceptions, the proposal does not 
make substantive changes. It mostly clarifies existing law. At first 
glance, because of the comprehensive nature of the proposal, the 
language appears to change much. However, on closer reading, it is 
clear that the existing authorities are unchanged. For example, at 
first reading the proposal may appear to eliminate licenses and 
merchant mariner documents (MMDs) replacing them with ``merchant 
mariner credentials''. In fact, however, the proposal defines 
``merchant mariner credentials'' to include both licenses and MMDs 
thereby preserving the Coast Guard's authority to continue issuing both 
while adding the flexibility to integrate these documents with the 
Transportation Workers Identification Credential (TWIC) and other 
future, secure-credentialing efforts. The Coast Guard did not intend to 
alter or affect the rights, benefits or duties of any credentialed 
merchant mariner. Instead, the proposal is intended to clarify, 
consolidate, add flexibility and increase the effectiveness of the 
statute. We do not anticipate, or plan to, make any immediate changes 
to the existing credentials or the regulations, procedures and 
processes governing merchant mariner credentialing based on the 
proposal. The Coast Guard will continue working with mariners, industry 
and the public to improve the

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administration of the merchant mariner credentialing program.
    5. Harmonization--Organizations such as the International Maritime 
Organization (IMO) have undertaken comprehensive efforts concerning 
safety and security in the maritime arena. These efforts include the 
Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW), and the 
International Ship and Port Facility Security Code (ISPS). Many of 
these initiatives have been spearheaded by the United States. The 
proposal seeks to harmonize the credentialing statutes with these 
efforts and improve our ability to implement both ongoing and future 
standards.
    Procedural: This meeting is open to the public. Please note that 
the meeting may close early if all business is finished. The 
facilitator of the meeting has the discretion to limit the amount of 
time allocated to each commenter based on the total number of persons 
requesting to make oral comments.
    Information on services for individuals with disabilities: For 
information on facilities or services for individuals with disabilities 
or to request special assistance at the meeting, contact Mr. Gould as 
soon as possible.

    Dated: May 6, 2005.
Howard L. Hime,
Acting Director of Standards, Marine Safety, Security and Environmental 
Protection.
[FR Doc. 05-9936 Filed 5-18-05; 8:45 am]
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