[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 242 (Monday, December 19, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 75207-75208]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E5-7508]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

[USCG-2005-23335]


Natural Working Group on Small Passenger Vessel Access

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Notice of availability and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: On November 14, 2005, the United States Coast Guard (USCG) and 
the Passenger Vessel Association (PVA) signed a charter establishing a 
Natural Working Group (NWG). The purpose of this NWG is to determine 
the acceptability and usefulness of a proposed risk matrix that was 
developed, by the Volpe Center, to assist small passenger vessel 
designers in meeting the requirements of the Americans with 
Disabilities Act (ADA) without compromising vessel safety. The USCG is 
seeking comments on this

[[Page 75208]]

initiative and the draft risk matrix to assist the NWG in meeting its 
objective.

DATES: Comments and related materials must reach the Docket Management 
Facility on or before March 20, 2006.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Coast Guard docket 
number USCG-2005-23335 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;
    (3) Fax: 202-493-2251; or
    (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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions about this 
Notice of Availability and Request for Comments, you may contact LT 
William A. Nabach at (202) 267-4004 or by e-mail at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Request for Comments

    The USCG is seeking comments and related materials pertaining to 
this notice, the NWG charter and the draft risk matrix in the Volpe 
Phase 2 report. The NWG Charter and Volpe Center report (phase 1 and 2) 
may be found by running a ``simple search'' for docket number 23335 at 
http://dms.dot.gov. All comments will be posted, without change, to 
http://dms.dot.gov and will include any personal information that you 
have provided. Persons submitting comments should include their names, 
addresses and this notice reference number (USCG-2005-23335). We will 
consider all comments and materials received during the comment period.

Background Information

    The Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law in July 
1990 (Pub. L. 101-336). The U.S. Departments of Justice and 
Transportation, and the Architectural and Transportation Barriers 
Compliance Board (Access Board) issued regulations and guidelines in 
July and September 1991. Both the DOT's and Access Board's Rules noted 
that while ADA applied to vessels, further rulemaking would be deferred 
until a better understanding could be gained of the unique challenges 
faced by the marine industry.
    It soon became apparent the one of the most difficult challenges to 
complying with ADA would be the barrier to access presented by the USCG 
mandated door sills. The Access Board requested that the Volpe Center 
conduct research on this issue and develop a strategy to enable small 
passenger vessel designers to satisfy both the ADA accessibility 
requirements and the USCG's door sill requirements. The Volpe Center's 
research culminated in a draft risk matrix (available in the Phase 2 
report) that provides a methodology to assess the risk presented to the 
vessel by each individual exterior door and justify a reduction in the 
sill height requirement for doors of lower risk.
    The USCG is interested in adopting this risk-based methodology as 
policy, but must first evaluate the validity of the approach against a 
broad cross-section of small passenger vessel designs. The NWG is 
tasked with completing this evaluation. Please refer to the NWG charter 
for further details.
    The Volpe Center's report (Phase 1 and 2) are also available online 
through the Access Board's Web site: http://www.access-board.gov/news/research-vessels.htm.

    Dated: December 13, 2005.
Howard L. Hime,
Acting Director of Standards, Marine Safety, Security and Environmental 
Protection.
[FR Doc. E5-7508 Filed 12-16-05; 8:45 am]
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