[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 12 (Wednesday, January 21, 2009)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 3534-3535]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-1135]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

33 CFR Parts 160, 161, 164, and 165

[USCG-2005-21869]
RIN 1625-AA99


Vessel Requirements for Notices of Arrival and Departure, and 
Automatic Identification System

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard announces a public meeting to receive comments 
on a notice of proposed rulemaking to amend Coast Guard regulations 
governing Notice of Arrival and Departure (NOAD) and Automatic 
Identification System (AIS) requirements.

DATES: A public meeting will be held on March 5, 2009, from 12:30 p.m. 
to 3 p.m. to provide an opportunity for oral comments. Written comments 
and related material may also be submitted to Coast Guard personnel 
specified at that meeting. The comment period for the proposed rule 
closes April 15, 2009. All comments and related material submitted 
after the meeting must either be submitted to our online docket via 
http://www.regulations.gov on or before April 15, 2009, or reach the 
Docket Management Facility by that date.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held at the United States Coast 
Guard Headquarters Building, Room 2415, 2100 2nd Street, SW., 
Washington, DC 20593; a government-issued photo identification (for 
example, a driver's license) will be required for entrance to the 
building.
    You may submit written comments identified by docket number USCG-
2005-21869 before or after the meeting using any one of the following 
methods:
    (1) Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
    (2) Fax: 202-493-2251.
    (3) Mail: Docket Management Facility (M-30), U.S. Department of 
Transportation, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue, SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
    (4) Hand delivery: Same as mail address above, between 9 a.m. and 5 
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone 
number is 202-366-9329.
    To avoid duplication, please use only one of these four methods. 
Our online docket for this rulemaking is available on the Internet at 
http://www.regulations.gov under docket number USCG-2005-21869.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions concerning the 
NOAD portion of this proposed rulemaking or concerning the public 
meeting, please contact Lieutenant Sharmine Jones, Office of Vessel 
Activities (CG-543), Coast Guard, [email protected], telephone 
202-372-1234. If you have questions on the AIS portion of this proposed 
rulemaking, contact Mr. Jorge Arroyo, Office of Navigation Systems (CG-
5413), Coast Guard, [email protected], telephone 202-372-1563. If 
you have questions on viewing or submitting material to the docket, 
call Ms. Renee V. Wright, Program Manager, Docket Operations, telephone 
202-366-9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background and Purpose

    We published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) in the Federal 
Register on December 16, 2008 (73 FR 76295), entitled ``Vessel 
Requirements for Notices of Arrival and Departure, and Automatic 
Identification System.'' In it we stated our intention to hold a public 
meeting, and to publish a notice

[[Page 3535]]

to announce the location and date of the public meeting. 73 FR 76296. 
In this notice, we announce that public meeting to receive comments on 
this proposed rule.
    In the NPRM, we proposed to expand the applicability of Notice of 
Arrival and Departure (NOAD) and Automatic Identification System (AIS) 
requirements to more commercial vessels, modify NOAD reporting 
requirements, establish a mandatory method for electronic data 
submission and establish a separate requirement for certain vessels to 
submit notices of departure. The proposed rulemaking would also clarify 
existing AIS requirements and extend the applicability of AIS 
requirements beyond Vessel Traffic Service areas to all U.S. navigable 
waters.
    You may view the NPRM in our online docket, in addition to 
supporting documents prepared by the Coast Guard (Regulatory Analysis & 
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, Valuing Mortality Risk 
Reductions in Homeland Security Regulatory Analyses--Final Report June 
2008, and an Environmental Checklist), and comments submitted thus far 
by going to http://www.regulations.gov. Once there, select the Advanced 
Docket Search option on the right side of the screen, insert USCG-2005-
21869 in the Docket ID box, press Enter, and then click on the item in 
the Docket ID column. If you do not have access to the Internet, you 
may view the docket online by visiting the Docket Management Facility 
in Room W12-140 on the ground floor of the Department of Transportation 
West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590, 
between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays. We have an agreement with the Department of Transportation to 
use the Docket Management Facility.
    We encourage you to participate in this rulemaking by submitting 
comments either orally at the meeting or in writing. If you bring 
written comments to the meeting, you may submit them to Coast Guard 
personnel specified at the meeting to receive written comments. These 
comments will be submitted to our online public docket. All comments 
received will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov 
and will include any personal information you have provided.
    Anyone can search the electronic form of 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 a Privacy Act notice 
regarding our public dockets in the January 17, 2008 issue of the 
Federal Register (73 FR 3316).

Information on Service for Individuals With Disabilities

    For information on facilities or services for individuals with 
disabilities or to request special assistance at the public meeting, 
contact Lieutenant Sharmine Jones at the telephone number indicated 
under the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this notice.

Public Meeting

    The Coast Guard will hold a public meeting regarding this proposed 
rulemaking on March 5, 2009, from 12:30 p.m. to 3 p.m., at the United 
States Coast Guard Headquarters Building, Room 2415, 2100 2nd Street, 
SW., Washington, DC 20593. A government-issued photo identification 
(for example, a driver's license) will be required for entrance to the 
building.
    Parking near the building is limited. Public transportation to the 
building (Bus Route 71) is limited to rush hours, approximately 6 to 
9:30 a.m. and 3 to 6 p.m. Contact the Washington Metropolitan Area 
Transit Authority for additional information at 202-637-7000 or http://www.wmata.com/.
    We plan to record this meeting using an audio-digital recorder and 
to make that audio recording available through a link in our online 
docket. We will also provide a written summary of the meeting and 
comments and will place that summary in the docket.

    Dated: January 13, 2009.
M.L. Blair,
Captain, U.S. Coast Guard, Acting Director of Commercial Regulations 
and Standards.
 [FR Doc. E9-1135 Filed 1-16-09; 8:45 am]
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