[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 118 (Tuesday, June 19, 2012)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 36406-36408]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-15027]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Transportation Security Administration

49 CFR Part 1572

[Docket No. TSA-2006-24191]


Exemption From Transportation Worker Identification Credential 
(TWIC) Expiration Provisions for Certain Individuals Who Hold a Valid 
TWIC

AGENCY: Transportation Security Administration, DHS.

ACTION: Notice of Exemption.

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SUMMARY: The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is granting a 
temporary exemption from certain TWIC regulations regarding card 
expiration and replacement requirements. This exemption applies to U.S. 
nationals \1\ who hold a valid TWIC expiring on or before December 31, 
2014. The exemption permits eligible TWIC holders to obtain a 
replacement card that extends the expiration date of their current 
security threat assessment and TWIC by three years. During 2012, DHS 
intends to publish a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to seek 
comment on card reader requirements and deployment requirement plans. 
At the end of the three-year extension period, pending the outcome of 
this rulemaking activity, DHS expects card reader requirements to be in 
place and readers to be deployed at facilities with the highest risk.
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    \1\ The term U.S. nationals includes U.S. citizens and 
noncitizen nationals of the United States.

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DATES: This exemption becomes effective August 30, 2012.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Baker, Office of Security Policy 
and Industry Engagement, TWIC Program Office, TSA-28, Transportation 
Security Administration, 601 South 12th Street, Arlington, VA 20598-
6028; telephone (571) 227-2659; facsimile (571) 227-1376; email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document grants a temporary exemption 
to certain TWIC regulations contained at 49 CFR part 1572. The 
background, purpose, and terms of the exemption are explained below.

Background

    The Maritime Transportation Security Act (MTSA) of 2002 \2\ and the 
Security and Accountability for Every Port Act of 2006 \3\ require TSA 
and the U.S. Coast Guard to establish regulations requiring certain 
merchant mariners and individuals with unescorted access to secure 
areas of certain vessels and facilities to undergo a security threat 
assessment (STA) and receive a biometric credential called the 
Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC). The STA 
consists of criminal, immigration and terrorism checks. TSA and the 
U.S. Coast Guard implemented these requirements in a joint final 
rulemaking.\4\
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    \2\ Public Law 107-295, 116 Stat. 2064 (November 25, 2002).
    \3\ Public Law 109-347, 120 Stat. 1884 (October 13, 2006).
    \4\ Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) 
Implementation in the Maritime Sector Final Rule, 72 FR 3492 
(January 25, 2007).
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    TSA is issuing this exemption to give eligible individuals the 
option to extend for an additional three years their current STAs for 
five-year TWICs that are set to expire on or before December 31, 
2014,\5\ rather than require them to renew the card. Through this 
notice, we are exempting eligible individuals from 49 CFR 1572.23(a) 
and (a)(1) and 1572.501(d) of the TWIC regulation. If card holders so 
choose, they will have the option to renew the card for a full five 
years, as detailed in the TWIC regulation, codified at 49 CFR 1572.17, 
1572.19, and 1572.21. The process for exercising the three-year TWIC 
extension option will be similar to the card replacement procedures 
outlined in the TWIC regulation at 49 CFR 1572.19(f) and 1572.501(d).
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    \5\ 49 CFR 1572.23.
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    Eligible individuals choosing the three-year TWIC extension may 
obtain it by ordering the credential via telephone, paying a $60 card 
replacement fee, and visiting a TWIC enrollment center to pick up and 
activate the card. For the purposes of this exemption, the three-year 
TWIC is considered a valid TWIC, in that it can be used to enter 
maritime facilities and vessels just as the five-year TWIC is used 
currently. The three-year TWIC will expire three years from the 
expiration date of the TWIC that is being replaced. Eligible 
individuals selecting the three-year TWIC option do not have to go 
through the standard renewal process that includes providing new 
biometric and biographic information at an enrollment center, new STA, 
payment of the renewal fee of $129.75, and a second trip to an 
enrollment center to retrieve and activate the credential.

[[Page 36407]]

    This exemption will reduce the burden and cost \6\ associated with 
obtaining a new TWIC for the majority of individuals holding expiring 
TWICs, while the U.S. Coast Guard develops the TWIC reader regulation. 
This exemption (and the option that it will provide to certain TWIC 
holders with expiring TWICs) and the U.S. Coast Guard TWIC reader 
rulemaking are part of the Department of Homeland Security's overall 
proposed effort to ensure that TWIC readers are deployed, through a 
risk-based approach, to appropriate vessels and facilities throughout 
the Nation in the coming three-year period.
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    \6\ TSA's OMB control number for the TWIC collection of 
information is 1652-0047. TSA has updated its Paperwork Reduction 
Act submission to OMB to reflect the changes in hour and cost burden 
that will result from the TWIC Exemption. TSA estimates for those 
eligible individuals who select the three-year TWIC option, the cost 
and hour burden will be reduced by over 50 percent. This information 
will be available at www.reginfo.gov.
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    In particular, over the next three years, during the STA extension 
period, DHS intends to issue a U.S Coast Guard NPRM and final 
rulemaking to establish a risk-based reader deployment and 
implementation schedule. DHS anticipates that the highest risk 
facilities will be required to implement TWIC card readers prior to the 
expiration of the TWIC STA extension period detailed in this notice. If 
a card holder chooses not to exercise this extension, the individual 
must follow TWIC renewal provisions as specified in the TWIC regulation 
at 49 CFR 1572.17, 1572.19 and 1572.21. For card holders that opt to 
follow renewal procedures in the final rule, renewal cards will be 
valid for five years.

Authority and Determination

    TSA may grant an exemption from a regulation if TSA determines that 
the exemption is in the public interest.\7\ TSA has determined that it 
is in the public interest to grant an exemption from certain TWIC 
regulations found at 49 CFR part 1572, described below under 
``Exemption.'' This exemption will contribute to providing safe and 
efficient transportation while ensuring the efficient use and 
conservation of the resources of the United States. Due to the fact 
that readers are not yet required by regulation or in widespread use, 
we believe the burden associated with the full renewal requirements is 
not currently justified. The exemption permits eligible individuals to 
pay lower fees, reduce trips to an enrollment center, and avoid 
providing new biometric and biographic enrollment information when they 
request the card. As stated above, this exemption will reduce the 
burden and cost associated with obtaining a new TWIC for the majority 
of individuals holding expiring TWICs, without reducing the current 
benefits of possession of those TWICs, while the U.S. Coast Guard 
develops the TWIC reader regulation.
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    \7\ 49 U.S.C. 114(q).
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    These factors save time and resources for TWIC workers and the 
government and also facilitate commerce at America's ports, a vital 
element of the national economy.

Eligibility and Process for Using the Exemption

    Individuals are eligible to apply for the three-year TWIC if they 
are U.S. nationals \8\ and hold a valid TWIC that expires on or before 
December 31, 2014. Individuals eligible for the three-year TWIC may 
choose to obtain a five-year TWIC under the current process. All other 
individuals who are not eligible for the three-year TWIC must obtain or 
renew a TWIC through the standard renewal process and obtain a five-
year TWIC.
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    \8\ 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(22).
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    Eligible individuals must request a three-year TWIC from TSA. To 
make this request, individuals should call 1-866-347-8942 (the TWIC 
Help Desk \9\) to order a three-year TWIC. Individuals must pay the 
associated $60 card replacement fee either by credit card over the 
telephone, or via cashier's check or money order at an enrollment 
center.\10\ The new three-year TWICs will be available within five to 
ten business days after calling the TWIC Help Desk. Once the card is 
ready, individuals must make one visit to an enrollment center of their 
choosing to pick up and activate the three-year TWIC, and present a 
government-issued photo identification to verify that they are the 
authorized TWIC holder. This visit to the enrollment center is the only 
one required; individuals can make an appointment or walk in during 
normal enrollment center business hours to pick-up and activate the 
three-year TWIC.
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    \9\ To obtain more information about contacting the TWIC Help 
Desk and this exemption, visit the TSA Web site at http://www.tsa.gov/what_we_do/layers/twic/contact.shtm (last visited Apr. 
18, 2012).
    \10\ Please note that because payment must be made in advance of 
ordering the replacement card, those eligible individuals who choose 
to pay via cashier's check or money order will have to make a 
separate trip to the enrollment center to order the card, in 
addition to visiting the enrollment center to pick-up and activate 
the three-year TWIC.
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    All individuals holding a TWIC must continue to comply with all 
non-exempt requirements of 49 CFR part 1572, including requirements to 
report disqualifying arrests, convictions or unlawful immigration 
status. Ports and facility operators do not have to modify current 
access control procedures to accommodate three-year TWICs. Any facility 
may use a TWIC reader in conjunction with TSA's Cancelled Card List 
(CCL) to determine if a five-year or three-year TWIC has been revoked 
for cause, or reported as lost, stolen or damaged. Industry and law 
enforcement officials may use a three-year TWIC to verify identity 
using a TWIC reader, as is currently done with five-year TWICs.

Exemption

Section I--General Exemption

    Beginning August 30, 2012, TSA exempts eligible individuals who 
hold a valid TWIC that expires on or before December 31, 2014, from the 
requirements of 49 CFR part 1572 described below:
    1. Eligible individuals are exempt from 49 CFR 1572.23(a) and may 
receive a three-year extension of the five-year expiration date of 
their current TWIC by following the procedures described below in 
``Approved Procedures.'' TSA does not exempt individuals from the 
requirements of 49 CFR 1572.23(a)(2).
    2. Eligible individuals whose TWIC was issued based on a comparable 
threat assessment are exempt from 49 CFR 1572.23(a)(1) and may receive 
a three-year extension of the expiration date of their current TWIC by 
following the procedures described below in ``Approved Procedures.''
    3. Eligible individuals are exempt from 49 CFR 1572.501(d) and may 
replace their five-year TWIC with a three-year TWIC by paying the $60 
card replacement fee even if their current TWIC has not been lost, 
stolen or damaged. Individuals may continue to replace a lost, stolen 
or damaged TWIC pursuant to the requirements in 49 CFR 1572.501(d).

Section II--Approved Procedures

    To receive a three-year TWIC, eligible individuals must:
    1. Call the TWIC Help Desk (currently 1-866-347-8942) and order a 
three-year TWIC. \11\
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    \11\ To obtain more information about contacting the TWIC Help 
Desk and this exemption, visit the TSA Web site at http://www.tsa.gov/what_we_do/layers/twic/contact.shtm (last visited Apr. 
18, 2012).
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    2. Pay the $60 card replacement fee.
    3. For individuals who became a U.S. national after enrolling for 
the original five-year TWIC, provide proof of U.S. national status \12\ 
before picking up the three-year TWIC.
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    \12\ The list of acceptable documents that may be used to 
provide proof of U.S. nationality is located at http://www.tsa.gov/assets/pdf/approved_twic_identification_docs.pdf (last visited 
May 2, 2012).

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[[Page 36408]]

    4. Visit an enrollment center and present a government-issued photo 
identification \13\ to activate and pick up the new TWIC.
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    \13\ The list of acceptable identification documents is located 
at http://www.tsa.gov/assets/pdf/approved_twic_identification_docs.pdf.
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    5. Comply with all non-exempt requirements of 49 CFR part 1572.

    Issued in Arlington, Virginia, on June 15, 2012.
John S. Pistole,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2012-15027 Filed 6-15-12; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 9110-05-P