[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 161 (Friday, August 19, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55460-55461]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-19785]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention


Fees for Sanitation Inspections of Cruise Ships

AGENCY: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Department of 
Health and Human Services (HHS).

ACTION: General notice.

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SUMMARY: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), located 
within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announces fees 
for vessel sanitation inspections for Fiscal Year (FY) 2017. These 
inspections are conducted by HHS/CDC's Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP). 
VSP helps the cruise line industry fulfill its responsibility for 
developing and implementing comprehensive sanitation programs to 
minimize the risk for acute gastroenteritis. Every vessel that has a 
foreign itinerary and carries 13 or more passengers is subject to 
twice-yearly unannounced inspections and, when necessary, reinspection.

DATES: These fees are effective October 1, 2016, through September 30, 
2017.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: CAPT Jaret T. Ames, Chief, Vessel 
Sanitation Program, National Center for Environmental Health, Centers 
for Disease Control and Prevention, 4770 Buford Highway NE., MS F-59, 
Atlanta, Georgia 30341-3717; phone: 800-323-2132, 770-488-3141, or 954-
356-6650; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Purpose and Background

    HHS/CDC established the Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP) in the 
1970s as a cooperative activity with the cruise ship industry. VSP 
helps the cruise ship industry prevent and control the introduction, 
transmission, and spread of gastrointestinal illnesses on cruise ships. 
VSP operates under the authority of the Public Health Service Act 
(Section 361 of the Public Health Service Act; 42 U.S.C. 264, ``Control 
of Communicable Diseases''). Regulations found at 42 CFR 71.41 (Foreign 
Quarantine--Requirements Upon Arrival at U.S. Ports: Sanitary 
Inspection; General Provisions) state that carriers arriving at U.S. 
ports from foreign areas are subject to sanitary inspections to 
determine whether rodent, insect, or other vermin infestations exist, 
contaminated food or water, or other sanitary conditions requiring 
measures for the prevention of the introduction, transmission, or 
spread of communicable diseases are present.
    The fee schedule for sanitation inspections of passenger cruise 
ships by VSP was first published in the Federal Register on November 
24, 1987 (52 FR 45019). HHS/CDC began collecting fees on March 1, 1988. 
This notice announces fees that are effective for FY 2017, beginning on 
October 1, 2016, through September 30, 2017.
    The following formula will be used to determine the fees:
    [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN19AU16.003
    
    Total cost of VSP = Total cost of operating the program, such as 
administration, travel, staffing, sanitation inspections, and 
outbreak response. Weighted number of annual inspections = Total 
number of ships and inspections per year accounting for vessel size, 
number of inspectors needed for vessel size, travel logistics to 
conduct inspections, and vessel location and arrivals in U.S. 
jurisdiction per year.

    The fee schedule was originally established and published in the 
Federal Register on July 17, 1987 (52 FR 27060). It was most recently 
published in the Federal Register on August 26, 2015 (80 FR 51819). The 
fee schedule for FY 2017 is presented in Appendix A.

Fee

    The fee schedule (Appendix A) will be effective October 1, 2016, 
through September 30, 2017.

Applicability

    The fees will apply to all passenger cruise vessels for which 
inspections are conducted as part of HHS/CDC's VSP. Inspections and 
reinspections involve the same procedures, require the same amount of 
time, and are therefore charged at the same rates.

    Dated: August 15, 2016.
Sandra Cashman,
Executive Secretary, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

[[Page 55461]]

Appendix A

                    Fee Schedule for Each Vessel Size
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                  Vessel size (GRT \1\)                   Inspection fee
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Extra Small (<3,000 GRT)................................        US$1,495
Small (3,001-15,000 GRT)................................           2,990
Medium (15,001-30,000 GRT)..............................           5,980
Large (30,001-60,000 GRT)...............................           8,970
Extra Large (60,001-120,000 GRT)........................          11,960
Mega (>120,001 GRT).....................................          17,940
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\1\ Gross register tonnage in cubic feet, as shown in Lloyd's Register
  of Shipping.

[FR Doc. 2016-19785 Filed 8-18-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P