[Federal Register: May 19, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 96)]
[Notices]
[Page 28947-28949]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr19my05-76]
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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
mgould@comdt.uscg.mil) or Gerald Miante of the Coast Guard at (202)
267-0221 (gmiante@comdt.uscg.mil). 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
[[Page 28949]]
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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