Last Updated on Wednesday, 04 February 2009 09:20 Tuesday, 03 February 2009 16:53

Issue: The Coast Guard published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to expand the applicability of notice of arrival and departure (NOAD) and automatic identification system (AIS) requirements to more commercial vessels.

This proposed rule would expand the applicability of notice of arrival (NOA) requirements to additional vessels, establish a separate requirement for certain vessels to submit notices of departure (NOD), set forth a mandatory method for electronic submission of NOA and NOD, and modify related reporting content, timeframes, and procedures.

This proposed rule would also expand the applicability of AIS requirements, from just vessels that operate in Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) areas, to vessels in all U.S. navigable waters and expend AIS carriage to additional commercial vessels.

Status: The OMSA staff is closely following this proposed regulation change. One or both of these changes will likely impact all OMSA members operating vessels. OMSA members should be aware that the proposal would expand the requirement to carry AIS to all vessels, including crewboats and tugs that are longer than 65 feet. Additionally, it may expand the requirements for reporting notice of arrival when a vessel crosses Captain of the Port boundaries and could impact some vessels operating offshore of Louisiana.