PVA urges members to comment on recent AIS/NOAD ruling

 

 This entry is a continuation of the post entitled “COMMENT NOW On Automatic Identification System (AIS) and Notice Of Arrival and Departure (NOAD ) Rulemaking” .  Here are suggestions for writing your comments. Remember to submit by Wednesday, April 15, 2009. Instructions for filing comments to the docket are found below.

 

COMMENT NOW on Automatic Identification System (AIS) and Notice of Arrival and Departure (NOAD) Rulemaking

On December 16, 2008, the Coast Guard issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on Vessel Requirements for Notices of Arrival and Departure (NOAD) and Automatic Identification System (AIS). With regard to vessels operated by Passenger Vessel Association  (PVA) members on the navigable waters of the U.S., this NPRM proposes that all vessels with a capacity of 50 or more passengers must carry and use AIS, as must any commercial passenger vessel (regardless of passenger capacity) with a length of 65 feet or more. In addition, certain PVA members with vessels that travel on international routes or that travel between Captain of the Port (COTP) zones would be subject to the expansion of notice of arrival and departure requirements.

 

Kidde Fire Extinguishers Recalled

 The Coast Guard Headquarters Lifesaving and Fire Safety Division, CG-5214 is forwarding the following recall information from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. The recall involves about 167,000 portable “Kidde XL Fire  Extinguishers” made by Walter Kidde Portable Equipment, Inc.
For additional information please access this website:
http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml09/09151.html and www.kidde.com

Questions relating to this recall should be addressed to the Kidde consumer contact or website. 

 

 

The United States Coast Guard wants to hear from you

Coast Guard Reaches Out to Mariners; Survey Gathers Data on Safety, Security, and Professionalism

In a press release, the Coast Guard’s Marine Safety, Security and Stewardship Directorate in Washington D.C. announced that it is making its maritime safety and security survey more accessible to the general public through a link on the service’s web site at www.uscg.mil

 

The anonymous, eight-question survey covers topics including professionalism, regulatory stewardship, customer support and customer perceptions of safety, security and cleanliness of ports and waterways.

While the survey is anonymous, it does allow users to request a follow-up contact from a Coast Guard representative.

 

Visitors can access the survey by going to www.uscg.mil; selecting the “Missions” menu bar and then clicking on the “Maritime Customer Survey” button in the left column. The survey can also be accessed directly at http://homeport.uscg.mil/maritimesurvey

 

Online appointments available at Coast Guard REC’s

 As part of the ongoing merchant marine licensing centralization project, all Regional Examination Centers (RECs) are now set up for on-line appointments. Mariners are highly encouraged to make an appointment prior to coming to the REC. Now that all RECs have much smaller staffs, mariners who choose to walk in without an appointment run the risk of being served on a “Space Available Basis” only.

Mariners desiring an appointment at an REC can make an appointment by clicking here, then clicking on the appropriate state where the REC the want to visit is located.