Marine Equipment on Board Vessels and Offshore Units or Facilities

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents for Preamble

I. Abbreviations

II. Basis, Purpose, and Regulatory History

III. Background

IV. Discussion of Comments

V. Discussion of the Final Rule and Changes From NPRM

VI. Incorporation by Reference

VII. Regulatory Analyses

A. Regulatory Planning and Review

B. Small Entities

C. Assistance for Small Entities

D. Collection of Information

E. Federalism

F. Unfunded Mandates

G. Taking of Private Property

H. Civil Justice Reform

I. Protection of Children

J. Indian Tribal Governments

K. Energy Effects

L. Technical Standards

M. Environment

I. Abbreviations

ASTM ASTM International

CFR Code of Federal Regulations

CG-ENG Coast Guard Office of Design and Engineering Standards

COMDTINST Commandant Instruction

COSPAS Space System for the Search of Vessels in Distress

DHS Department of Homeland Security

EPIRB Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon

FCC Federal Communications Commission

FR Federal Register

FTP Code Fire Test Procedures Code

IBR Incorporation by reference

IMO International Maritime Organization

ISO International Organization for Standardization

LSA Life-Saving Appliances

MISLE Marine Information for Safety and Law Enforcement

MODU Mobile offshore drilling unit

MSC Maritime Safety Committee

MSHA Mine Safety and Health Administration

NIOSH National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

NFPA National Fire Protection Association

NRTL Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory

NPRM Notice of proposed rulemaking

NVIC Navigation and Vessel Inspection Circular

OCMI Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection

OCS Outer Continental Shelf

OMB Office of Management and Budget

PHS Public Health Service

RTCM Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services

SARSAT Search and Rescue Satellite-Aided Tracking

SCBA Self-contained breathing apparatus

§ Section

SME Subject matter expert

SOLAS International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea

UL Underwriters Laboratories, Inc.

U.S.C. United States Code

II. Basis, Purpose, and Regulatory History

The statutory authority for these regulations can be found in Title 46 of the United States Code (U.S.C.), Sections 3306 and 3703. The authority to issue regulations, pursuant to these sections, is delegated to the Commandant of the Coast Guard under Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Delegation No. 00170.1, Revision No. 01.4, paragraph (II)(92).

Under 46 U.S.C. 3306, the Secretary of DHS is required to prescribe necessary regulations to ensure safety of individuals and property on board vessels subject to inspection. This final rule ensures the proper design, construction, alteration, repair, and operation of vessels subject to inspection.

Under 46 U.S.C. 3703, the Secretary of DHS is required to prescribe regulations for the design, construction, alteration, repair, maintenance, operation, equipping, personnel qualification, and manning of tank and cargo vessels that may be necessary for increased protection against hazards to life and property, navigation and vessel safety, and enhanced protection of the marine environment.

The Coast Guard issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) on May 23, 2023, and solicited public comment on the proposed rule during a comment period of 62 days. The comment period closed on July 24, 2023. The Coast Guard received six comment submissions, which are discussed later in this document.

This final rule amends title 33 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), chapter I, subchapters NN, and 46 CFR, chapter I, subchapters A, D, F, H, I, I-A, K, L, N, Q, R, T, U, and W. These subchapters are associated with approving, carrying, and maintaining certain safety equipment required on board vessels and offshore units or facilities. The revisions in this final rule eliminate outdated requirements, reduce inspection and testing requirements, modify submission requirements for equipment approval to allow materials to be submitted electronically, and update standards incorporated by reference. Additionally, this final rule removes numerous obsolete CFR sections and updates other CFR sections to bring them into compliance with the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) and related regulations.

III. Background

The Coast Guard conducted a comprehensive review of regulations regarding the approval, carriage, and maintenance of marine equipment on U.S.-flagged vessels. The Coast Guard continues to review regulations with the following goals: updating references to incorporated standards that have been modified; clarifying language; providing additional regulatory flexibility where possible; minimizing the regulatory burden on affected vessels; and removing obsolete rules to ensure marine equipment requirements are current with emerging technology and industry standards.

IV. Discussion of Comments

In response to the NPRM published on May 23, 2023, we received six written submissions during the comment period. These written submissions are available in the public docket for this rulemaking, where indicated under ADDRESSES , or at the direct link: https://www.regulations.gov/docket/USCG-2020-0519/comments. The Coast Guard appreciates the comments from the public, as these insights continue to inform Coast Guard actions and programs. We summarize the comments and our responses in the paragraphs that follow.

One commenter noted that the proposed changes to 46 CFR 116.400(c) would create an unintentional application of subchapter H's egress requirements found in § 72.05-20 for all subchapter K vessels that use SOLAS Structural Fire Protection requirements as equivalent. The intent of the amendments to § 116.400 was to clarify the egress requirements and not to impose additional egress requirements. All subchapter K vessels that use SOLAS Structural Fire Protection requirements as equivalent must comply with the egress requirements for stairtowers, stairways, ladders, and elevators in § 116.438. In accordance with § 116.438(a), those subchapter K vessels that carry more than 600 passengers or with overnight accommodations for more than 49 passengers must meet the egress requirements in subchapter H for stairtowers, stairways, ladders, and elevators in § 72.05-20. In response to this comment, in § 116.400(c) we removed the direct reference to § 72.05-20 from the proposed rule and added a reference to § 116.438 in this final rule so as not to apply § 72.05-20 to all subchapter K vessels.

A commenter noted the rulemaking's intent to “align the regulations with the current industry practice and provide more transparent regulations for the regulated industry” and suggested revising and updating the regulations for 46 CFR subchapter W. The commenter offered a number of suggestions to revise regulations for Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons (EPIRBs), distress signals, lifebuoys, survival craft, line throwing appliances, and provide clarity to the definitions of accommodation and workstation. The updates to subchapter W in this rule were specifically drafted to align davit maintenance intervals with SOLAS requirements, and not to update regulations in subchapter W in general. Therefore, this commenter's suggestions are outside the scope of this rulemaking. We cannot make those updates in this final rule; however, the Coast Guard acknowledges that the application of subchapter W to barges that are not self-propelled is ambiguous and is working to address it. Additionally, as of July 2023, there is a newly published Change 2 to Navigation and Vessel Inspection Circular (NVIC) 02-81 that has exemptions for life-saving requirements on integrated and articulated tug and barge combinations.

We received a comment regarding Coast Guard requirements for nonmetallic (plastic) piping used in various engineering systems for different types of vessels. The comment suggested that, because all nonmetallic piping used in the building industry essentially meets the same ASTM International (ASTM) D1784 standard requirements, piping that also meets this standard should be acceptable for use in vessel systems without more requirements from the Coast Guard. The intent of this rule on this particular subject is to remove redundant fire testing requirements for nonmetallic piping, specifically for vessels under 46 CFR subchapter K. A proposal to newly incorporate an industry standard on this subject is beyond the scope of this rulemaking, as piping requirements vary between the regulations applicable to specific vessel types. We note that manufacturers and vessel designers may submit specific material test results for general approval by the Coast Guard, or acceptance to an equivalent level of safety to the CFR for a particular vessel or project. As a result, the Coast Guard made no changes from the proposed rule in response to this comment.

We received a comment that concurred with the proposed edits to 46 CFR 56.60-25(a)(4), but also recommended that § 56.60-25(a)(7) be modified to include other laboratory accreditation bodies for potable water piping. Specifically, the comment recommended inclusion of accreditation entities signatory to the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation Mutual Recognition Arrangement. The Coast Guard's proposed change to remove repetitive wording was editorial in nature. As the commenter's recommended modification of acceptable accreditation entities is a substantial change that was not considered in the NPRM, we cannot make that change in this final rule; however, the recommendation may be considered for a future rulemaking.

We also received a comment regarding the carpet requirements for vessels under subchapter K in 46 CFR 116.423. The comment stated that the rugs and carpets requirements in § 116.423(a)(4) are applicable to all spaces, not just rooms containing fire resistant furnishings under § 116.423(a) and suggests that the carpet requirements should be its own paragraph, not a subparagraph of § 116.423(a). The Coast Guard acknowledges this comment. It is outside the scope of this rulemaking because this section was not part of the changes proposed in the NPRM. However, we will consider this revision for inclusion in a future rulemaking. For these reasons, we have made no changes from the proposed rule in response to this comment.

We received one comment on the regulatory analysis (RA) related to the affected population for the lifeboats listed in table 2 of the NPRM. The commenter expressed concern that the table did not provide enough clarity to determine if floating Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) facilities were included. We did not include floating OCS facilities in our population of vessels carrying lifeboats because the proposed change is not applicable to floating OCS facilities. We made the recommended changes to reflect the affected population of vessels carrying lifeboats by subchapter, and we listed the affected population by inspection subchapter, for vessels carrying lifeboats, in table 7 of the RA in this final rule.

V. Discussion of the Final Rule and Changes From NPRM

In order to decrease likelihood of introducing errors, to improve efficiency during the publication process, and to meet drafting and formatting requirements for publication, we are revising or revising and republishing several sections and tables, as appropriate. This final rule makes no substantive changes from the NPRM; it makes effective the following changes to various subchapters in titles 33 and 46 of the CFR:

(1) Modifies equipment approval submission requirements to allow for materials to be submitted electronically to typeapproval@uscg.mil, instead of the existing requirement of paper submissions in triplicate;

(2) Removes obsolete regulations for pilot hoists that are no longer allowed on U.S.-flagged vessels;

(3) Allows vessel owners and operators to use a third party to test the properties and quality of their firefighting foam;

(4) Revises the requirements for pressure vacuum relief valves to align with international consensus standards;

(5) Updates requirements for lifeboat and rescue boat releasing mechanisms on board mobile offshore drilling units (MODUs) to allow for lifeboats that serve as rescue boats to carry lifeboat releasing mechanisms. We note that this does not apply to OCS facilities as incorrectly stated in the NPRM;

(6) Removes prescriptive design requirements for lifeboat, rescue boat, and liferaft winch limit switches and aligns requirements with the Life-Saving Appliances (LSA) Code;

(7) Removes a redundant flame-spread testing requirement for nonmetallic piping used in certain vessels;

(8) Revises the “end-for-ending” requirement for launching appliance falls (wire ropes) to align with SOLAS, which allows for a fall replacement interval of 5 years without end-for-ending;

(9) Changes the interval for hydrostatic testing of all inert gas firefighting extinguishing system bottles to align with the hydrostatic testing intervals for carbon dioxide and Halon firefighting extinguishing systems. The interval will change from at least once every 5 or 10 years (depending on bottle size) to once every 12 years;

(10) Removes the Mine Safety and Health Administration's (MSHA) approval requirement for self-contained breathing apparatuses (SCBAs) because MSHA no longer certifies this type of equipment for marine use;

(11) Revises the standards of fire-resistant fiber-reinforced plastic resin used to manufacture survival craft and rescue boats to allow the use of additional international standards;

(12) Removes the requirement for Coast Guard approval of EPIRBs and codifies the current policy in which the Coast Guard reviews test data, instruction manuals, drawings, and specifications of the EPIRB and issues a letter to the manufacturer stating whether the EPIRB satisfies all Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services (RTCM) Recommended Standards. This aligns with the requirements as set out in 47 CFR 80.1061;

(13) Adds an option for the use of fire detection systems as excess equipment for MODUs and a grandfathering clause for fire extinguishers on board nautical school vessels;

(14) Makes editorial changes to clarify language, correct typographical errors, and delete repetitive words;

(15) Updates incorporations by reference (IBRs), removes outdated IBRs, and revises CFR citations to the correct IBRs;

(16) Corrects errors in fire extinguisher quantities and ratings from a previous rulemaking; and

(17) Clarifies structural fire protection requirements for means of egress on 46 CFR subchapter K vessels.

Table 1 provides a list of the types of changes, summaries of the changes, and the subparts affected by this final rule. Further explanation for each of these categories can be found after the table.