9152 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 33 / Thursday, February 19, 2015 / Proposed Rules 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

Coast Guard 

46 CFR Parts 8 and 197 

[Docket No. USCG–1998–3786] 

RIN 1625–AA21 

Commercial Diving Operations 

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: The Coast Guard proposes to 

amend its regulations for commercial 

diving that is conducted from deepwater 

ports or deepwater port safety zones, or 

in connection with Outer Continental 

Shelf (OCS) activities, or from vessels 

that are required to have a Coast Guard 

certificate of inspection. The regulations 

would be revised and updated to 

improve safety and to reflect current 

industry best practices. The proposed 

regulations would also allow the Coast 

Guard to approve independent thirdparty organizations to assist with 

ensuring regulatory compliance of 

commercial diving regulations. The 

proposed amendments promote the 

Coast Guard’s maritime safety mission. 

DATES: Comments and related material 

must either be submitted to our online 

docket via http://www.regulations.gov 

on or before May 20, 2015 or reach the 

Docket Management Facility by that 

date. Comments sent to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) on 

collection of information must reach 

OMB on or before May 20, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: Submit comments using one 

of the listed methods, and see 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for more 

information on public comments. 

• Online—http://www.regulations.gov 

following Web site instructions. 

• Fax—202–493–2251. 

• Mail—Docket Management Facility 

(M–30), U.S. Department of 

Transportation, West Building Ground 

Floor, Room W12–140, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590– 

0001. 

• Hand deliver—mail address, 9 a.m. 

to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal holidays (telephone 202– 

366–9329). 

Collection of information. You must 

submit comments on the collection of 

information discussed in section IX.D of 

this preamble both to the Coast Guard’s 

docket and to the Office of Information 

and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) in the 

White House Office of Management and 

Budget. OIRA submissions can use one 

of the listed methods. 

• Email (preferred)— 

oira_submission@omb.eop.gov (include 

the docket number and ‘‘Attention: Desk 

Officer for Coast Guard, DHS’’ in the 

subject line of the email). 

• Fax—202–395–6566. 

• Mail—Office of Information and 

Regulatory Affairs, Office of 

Management and Budget, 725 17th 

Street NW., Washington, DC 20503, 

ATTN: Desk Officer, U.S. Coast Guard. 

Viewing material proposed for 

incorporation by reference. Make 

arrangements to view this material by 

calling the Coast Guard’s Office of 

Regulations and Administrative Law at 

202–372–3870 or by emailing HQSSMB-CoastGuardRegulationsLaw@ 

uscg.mil. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If 

you have questions on this proposed 

rule, call or email Mr. Ken Smith, 

Project Manager, U.S. Coast Guard, 

Headquarters, Vessel and Facility 

Operating Standards Division, 

Commandant (CG–OES–2); telephone 

202–372–1413, email 

Ken.A.Smith@uscg.mil. If you have 

questions on viewing or submitting 

material to the docket, call Cheryl 

Collins, Program Manager, Docket 

Operations, telephone 202–366–9826. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Table of Contents for Preamble 

I. Public Participation and Comments 

II. Abbreviations 

III. Basis and Purpose 

IV. Background 

V. Discussion of Comments on 2009 ANPRM 

VI. Discussion of Proposed Rule 

VII. Requests for Specific Comments 

VIII. Incorporation by Reference 

IX. Regulatory Analyses 

A. Regulatory Planning and Review 

B. Small Entities 

C. Assistance for Small Entities 

D. Collection of Information 

E. Federalism 

F. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

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. Public Participation and Comments 

We encourage you to submit 

comments (or related material) on this 

rulemaking. We will consider all 

submissions and may adjust our final 

action based on your comments. 

Comments should be marked with 

docket number USCG–1998–3786, and 

should provide a reason for each 

suggestion or recommendation. You 

should provide personal contact 

information so that we can contact you 

if we have questions regarding your 

comments; but please note that all 

comments will be posted to the online 

docket without change and that any 

personal information you include can be 

searchable online (see the Federal 

Register Privacy Act notice regarding 

our public dockets, 73 FR 3316, Jan. 17, 

2008). 

Mailed or hand-delivered comments 

should be in an unbound 81⁄2 x 11 inch 

format suitable for reproduction. The 

Docket Management Facility will 

acknowledge receipt of mailed 

comments if you enclose a stamped, 

self-addressed postcard or envelope 

with your submission. Documents 

mentioned in this notice, and all public 

comments, are in our online docket at 

http://www.regulations.gov and can be 

viewed by following the Web site’s 

instructions. You can also view the 

docket at the Docket Management 

Facility (see the mailing address under 

ADDRESSES) between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

holidays. 

We are not planning to hold a public 

meeting but will consider doing so if 

public comments indicate a meeting 

would be helpful. We would issue a 

separate Federal Register notice to 

announce the date, time, and location of 

such a meeting. 

II. Abbreviations 

ACDE Association of Commercial Diving 

Educators 

ADCI Association of Diving Contractors 

International 

ANPRM Advance notice of proposed 

rulemaking 

ANSI American National Standards 

Institute 

ASME American Society of Mechanical 

Engineers 

CDO Commercial Diving Operator 

CFR Code of Federal Regulations 

CG Coast Guard 

DHS Department of Homeland Security 

DMT Diving medical technician 

FR Federal Register 

IMO International Maritime Organization 

MISLE Marine Information for Safety and 

Law Enforcement 

NAICS North American Industry 

Classification System 

NOSAC National Offshore Safety Advisory 

Committee 

NPRM Notice of proposed rulemaking 

OCMI Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection 

OCS Outer Continental Shelf 

OMB Office of Management and Budget 

OSHA Occupational Safety and Health 

Administration 

Psi (g) Pounds per square inch (gauge) 

RA Regulatory Analysis 

SCUBA Self-contained underwater 

breathing apparatus 

§ Section symbol 

TPO Third-party organization 

U.S.C. United States Code 


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1 46 CFR 197.202. 

2 29 CFR 1910.401–1910.441, 1915.6. 

3 63 FR 34840 (Jun. 26, 1998). 

4 74 FR 414 (Jan. 6, 2009). 

5 ‘‘NOSAC Diving Subcommittee 46 CFR 197 Sub 

Part B General Revision Recommendations,’’ Apr. 

18, 2008. 

III. Basis and Purpose 

The legal basis for this notice of 

proposed rulemaking (NPRM) is 33 

U.S.C. 1509(b), which requires safety 

regulations for deepwater ports; 43 

U.S.C. 1333(d)(1), which permits safety 

regulations for Outer Continental Shelf 

(OCS) facilities and their equipment; 46 

U.S.C. 3306, which requires regulations 

to implement subtitle II of Title 46 of 

the U.S. Code with respect to inspected 

vessels, including offshore supply 

vessels and their equipment; 46 U.S.C. 

3703, which requires safety and 

environmental protection regulations for 

liquid bulk dangerous cargo carriers and 

their equipment, to be issued after 

consultation with Federal, State, and 

local governments and with private 

sector entities (we specifically request 

interested government agencies and 

private sector entities to comment on 

this NPRM); and 46 U.S.C. 6101, which 

requires regulations for reporting and 

investigating marine casualties. The 

Secretary of Homeland Security’s 

authority under all of these statutes has 

been delegated to the Commandant of 

the Coast Guard by Department of 

Homeland Security Delegation No. 

0170.1, para. II (75), (90), and (92). 

The purpose of the NPRM is to 

propose revisions and updates to our 

existing commercial diving regulations, 

to improve safety, to reflect current 

industry best practices, and to facilitate 

the use of approved third-party 

organizations to ensure regulatory 

compliance. 

IV. Background 

History. The Coast Guard issued 

commercial diving operation regulations 

(found at 46 CFR part 197, subpart B), 

in 1978. Generally, the regulations 

apply to commercial operations 

conducted from deepwater ports (such 

as offshore liquefied natural gas 

facilities), or as a part of OCS activities, 

or from vessels that are required to have 

a Coast Guard certificate of inspection.1

Commercial diving operations 

conducted near shore or in U.S. internal 

waters from a vessel not required to 

have a Coast Guard certificate of 

inspection are not covered by Coast 

Guard regulations, but are regulated by 

the Occupational Safety and Health 

Administration (OSHA).2

We began this rulemaking in 1994 at 

the request of an industry group now 

known as the Association of Diving 

Contractors International (ADCI). 

Among other recommendations for 

updating our 1978 regulations, ADCI 

suggested the Coast Guard incorporate 

its consensus standards into regulation. 

We issued our first advance notice of 

proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) in 

1998 3 and noted that our regulations 

were then already 20 years old and did 

not reflect the latest safety and 

technology standards and industry best 

practices. In 2009, a second ANPRM 4

discussed in detail the public comments 

we received for the 1998 ANPRM, 

recounted the early history of the 

rulemaking, and summarized 

developments between 1998 and 2009. 

The public comments received on the 

1998 ANPRM revealed a deep split of 

opinion as to which industry group’s 

standards should be incorporated in our 

regulations. Our position in the 2009 

ANPRM was to encourage continued 

industry interest in this rulemaking and 

to solicit a new round of public 

comments. 

Recommendations to the Coast 

Guard. We are aware of continuing 

issues such as proper dive manning, 

drill, medical and audit practices/ 

requirements among others, that have 

continued to be evident in the industry. 

Consequently, in this NPRM, we 

propose a complete revision of the 

commercial diving operation regulations 

in 46 CFR part 197, subpart B. In doing 

so, we are mindful of the 

recommendations made in the Coast 

Guard’s 1996 formal investigation report 

into a commercial diving fatality 

involving Cliff’s Drilling Rig No. 12 

(‘‘the Rig 12 report’’), and of 

recommendations made in 2008 and 

2012 by the Diving Subcommittee of the 

National Offshore Safety Advisory 

Committee (‘‘the NOSAC report’’). 

(NOSAC is a Federal advisory 

committee that advises the Coast Guard 

on matters related to operations and 

safety on the OCS.) All 

recommendations in the reports 

discussed above are available in the 

online docket at http:// 

www.regulations.gov. 

The Rig 12 report recommended new 

requirements for additional safety 

equipment, standby divers, equipment 

maintenance records, and pre-dive 

planning. This NPRM proposes many of 

these measures. The Rig 12 report also 

recommended against delegating Coast 

Guard dive safety enforcement duties to 

third-parties. Although this NPRM 

proposes the use of independent thirdparty auditors, their proposed use is 

intended to leverage industry expertise 

and capabilities, and provide a 

framework for Coast Guard enforcement, 

not to relieve us of our regulatory 

responsibilities. Therefore, we do not 

regard the use of third-party 

organizations as being contrary to the 

Rig 12 report recommendation. 

The 2008 NOSAC report to the Coast 

Guard 5 noted that two industry groups, 

ADCI and the International Marine 

Contractors Association, had published 

standards that were more up to date 

than our regulations. The 2008 NOSAC 

report’s major recommendations 

included avoiding overly-prescriptive 

requirements that might stifle 

innovation in diving safety, developing 

specific requirements for each diving 

mode, and setting training requirements 

that balance practical experience with 

classroom instruction. To implement 

those major recommendations, we 

concluded that it would be better to 

completely revise our regulations 

instead of making the section-by-section 

changes NOSAC suggested. 

The 2008 NOSAC report found that 

audits would be ‘‘of great benefit’’ but 

‘‘should be developed, implemented, 

and performed by industry in order to 

ensure full consideration of the 

operation in that geographical area.’’ We 

encourage industry to conduct its own 

audits, this NPRM proposes the use of 

Coast Guard-approved third-party 

organizations subject to Coast Guard 

approval and oversight. In determining 

whether to approve a third-party 

organization, we would take into 

account the organization’s ability to 

understand operating conditions within 

specific geographical areas. 

NOSAC also recommended in 2008 

against recognizing self-contained 

underwater breathing apparatus 

(SCUBA) diving as an offshore 

commercial diving application. 

However, our discussions with members 

of the commercial diving industry and 

knowledge of known commercial diving 

activities indicates that this mode of 

diving continues to be used in some 

commercial diving operations, 

especially in shallow water. Since we 

are aware that SCUBA continues to be 

used in commercial diving activities 

regulated by the Coast Guard, we 

believe SCUBA diving should continue 

to be addressed in our commercial 

diving regulations in order to maintain 

established minimum safety standards 

for that mode of diving. 

In November 2009, NOSAC issued a 

report to the Coast Guard voicing 

concerns about the evacuation and 

medical treatment of injured workers 

from remote OCS facilities. Recognizing 

the importance of this matter, we asked 

NOSAC to reestablish the subcommittee 


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on commercial diving operations to 

review and assess the various issues and 

challenges associated with providing 

timely medical attention and treatment 

to divers who become ill or are injured 

while working subsea/under pressures 

at remote OCS facilities or from the 

vessels servicing them. We asked the 

subcommittee to review and assess 

present capabilities, practices, and 

procedures for medical treatments and 

evacuations for injured divers to shore 

treatment facilities from offshore 

facilities, including industry and 

government agency resources and 

capabilities. We also asked the 

subcommittee to prepare a final report 

for NOSAC’s review and approval, 

recommending how to alleviate the 

issues and problems associated with 

medical treatment or evacuation of 

injured divers from remote OCS 

facilities. On May 8, 2012, NOSAC 

made their final report to us, containing 

the following recommendations 

concerning commercial diving 

operations: 

1. Require a certified diver medical 

technician on each surface-supplied and 

saturation diving operation taking place 

on the Outer Continental Shelf in the 

Gulf of Mexico; 

2. Ensure that the certified diver 

medical technician in a saturation 

diving operation shall have saturation 

diving certification and experience; 

3. Ensure that the certified diver 

medical technician in a surface diving 

operation shall have surface diving 

certification and experience; and 

4. Ensure a detailed emergency action 

plan is in place for medical trauma or 

barotrauma related injuries for each 

diving operation. Environmental 

parameters, equipment, personnel, 

onboard medical supplies for remote 

operations and logistics should also be 

considered. 

Our NPRM addresses these 

recommendations, except that we 

believe that certified diver medical 

technicians may only be necessary for 

saturated diving operations, which 

would be in keeping with current U.S. 

industry practices. Presently, the 

commercial diving industry is required 

to have at least one diver medical 

technician on all saturation diving 

projects, in accordance with the 6th 

edition of the Association of Diving 

Contractors, ‘‘International Standards 

for Commercial Diving and Underwater 

Operations.’’ Additionally, as part of 

adopting this industry standard for 

saturated diving operations, we would 

require an emergency evacuation system 

to help ensure that divers undergoing 

hyperbaric treatment can be safely 

removed in the event of an emergency. 

V. Discussion of Comments on 2009 

ANPRM 

Comments received during the public 

comment period. The 2009 ANPRM 

specifically requested comment on six 

topics: (1) the possible regulatory 

adoption of industry standards, (2) the 

use of third-party organizations (TPOs) 

to conduct regulatory compliance 

audits, (3) compliance documentation, 

(4) recommendations made by the Rig 

12 report, (5) regulatory priorities, and 

(6) regulatory costs and benefits. We 

received comments from seven 

individuals or associations during the 

public comment period and, for the 

most part, the seven did not explicitly 

address the six topics we requested. 

One commenter asked if certain other 

organizations had posted comments 

and, if so, how to view their comments. 

Only one of the organizations 

mentioned by this commenter submitted 

a comment and it had already been 

posted online at http://

www.regulations.gov. A second 

commenter asked the Coast Guard to 

regulate SCUBA diving for the 

commercial harvesting of coral in 

Hawaii. Coral harvesting is a form of 

commercial fishing and, as such, it is 

not covered by either our current or our 

proposed regulations, except when 

conducted from a Coast Guardinspected vessel (most commercial 

fishing vessels are uninspected). 

Another commenter asked us to extend 

our commercial diving regulations to all 

marine assistance towing and salvage 

industry vessels. Proposals to extend the 

applicability of the commercial diving 

regulations to vessels or operations that 

are not now covered by those 

regulations are beyond the scope of this 

rulemaking. 

The fourth commenter expressed 

support for the use of TPOs to help 

provide a consistent level of compliance 

auditing. We agree with this comment, 

and third-party auditing is a central 

concept of this NPRM. 

The fifth commenter said that visual 

inspection of diver helmets is sufficient 

and that a requirement for annual 

helmet inspection only imposes 

unnecessary cost. Our review of 

commercial diving casualty data 

indicates that visual inspections are not 

enough to ensure that a helmet can be 

used safely in the hazardous conditions 

for which it is designed. We propose 

that helmets, as well as all other 

essential diving equipment, be 

inspected, maintained, and serviced in 

accordance with the manufacturer’s 

instructions. 

The sixth commenter, an association, 

noted its participation in developing 

NOSAC’s 2008 recommendations for 

improving our commercial diving 

regulations, and confirmed its ongoing 

interest in improving safety and 

efficiency. This comment requires no 

substantive response. 

The final commenter made 15 specific 

recommendations. In general, the 

recommendations dealt with safety 

equipment maintenance and repair 

guidelines and documentation, and with 

training requirements for safety 

equipment technicians and users. We 

believe our proposals align with the 

intent of those recommendations. The 

commenter also recommended specific 

reporting and chain of custody 

requirements for equipment involved in 

diving fatalities. In the event of a marine 

casualty or a serious marine incident, 

this NPRM proposes requiring the 

commercial diving operator (CDO) to 

suspend the commercial diving 

operation, take action to protect the 

safety of life and the environment, and 

resume the operation only after all 

commercial diving employees have fully 

complied with the reporting 

requirements of 46 CFR part 4. 

Additionally, the CDO would be 

required to analyze the event and take 

all reasonable action required to prevent 

further events from occurring, arrange 

for a timely post-casualty audit, and 

ensure that any equipment that may 

have contributed to the event is 

immediately removed from service and 

secured against unauthorized access and 

any change in its material condition. 

This NPRM also proposes requiring 

most diving equipment to carry a serial 

number or other unique identifier to aid 

in recording equipment maintenance 

and to facilitate casualty investigations. 

Finally, the commenter recommended 

standardizing training for Coast Guard 

regulatory compliance personnel. In lieu 

of standardizing training for Coast 

Guard regulatory compliance personnel, 

this NPRM would augment Coast Guard 

enforcement activities through the use 

of TPOs to provide another method for 

improving regulatory compliance. We 

invite the commenter to consider 

whether our NPRM proposals 

adequately address the concerns and to 

comment on those proposals. 

Late comments. We also received six 

comments after the close of the public 

comment period. 

The first late commenter said we 

should license all dive supervisors and 

life support technicians, that licensed 

supervisors and technicians should not 

be removed during diving operations 

except at their own request or for cause, 

and that we should make unannounced 

dive site inspections. We do not have 

authority to license commercial divers 


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6 74 FR 414, 415. 7 IMO Assembly Resolution A.831(19). 

or dive support personnel at this time. 

However, in this NPRM, we propose 

requiring commercial diving personnel 

to have the knowledge, skills, 

experience, and certification necessary 

to perform their assigned duties. Many 

of the desirable outcomes of a Coast 

Guard licensing program would be 

provided for by completing the training 

and experience requirements defined in 

this NPRM. We would enforce 

compliance through documentation 

requirements, inspections, and thirdparty audits. This commenter also 

recommended United States and British 

coordination of dive personnel 

requirements. We believe our 

incorporation of the international dive 

standards of ADCI and of International 

Maritime Organization (IMO) Assembly 

Resolution A.831(19), the International 

Code of Safety for Diving Systems, 

meets the intent of the commenter. 

The other late commenters all 

suggested minimum dive team size and 

composition requirements. This NPRM 

reflects many of those suggestions and 

we are interested in hearing from the 

public as to whether our proposed 

minimum requirements are appropriate. 

VI. Discussion of Proposed Rule 

We propose revising the 1978 

commercial diving regulations in 

subpart B of 46 CFR part 197 (Marine 

Occupational Safety and Health 

Standards, General Provisions). The 

scope of diving operations affected by 

these regulations would not change, and 

affected diving operators would still be 

able to substitute alternative measures, 

standards, or equipment if those can be 

shown to provide an equivalent level of 

safety. However, we would replace most 

of the regulations that impose specific 

operational, personnel, and equipment 

requirements with new regulations that 

draw on industry’s best practices 

incorporated in ADCI’s current 

consensus standards. We would also 

incorporate ADCI’s commercial diver 

training requirements which are based 

in part on the consensus standards of 

the Association of Commercial Diving 

Educators (ACDE). Our proposed 

regulatory language does not duplicate 

all the provisions of either the ADCI or 

ACDE standards, but instead adapts 

them to create a new regulatory 

baseline. Affected diving operations 

would have to comply with that 

baseline, but where they can use 

practices that provide greater safety than 

our baseline, we encourage them to 

voluntarily do so. 

The 2009 ANPRM 6 discussed our 

preference for using ‘‘regulations as a 

tool to encourage compliance, before 

injuries or deaths occur, rather than as 

a way of punishing violators in the wake 

of a tragedy.’’ Currently, the 

enforcement of commercial diving 

regulations is governed by the general 

civil and criminal penalty procedures 

found in 33 CFR subpart 1.07, and on 

the authority to initiate personnel 

actions against licensed mariners 

authorized under 46 CFR subchapter A 

(Procedures Applicable to the Public). 

We will retain these tools but believe 

they, alone, are inadequate to prevent 

accidents from happening. Therefore, 

this NPRM focuses on proactively 

promoting and supporting appropriate 

administrative, operational, and 

auditing environments to ensure or 

improve safety. Under our proposals, 

commercial diving operators would 

have to provide additional compliance 

documentation. Coast Guard personnel 

or approved TPOs would be authorized 

to inspect operator records, observe 

diving operations, and interview an 

operator’s employees. 

In some diving accidents, the dive 

team has been so small that it was 

unable to respond to the emergency or 

retrieve a disabled diver in time to avoid 

a serious injury or death. Often, a single 

dive team member holds multiple duties 

(for example serving as both the dive 

supervisor and as a standby diver). This 

NPRM proposes new minimum 

standards for the size and composition 

of dive teams. We also propose 

prohibiting standby divers from having 

multiple duties that could interfere with 

their ability to focus on their primary 

role or respond adequately to an 

emergency. These proposals are based 

on manning levels adopted by the ADCI 

and the International Association of Oil 

and Gas Producers. They are minimum 

levels for safe team operation in the 

emergency conditions that can readily 

arise in a dynamic operating 

environment. 

We propose requiring U.S. inspected 

vessels conducting commercial diving 

operations in any waters and foreign 

vessels conducting diving operations on 

the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf to meet 

the IMO’s International Code of Safety 

for Diving Systems.7 This will help 

ensure that diving systems are designed, 

constructed, and surveyed in 

accordance with an accepted 

international standard. A diving system 

safety certificate would provide 

evidence of compliance. This certificate 

would be issued to a U.S. vessel by a 

recognized classification society; a 

foreign vessel’s certificate would be 

issued by its flag state or their delegated 

authority. 

Finally, we propose using TPOs to 

audit CDOs and determine, on our 

behalf, whether or not those CDOs are 

in compliance with our regulations. Our 

proposed use of TPOs to perform 

delegated regulatory oversight functions 

is similar to our longstanding use of 

recognized classification societies to 

perform delegated Coast Guard vessel 

inspection and certification functions, 

as described in 46 CFR part 8 subpart B. 

These arrangements enable the Coast 

Guard to make use of a commercial 

organization’s trained personnel and 

resources. However, the Coast Guard 

specifically seeks public input on the 

following question: What merits and 

drawbacks can be associated with the 

proposed use of third parties acting on 

behalf of the Coast Guard to conduct 

audits of commercial diving operations? 

Table 1 shows how the content of the 

current commercial diving regulations 

would be affected by this NPRM. Table 

2 provides details about specific 

sections in the proposed regulations. 

TABLE 1—TREATMENT OF CURRENT 46 CFR PART 197 SUBPART B SUBJECT MATTER IN PROPOSED REGULATIONS

Current 46 CFR part 197 subpart B Proposed 46 CFR part 197 subpart B Discussion 

General, 197.201–197.210 .............. General, 197.201–197.205 ........... General provisions would be revised and reorganized with no change 

in substance, except for the addition of new definitions. Current 

197.200 (Purpose of subpart) would be removed as unnecessary. 

Current 197.203 (Right of appeal) would be removed as unnecessarily duplicative of 46 CFR subpart 1.03. Current 197.208 (designation of person in charge) and 197.210 (designation of diving 

supervisor) would be replaced by new 197.220. 

Equipment, 197.300–197.346 .......... Equipment, 197.270–197.286 ....... Equipment provisions would be substantively revised. 


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TABLE 1—TREATMENT OF CURRENT 46 CFR PART 197 SUBPART B SUBJECT MATTER IN PROPOSED REGULATIONS— 

Continued 

Current 46 CFR part 197 subpart B Proposed 46 CFR part 197 subpart B Discussion 

Operations, 197.400–197.420 ......... Specific Operations, 197.260– 

197.267.

Operations provisions would be substantively revised. 

Specific Diving Mode Procedures, 

197.430–197.436.

Specific Operations, 197.260– 

197.267.

New provisions would be added for specific diving modes. 

Periodic Tests and Inspections of 

Diving Equipment, 197.450– 

197.462.

Equipment, 197.270–197.286 ....... Testing and inspection requirements for a specific item of equipment 

would appear in the section providing overall equipment requirements for that item. General testing and inspection requirements 

would appear under ‘‘Operational Duties’’ (197.220–197.225) and 

‘‘Specific Operations (197.260–197.267).’’ 

Records, 197.480–197.488 ............. See Discussion column ................. Logbook requirements would appear in 197.221. Casualty record requirements would appear in 197.224. 

TABLE 2—PROPOSED NEW OR AMENDED REGULATIONS, 46 CFR 

46 CFR section Proposed version Comment on proposed version 

46 CFR Part 8, Subpart C—International Convention Certificate Issuance 

8.320 ........................ Classification society authorization to 

issue international certificates.

Amend this section to add IMO diving system safety certificate to the list of 

certificates. 

46 CFR Part 197, Subpart B—Commercial Diving Operations 

197.200–197.205 General 

197.200 .................... Applicability ........................................... Add paragraph (d) concerning foreign vessels; otherwise, rewrite current 

197.202 for improved clarity but without changing scope. 

197.201 .................... Definitions .............................................. Current 197.204 definitions with some revision and supplementing to reflect 

other proposed changes. 

197.202 .................... Incorporation by reference .................... Current 197.205 updated to conform to Office of Federal Register requirements and to reflect other proposed changes. 

197.203 .................... Equivalents ............................................ Current 197.206 dealing with acceptable regulatory substitutes, revised for 

clarity without changing the public’s ability to use approved substitutes 

(equivalents) for regulatory standards. 

197.204 .................... Commercial diving operations conducted in foreign waters.New provisions requiring certain operations to comply with the International 

Code of Safety for Diving Systems and to possess valid diving system safety 

certificates. 

197.205 .................... Enforcement .......................................... New provisions giving the Coast Guard additional enforcement authority and 

requiring certain vessels to document compliance with the International Code 

of Safety for Diving Systems. 

197.209–197.213 Audits 

197.209 ....................

197.210 ....................

197.211 ....................

197.212 ....................

197.213 ....................

Third-party audits ..................................

Internal audits. 

External audits. 

Pre-audit notification. 

Audit reporting. 

New provisions for the internal and external auditing of diving-related operations. 

197.220–197.225 Operational Duties 

197.220 .................... Commercial diving operators ................ Places specific regulatory responsibilities on CDOs to ensure full organizational 

accountability. Current regulations provide specific responsibilities only for 

the person in charge and dive supervisor. 

197.221 .................... Persons in charge ................................. Largely retains the person in charge’s responsibilities listed in current 197.402, 

while adding new provisions relating to dive planning and dynamic positioning. 

197.222 .................... Dive supervisors .................................... Retains several responsibilities that dive supervisors have under current 

197.404, but adds new safety requirements, for example, explicitly giving the 

dive supervisor final authority over the dive, and requiring the dive supervisor to communicate with dive team members in a language they understand. 

197.223 .................... Operations manual ................................ Largely unchanged from current 197.420, but revised for clarity. 

197.224 .................... Operational duties in the event of marine casualty or serious marine incident.Substantively identical to requirements in current 197.484–197.488; revised for 

clarity. 

197.225 .................... Safety management system ................. New provisions establishing operations under a safety management system. 


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TABLE 2—PROPOSED NEW OR AMENDED REGULATIONS, 46 CFR—Continued 

46 CFR section Proposed version Comment on proposed version 

197.240–197.247 Personnel Training and Qualifications 

197.240 .................... General requirement ............................. New provisions to set minimum standards, generally and for each dive team 

position. 

197.241 .................... Standby divers..

197.242 .................... Dive supervisors.

197.243 .................... Divers and dive tenders.

197.244 .................... Life-support technicians.

197.245 .................... Saturation technicians.

197.246 .................... Individuals conducting underwater 

burning, welding, or exothermic cutting.

197.247 .................... Diver medical technicians.

197.250–197.253 Health and Medical Requirements 

197.250 .................... Medical examinations ............................ New minimum health and medical standards. 

197.251 .................... Pre-operational verification.

197.252 .................... Work hours.

197.253 .................... Ascent to altitude after diving or flying 

after diving.

197.260–197.267 Specific Operations 

197.260 .................... Operations with potential for differential 

pressures in adjacent areas.

New minimum standards for specific operations. 

197.261 .................... Operations conducted from a dynamic 

positioning vessel.

197.262 .................... Operations conducted from a vessel 

that is liveboating.

197.263 .................... Operations involving SCUBA.

197.264 .................... Operations involving multiple dives by 

a diver.

197.265 .................... Operations in which a diver’s decompression is required, but has been 

omitted.

197.266 .................... Operations in contaminated water.

197.267 .................... Operations involving underwater welding and burning.

197.270–197.286 Equipment 

197.270 .................... General requirements ........................... New minimum equipment standards. 

197.271 .................... Commercial diving operator’s general 

equipment duties.

197.272 .................... Person in charge’s equipment duties.

197.273 .................... Dive supervisor’s equipment maintenance logbook duties.

197.274 .................... Diver’s equipment duties.

197.275 .................... Volume tanks.

197.276 .................... Compressed gas cylinders .................... Covers same topic as current 197.338, but adds new industry standard requirement. 

197.277 .................... Pressure vessels for human occupancy Covers same topic as current 197.328–197.332, but adds new industry standard requirement. 

197.278 .................... Pressure piping ..................................... Similar to current 197.336, but proposes updated industry standard. 

197.279 .................... First aid and treatment equipment ........ Covers same topic as current 197.454, but adds new industry standard requirement and greater detail. 

197.280 .................... Diving ladders and stages .................... Covers same topic as current 197.320, but adds new industry standard requirement. 

197.281 .................... Surface-supplied helmets and masks ... Covers same topic as current 197.322, but adds new industry standard requirement. 

197.282 .................... Diver’s safety harness ........................... Covers same topic as current 197.324, but adds new industry standard requirement. 

197.283 .................... Buoyancy-changing devices ................. Identical to current 197.342. 

197.284 .................... Inflatable flotation devices ..................... Identical to current 197.344. 

197.285 .................... Oxygen safety ....................................... Substantively identical to current 197.326 and 197.452. 

197.286 .................... Miscellaneous equipment requirements See discussion for specific items. 

—Breathing gas supply, diver-carried 

reserve.

Similar to current 197.340(e), but adds detail for unused ports. 

—Breathing gas supply, primary ........... Substantively identical to current 197.340(a). 

—Breathing gas supply, secondary ...... Substantively identical to current 197.340(b). 

—Oxygen .............................................. Substantively identical to current 197.340(f). 


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TABLE 2—PROPOSED NEW OR AMENDED REGULATIONS, 46 CFR—Continued 

46 CFR section Proposed version Comment on proposed version 

—Nitrogen ............................................. Substantively identical to current 197.340(g). 

—Helium ................................................ Substantively identical to current 197.340(h). 

—Compressed air ................................. Substantively identical to current 197.340(i). 

—Diving system power ......................... New minimum equipment standards. 

—Equipment to which a manufacturer’s 

service life specification applies.

—Equipment used with oxygen mixture 

greater than 23.5 percent by volume.

—Gauges and timekeeping devices ..... Substantively identical to current 197.318, but adds readability requirement for 

devices for monitoring diver exposure time under pressure. 

—Oxygen system, pressure greater 

than 125 psi(g).

Substantively identical to current 197.326. 

—Pressure piping repairs ..................... Covers same topic as current 197.462, but adds new industry standards requirement. 

—Pressure vessel repairs ..................... Covers same topic as current 197.462, but adds new industry standards requirement. 

197.290 Dive Team Staffing 

197.290 .................... Dive team staffing requirements ........... New minimum team size and composition standards. 

VII. Requests for Specific Comments 

We would like more information 

about the SCUBA dive teams, whether 

all dive teams should include medical 

technicians, and whether or not we 

should consider alternative approaches 

to our proposed regulations. The 

following questions relate to these three 

issues. In response to these questions 

we ask for public comments with 

supporting data and references if 

possible. 

SCUBA dive teams. Our first issue is 

the minimum size of a SCUBA dive 

team. Our NPRM proposes setting the 

minimum at four members, the same as 

required by the Army Corps of 

Engineers, but one more than OSHA’s 

minimum. 

QUESTION 1: The Coast Guard 

proposes a SCUBA dive team consisting 

of four members, based on the 

assumption that prudent commercial 

diving operators use SCUBA only when 

conditions are favorable to the diver and 

risk is minimal: That is, underwater 

visibility is greater than 3 feet, currents 

are less than 1 knot, and dive depth is 

no more than 100 fsw with no 

decompression. Is that assumption 

valid? Should a SCUBA dive team 

consist of more or fewer than four 

members? Why? What costs would be 

incurred and what benefits would be 

gained by setting the minimum higher 

or lower than four members? 

Medical technicians. The second 

issue involves certified diving medical 

technicians (DMTs). Commercial diving 

exposes divers to unique risks and 

physical challenges, such as 

barotrauma, that may require 

specialized and readily available 

medical care. 

QUESTION 2: Should a DMT always 

be available, either as part of the dive 

team or at the dive site during a dive? 

Why or why not? What costs would be 

incurred and what benefits would be 

gained by requiring this level of 

availability? 

Alternative approaches. Our third 

issue involves alternative approaches. 

QUESTION 3: Under one alternative 

to our proposals, the Coast Guard would 

not directly oversee TPO audits of 

commercial diving operations and 

would allow TPOs to self-certify that 

their audits comply with Coast Guard 

standards. However, we would 

indirectly oversee audits by 

investigating reported marine casualties 

and associated civil penalty 

proceedings. Under a second 

alternative, neither the Coast Guard nor 

a TPO would conduct inspections or 

audits of commercial diving operations. 

The only compliance oversight would 

come through casualty investigations 

and civil penalty proceedings. 

The Coast Guard requests input on 

what merits and drawbacks may be 

associated with these two alternative 

approaches? 

VIII. Incorporation by Reference 

Material for incorporation by 

reference appears in proposed 46 CFR 

197.202. See ADDRESSES for information 

on viewing this material. Copies of the 

material are available from the sources 

listed in § 197.202. Before publishing a 

binding rule, we will submit this 

material to the Director of the Federal 

Register for approval of the 

incorporation by reference. 

The following are proposed for 

incorporation by reference: International 

Consensus Standards for Commercial 

Diving and Underwater Operations, 6th 

Edition, 2010 (‘‘ADCI Standards’’): 

Industry consensus standards for 

commercial diving and underwater 

operations for commercial divers, 

tenders, deck support personnel and 

supervisors including requirements and 

guidelines for training, qualification, 

and certification of commercial divers 

and conducting various types of diving 

operations. 

IMO Resolution A.831(19), 

International Code of Safety for Diving 

Systems, 1995: Internationally accepted 

minimum standards for design, 

construction and survey of diving 

systems on ships and floating structures 

engaged in commercial diving 

operations. IMO Resolution A.692(17), 

Guidelines and Specifications for 

Hyperbaric Evacuation Systems: 

International guidelines and 

specifications developed for design and 

operation of hyperbaric evacuation 

systems. 

ASME PVHO–1–2012, Safety 

Standard for Pressure Vessels for 

Human Occupancy, 2012 (‘‘ASME 

PVHO–1’’): American standard for 

design, materials, fabrication, tests, 

inspection and marking of pressure 

vessels used for human occupancy. 

ASME B31.1–2010, ASME Code for 

Pressure Piping, Power Piping, 2010 

(‘‘ASME B31.1’’): American standard for 

design, materials, fabrication, tests, 

inspection, operation and maintenance 

of pressurized piping systems. 

ASME National Board Inspection 

Code, NBBPVI, NB23–2011 (‘‘ASME 

NBBPVI’’): American standard for 

inspection, repair and alteration of 

boilers, pressure vessels, and pressure 

relief devices. 


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ANSI/ISO 15618–1:2001, 

Qualification testing of welders for 

underwater welding—Part 1: Diverwelders for hyperbaric wet welding 

(‘‘ANSI/ISO 15618’’): American 

standard specifying essential 

requirements, ranges of approval, 

acceptance requirements and 

certification for approval testing of 

diver-welder performance for welding 

steels underwater in hyperbaric wet 

environments. 

ANSI/ACDE–01–2009, Divers— 

Commercial Diver Training—Minimum 

Standards, (‘‘ANSI/ACDE–01–2009’’): 

American standard specifying minimum 

standards for commercial diver training 

including what is to be taught, 

minimum length of training required, 

minimum qualifications of instructors, 

and minimum facilities and equipment 

required to support commercial diver 

training. 

Publication G–4.1, Cleaning 

Equipment for Oxygen Service, 2009 

(‘‘Compressed Gas Association 

Publication G–4.1’’): Cleaning methods 

for cleaning equipment used in 

production, storage, distribution, and 

use of liquid and gaseous oxygen. 

Publication G–7, Compressed Air for 

Human Respiration, 6th Edition, 2008, 

(Compressed Gas Association 

Publication G–7’’): Information relative 

to preparation, transportation, handling, 

storage, and use of compressed air used 

for human respiration. Publication G– 

7.1, Commodity Specification for Air, 

6th Edition, 2011, (Compressed Gas 

Association Publication G–7.1): 

Specification requirements for air and 

data concerning quality, verification 

systems, sampling, analytical 

procedures, and typical uses for various 

grades and supplemental specification 

tables. 

Federal Specification, BB–N–411C, 

Nitrogen Technical, 2000 (‘‘Federal 

Specification BB–N–411C’’): U.S. 

Federal specification outlining 

requirements for properties, purity, 

types, grades, classes, handling and 

storage of gaseous and liquid nitrogen. 

Federal Specification, Oxygen, 

Technical, Gas and Liquid, BB–O–925a, 

1961 (‘‘Federal Specification BB–O– 

925a’’): U.S. Federal specification 

outlining specification and standards for 

purity, sampling, inspection, testing, 

handling, storage and delivery of 

gaseous and liquid oxygen. 

ISO 9001—2008, Quality Management 

Systems—Requirements: International 

standard specifying requirements for 

establishing, documenting, 

implementing, and maintaining a 

quality management system. 

ISO 15618—2001, Qualification 

testing of welders for underwater 

welding—Part 1: Diver-welders for 

hyperbaric wet welding: International 

standard specifying essential 

requirements, ranges of approval, test 

conditions, acceptance requirements 

and certification for approval testing of 

diver-welder performance for welding 

steels underwater in hyperbaric wet 

environments. 

U.S. Navy Diving Manual, 6th 

Edition, April 2008: Specifications for 

diving principles and policies, air 

diving, mixed-gas surface supplied 

diving, closed-circuit and semiclosedcircuit diving, and diving medicine and 

recompression chamber operations . 

IX. Regulatory Analyses 

We developed this proposed rule after 

considering numerous statutes and 

Executive Orders (E.O.s) related to 

rulemaking. Below we summarize our 

analyses based on these statutes or 

E.O.s. 

A. Regulatory Planning and Review 

E.O.s 12866 (‘‘Regulatory Planning 

and Review’’) and 13563 (‘‘Improving 

Regulation and Regulatory Review’’) 

direct agencies to assess the costs and 

benefits of available regulatory 

alternatives and, if regulation is 

necessary, to select regulatory 

approaches that maximize net benefits 

(including potential economic, 

environmental, public health and safety 

effects, distributive impacts, and 

equity). Executive Order 13563 

emphasizes the importance of 

quantifying both costs and benefits, of 

reducing costs, of harmonizing rules, 

and of promoting flexibility. 

This proposed rule is not a significant 

regulatory action under section 3(f) of 

Executive Order 12866, Regulatory 

Planning and Review, as supplemented 

by Executive Order 13563, Improving 

Regulation and Regulatory Review. The 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) has not reviewed it under that 

Order. Nonetheless, we developed an 

analysis of the costs and benefits of the 

proposed rule to ascertain its probable 

impacts on industry. We consider all 

estimates and analysis in this 

Regulatory Analysis (RA) to be 

preliminary and subject to change in 

consideration of public comments. A 

draft Regulatory Analysis including a 

draft preliminary Initial Regulatory 

Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) is available 

in the docket where indicated under the 

‘‘Public Participation and Request for 

Comments’’ section of this preamble. A 

summary of the preliminary Regulatory 

Analysis and Initial Regulatory 

Flexibility Analysis follows. Our 

preliminary RA provides an evaluation 

of the impacts associated with this 

proposed rule. Table 3 below provides 

a summary of the affected population, 

costs, and benefits of the proposed rule. 

TABLE 3—SUMMARY OF THE AFFECTED POPULATION, COSTS AND BENEFITS OF THE NPRM 

Category Summary 

Applicability ..................................... Diving undertaken in connection with commercial operations conducted from deepwater ports (such as offshore liquefied natural gas facilities), or OCS activities, or from vessels that are required to have a Coast 

Guard certificate of inspection; 46 CFR 197.200. 

Affected Population ......................... 87 owners or operators of commercial diving operations (mainly heavy offshore marine construction or 

working from USCG-certificated vessels). 12 TPOs. 

Costs ($, 7 percent discount rate) .. Annualized: 

Manning: $1,460,500. 

Non-Manning: $350,000. 

Total: $1,811,000. 

10-Year: 

Manning: $14,606,000. 

Non-Manning: $3,501,000. 

Total: $18,107,000. 

Benefits ($, 7 percent discount rate) Monetized Benefits from Manning Requirement 

Annualized: 

Fatalities: $2,366,000. 

Injuries: $116, 935. 

Total: $2,482,935. 


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8See RA’s Appendix D for Breakeven 

Calculations. 

TABLE 3—SUMMARY OF THE AFFECTED POPULATION, COSTS AND BENEFITS OF THE NPRM—Continued 

Category Summary 

10-Year: 

Fatalities: $23,660,000. 

Injuries: $1,169,350. 

Total: $24,635,350. 

Annualized Net Benefits: $1,056,000. 

Benefits attributable to other requirements cannot be quantified easily since they intersect with all improvements. 

Breakeven analysis on other rule items yields anywhere from 1 fatality per 44 years to 1 fatality every 

3,056 years to breakeven.8

Sets one industry standard, and provides Coast Guard with additional inspection options to implement 

commercial diving operations. 

The purpose of this proposed rule is 

to save lives by revising and updating 

our existing commercial diving 

regulations to reflect current industry 

best practices. 

Agencies take regulatory action for 

several reasons, one being the failure of 

markets to reach the socially optimal 

outcome. This can occur when there are 

economic incentives lacking for 

industry to pursue that outcome and 

such market failures are the impetus for 

this proposed rule. A negative 

externality is the by-product of a 

transaction between two parties that is 

not accounted for in the transaction. 

Vessels that operate with lower safety 

standards may cause harm or increased 

risk of harm without accounting for the 

consequences to third parties, who do 

not directly participate in the business 

transactions of the business entities 

such as merchant seaman. These costs 

are not borne by the responsible entities 

and are therefore external to the 

business decisions of the responsible 

entity. 

The casualties resulting from 

commercial diving accidents are an 

example. The cost of the higher safety 

standards is typically borne by the 

vessel owner while the cost of an 

accident could be distributed across 

various entities, including the vessel 

owner, other vessel owners, related 

maritime businesses and commercial 

diver teams. These costs can be in the 

form of injuries and death. 

The material failure of the private 

market increases the risk to other 

parties. There exists an uncompensated 

increase in risk due to potentially 

inconsistent safety practices in the 

commercial diving industry. 

Consequently, regulatory action is 

required to spur the industry to take 

action to reduce risk industry-wide and 

therefore attain the socially optimal 

outcome. 

The functional benefits of this 

proposed rule are to reduce the number 

of accidents in all commercial diving 

operations that the Coast Guard has 

responsibility for (especially the 

offshore diving industry), as well as to 

minimize the adverse impacts in the 

event that an accident occurs. 

Affected Population 

Based on a review of current 

Association of Diving Contractors 

International industry information and 

Bureau of Labor Statistics diving 

population data, there are almost 200 

domestic firms involved in commercial 

diving operations, of which 87 are 

subject to Coast Guard jurisdiction. 

Approximately 75 of these firms are 

registered with ADCI and, as such, are 

required to comply with the ADCI 

consensus standards. We estimate there 

are 12 firms covered by Coast Guard 

jurisdiction that are not members of 

ADCI. Table 4 demonstrates generally 

how Coast Guard went from the 

commercial diving population to a 

distribution of dive types and firms both 

within the ADCI framework and 

without. 

TABLE 4—USCG REGULATED COMMERCIAL DIVING BY TYPE AND FIRM COMPOSITION

Item 

Population of USCG regulated commercial divers by type 

Total 

Saturation * SCUBA ** 

Surface supplied air *** 

100 fsw/no Mixed gas 

decompression Other 

ADCI Divers ............................................. 336 40 93 191 96 756 

Non-ADCI Divers ..................................... 0 0 20 35 ........................ 55 

Total .................................................. 336 40 113 226 96 811 

ADCI Dive teams ..................................... 24 10 23 38 19 114 

Non-ADCI Dive Teams ............................ 0 0 5 7 0 12 

Total .................................................. 24 10 28 45 19 126 

ADCI Marine Firms   ............................ 12 10 13 21 19 75 

Non-ADCI Marine Firms ** *** ................... 0 0 5 7 0 12 


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TABLE 4—USCG REGULATED COMMERCIAL DIVING BY TYPE AND FIRM COMPOSITION—Continued 

Item 

Population of USCG regulated commercial divers by type 

Total 

Saturation * SCUBA ** 

Surface supplied air *** 

100 fsw/no Mixed gas 

decompression Other 

Total .................................................. 12 10 18 28 19 87 

* Number of Saturation Vessels * 14 crewman * 2 crews. 

** USCG estimate of 5% of total diver population. 

*** USCG estimates based upon ADCI member distribution. 

  Known number of ADCI firms. 

** *** Inferred Number of Firms based upon ‘‘excess’’ (not accounted for in ADCI) Diver population. 

The key population subset affected by 

the manning additional costs is the 

Surface Supplied Air 100fsw/no 

decompression mode. As shown in 

Table 5, both ADCI and no-ADCI firm 

groups are affected given the CG 

decision to increase the number of dive 

team members by one number. Most of 

the remaining costs impact the nonADCI members, since we cannot 

confirm they are following ADCI 

protocols. Also, one qualification for 

saturation diving, that of taking a 

medical course every two years for 

saturation diving technicians, is an 

additional requirement for ADCI divers 

in that mode. Since we assume that nonADCI commercial diving is composed of 

small firms and simpler diving modes 

than the complex saturation diving 

mode, this requirement does not affect 

them. 

In addition, total TPO (auditor) 

population is expected to be 12. The 

TPO population includes current 10 

auditors and the two estimated to be 

required by the non-ADCI firms. 

Regulatory Alternatives 

We considered four alternatives 

before settling on the approach 

proposed in this notice of proposed 

rulemaking (NPRM). 

1. Take no action. We would leave the 

existing regulations in place without 

updating them. Voluntary compliance 

with commercial diving industry 

consensus standards and the possibility 

of civil liability would continue to be 

the primary drivers of improvements in 

commercial diver safety. We think this 

is inconsistent with our regulatory 


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responsibility to promote safety, and it 

also ignores the fact that some members 

of industry and the general public have 

criticized our existing regulations for 

being out of date. 

2. Develop an international code. We 

would work with the International 

Maritime Organization to update its 

Code of Safety for Diving Systems, and 

adopt it as being applicable to all U.S. 

commercial diving operations wherever 

they were occurring. This could 

promote diver safety, and we do not rule 

out continued involvement in assisting 

in development of the standard. 

However, it would take years to develop 

and would not be effective without 

additional requirements necessary to 

further define the vague language that 

often accompanies international codes. 

Furthermore, we believe the existing 

IMO Code, coupled with the U.S. 

regulations we propose in this NPRM, 

should be applicable for U.S. vessels on 

an international voyage, but do not 

believe the international requirements 

should necessarily be imposed on U.S. 

vessels that are not engaged on 

international voyages. 

3. Development of unique Coast 

Guard regulations: Under this 

alternative, the Coast Guard would 

develop its own updated regulations 

without reference to existing industry 

standards. This would involve 

additional regulatory time and effort for 

the Coast Guard, and ultimately might 

produce regulations that are similar to 

existing industry standards. However, 

this alternative would be contrary to the 

National Technology Transfer and 

Advancement Act, 15 U.S.C. 272 note, 

which requires agencies to use 

voluntary private sector consensus 

standards in their regulatory activities 

unless the agency provides Congress, 

through OMB, with an explanation of 

why using these standards would be 

inconsistent with applicable law or 

otherwise impractical. Additionally, 

Coast Guard developed standards would 

likely place diving firms who are 

members of ADCI in the position of 

facing duplicative enforcement costs, 

due to the fact that they are already 

complying with the ADCI guidelines. 

4. Adopting Industry Standards 

without Manning Changes Alternative: 

We considered and rejected this 

alternative, which entails proposing 

regulations that incorporate accepted 

industry consensus standards (e.g. ADCI 

International Consensus Standards for 

Commercial Diving and Underwater 

Operations, 6th edition), but without an 

increase in manning that CG might 

want. This would codify many current 

consensus industry standards and 

provide enforcement capability. CG 

would incorporate all or most of what 

is in the ADCI consensus standards. 

However, CG could not incorporate it in 

total because some of the items in our 

existing regulations are not included in 

the ADCI standard. Much of what is 

written in the proposed regulations is 

written to augment the consensus 

standards to ensure previous 

requirements are not lost. CG ultimately 

rejected this approach, although less 

expensive, because of the lack of direct 

manning benefits in reducing fatalities 

and injuries. 

5. Accepted alternative: Adaptation of 

industry standards: We considered and 

accepted this alternative, which entails 

proposing regulations that incorporate 

accepted industry consensus standards 

(e.g. ADCI International Consensus 

Standards for Commercial Diving and 

Underwater Operations, 6th edition). 

This will codify many current 

consensus industry standards and 

provide enforcement capability. CG 

incorporated most of what is in the 

ADCI consensus standards. CG could 

not incorporate it in total because some 

of the items in our existing regulations 

are not included in the ADCI standard. 

Much of what is written in the proposed 

regulations is written to augment the 

consensus standards to ensure previous 

requirements are not lost. CG used our 

existing regulations as a baseline and 

incorporated ADCI mostly based on that 

and the recommendations we got from 

industry on certain topics. These 

requirements also include an increase in 

manning (by one person) for the Surface 

Supplied Air no decompression mode. 

Table 6 summarizes these 

alternatives. 

TABLE 6—DESCRIPTION OF ALTERNATIVES

Alternative Costs Benefits Evaluation 

Take No Action .................... None .................................. None .................................. Not preferred because of risks that appear to still exist 

within the industry in spite of ADCI protocols. 

Develop an International 

Code.

Likely Costlier and less 

Timely than best approach due to Increased 

No of Parties Involved.

Reduce Remaining Risk .... Not preferred because of timely expense of having 

many parties involved that would have slowed 

progress in getting a rule out expeditiously. 

Develop Unique Coast 

Guard Regulations.

Might be Costlier due to 

Duplication with ADCI 

rules.

Reduce Remaining Risk .... Not preferred because of high risk of duplication of 

many of ADCI protocols that already exist. 

Proposed ADCI Duplicative 

Rule in NPRM without 

Manning.

$400,000 ............................ Reduce Remaining Risk .... Marginal Approach especially given ADCI standards 

that still would not cover all CG desired requirements. 

Proposed Rule in NPRM 

with Manning.

$1.81 million ...................... $2.4 million ........................ Best Approach consistent with comprehensive, extensive and timely approach that gives the best bang 

for the buck. 

Source: USCG. 

Costs 

This proposed rule calls for CDOs and 

commercial divers to comply with a 

new regulatory baseline that is based on 

the industry-developed consensus 

standards of ADCI plus certain CG 

additions (in manning and medical 

area). We believe the majority (75 out of 

87 identified commercial diving firms) 

of the affected population is in 

compliance with the proposed baseline. 

We know that the 75 ADCI firms are in 

general (except for manning and 

medical upgrades from CG) in 

compliance or else they would not 

qualify for ADCI membership. Members 

of ADCI must meet the Association’s 

standard or face a suspension of their 

membership and potential loss of 

contracts. For example, ADCI members 

who fail an ADCI audit inspired by a 

complaint or a random audit exercise, 

are given time to correct the deficiency. 

If the deficiency is not corrected in a 

reasonable time, ADCI will (and has in 

the past) dis-enroll the offending 

member. Members generally know this 


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9Conclusions based upon various USCG 

conversations with industry participants. 

is a dangerous route to take as the reenrollment process is very expensive, 

requiring complete audits of every facet 

of their operation. In general, not having 

the ADCI certification will likely result 

in fewer work opportunities particularly 

with the oil and natural gas industries.9

We have no gauge of any compliance 

for the inferred non-ADCI firms. 

However, we anticipate that some CDOs 

and divers will need to take steps to 

ensure compliance with the proposed 

audit system, drills and exercises, 

medical examination requirements, 

personal operational requirements, and 

reporting/recordkeeping requirements. 

We assess the costs for these CDOs and 

divers not already in compliance with 

ADCI (based upon the twelve Non-ADCI 

firms), as well as for all CDOs and 

divers to meet the other requirements 

added by the Coast Guard. 

The costs impacting this rule are from 

changes in requirements in Dive 

manning, Drills, Audits, Med Issues, 

Records and Documentation. Total dive 

manning industry requirements are 

based upon 28 (23 ADCI and 5 nonADCI) incremental divers in that SSA 

mode. Audits are required both 

internally and by external means (TPO) 

and range from $176-$2,096 depending 

on the cycle or vessel/firm. Drills can 

cost from $3300-$14000 per drill/firm 

depending on type (Standard 

Operations Review, Diver Recovery, or 

Emergency Rescue) for an annual total 

cost of $18000–26000. Medical costs 

comprise two items: The first item is an 

annual medical exam for the 55 nonADCI divers while the second is a 

biennial training session on 

cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) 

and first aid for Saturation Technicians 

that were not ADCI required (an 

oversight expected to be corrected in the 

near future) training. The costs of the 

first medical item are the 55 non-ADCI 

divers times the annual medical 

examination costs plus the records 

storage costs for a total $23,375 or 

($1948 per firm). The second cost is the 

$60 cost of the training every other year 

times the Saturation Technicians (96) 

for a total of $5,760. 

Costs for CDOs are shown in Table 7. 

TABLE 7—AVERAGE COST PER FIRM: 

COMMERCIAL DIVING NPRM 

Rule requirements Cost per CDO 

(2012 $) 

Dive Manning .................... 52,163 

Drills .................................. 18,220–25,508 

Audits ................................ 3,549 

Recordkeeping & Documentation ...................... 2,331 

Medical I: Exams .............. 1,948 

Medical II: Training ........... 240 

Total .................................. 78,211–85,499 

Source: USCG Calculations. 

The majority of the costs are the result 

of new dive manning requirements, 

particularly for surface-supplied air. 

The proposed costs are the minimum 

required as, for example, adding more 

than one diver for all of the other modes 

would not be cost effective and in some 

cases. likely counter-productive. The 

dive manning levels now comport with 

industry practices. 

Requirements for dive manning were 

calculated by first identifying the 

marine commercial diving population 

(BLS, ADCI sources) and developing the 

mode (Saturation, SCUBA, 3 types of 

Surface Supplied Air, and Mixed Gas) 

teams as explained in the population 

development description. CG subject 

matter experts considered the ADCI 

requirements and then decided another 

team member (Dive Tender) was 

necessary for Surface Supplied Air 

(100fsw/No decompression mode) 

(SSAn). The decision was based upon 

the notion that all divers in the water 

had to have a dive tender taking care of 

all the umbilical related lines for the inthe-water diver. That increment was 

then multiplied times the number of 

SSA teams found earlier. The per man 

cost was from BLS 2012 Commercial 

Diving Apprentice level and loaded 

with a 1.42 factor again based upon BLS 

information. All labor costs are 

generally based upon either an 

apprentice or a median experienced 

diver (loaded wages of $52,000–69,000). 

For TPOs, the total costs estimated are 

$14.9 thousands of dollars over ten 

years due to the NPRM. The majority of 

costs accrue to labor requirements for 

various activities (developing the TPO 

auditor application, change of TPO 

auditor, and storage of audit records). 

We estimate the total 10-year cost of 

the proposed rule to the commercial 

diving industry and third party 

organizations to be $17.8 million 

undiscounted, or $12.5 million at a 7- 

percent discount rate. We estimate the 

annualized cost of the proposed rule to 

be $1.78 million at a 7-percent discount 

rate. In addition to the private sector 

costs, we estimate the government will 

incur ($27,874) in annual reporting and 

record keeping review costs. This 

increases the total 10-year cost of the 

proposed rule to $18.1 million ($1.81 

million annualized, 7-percent discount 

rate) (Table 8). 


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Benefits 

The primary benefits of this proposed 

rule are based on the reduction in risk 

of fatalities as well as injuries related to 

commercial diving incidents and are 

estimated from casualties foregone or 

mitigated as shown in Table 9. 

TABLE 9—RULE REQUIREMENTS AND ASSOCIATED BENEFITS

Rule requirements Benefit 

Dive Manning ........................................... Requires non-decompression Surface Supplied Air dive teams to add a 5th member to handle lines 

as a novice member. 

Drills ......................................................... Requires CDO operators to conduct a series of drills at least monthly to maintain skill levels in emergencies. 

Audits ....................................................... Requires all CDOs and associated vessels to have timely audits to record existing conditions of all 

equipment and record procedures. Consistent with ADCI requirements. 


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TABLE 9—RULE REQUIREMENTS AND ASSOCIATED BENEFITS—Continued 

Rule requirements Benefit 

Recordkeeping & Documentation ............ Requires CDO s to develop and maintain for 5 years records of various aspects of CD operations 

from equipment maintenance to diving activities, to CG notifications, to logbooks. Maintaining 

records also assists the CDO by reminding him or her that actions are needed to remain in compliance with the rules. 

Medical I: Exams ..................................... Requires all CDs, especially non-ADCI CDs to obtain an annual medical exam complete with 

hyperbaric analysis emulating the current ADCI requirements. 

Medical II: Training .................................. Requires certain members of a Saturation Dive Team (life support technician and saturation technician) to have a CPR & first aid certification. 

We reviewed the Marine Information 

for Safety and Law Enforcement 

(MISLE) data set of the commercial 

diving fatalities from 2002–2011 (12 

fatalities- an average 1.2 per year and 8 

injuries an average of .8 per year). 

Exhibit 1 shows the distribution of 

fatalities and injuries over the ten year 

period. 

The incident reports suggest 

deficiencies in commercial diving 

operations, which would be addressed 

by the proposed provision, For dive 

manning, we identified 4 incidents that 

could benefit from the NPRM. Specific 

issues identified include lack of proper 

manning, lack of proper medical 

examination protocols, lack of 

maintenance of equipment, lack of drills 

lack of audits, etc. By identifying 

specific issues within each incident that 

likely would be mitigated by the NPRM, 

and applying an effectiveness factor, we 

were able to estimate a mitigated value 

using the value of a statistical life (VSL) 

approach. 

TABLE 10—INCIDENT LINKS TO THE PROPOSED RULE

Activity ID Related provision Justification 

Fatalities 

1483715 ........................ Personnel Operational 

Requirements.

Report indicated a standby diver was not properly suited up and ready to deploy as required 

by proposed rule. Investigative officer as well as fellow divers (during interviews) identified 

this as a potential cause. 

Drills ............................ Additional drills could have exposed diver to a hot suit, reminded to follow procedures when 

in trouble, and provided practice on removing equipment. 

Audits .......................... Regular audit procedures would likely have uncovered issues with equipment maintenance 

as well as operational procedures and readiness. 


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TABLE 10—INCIDENT LINKS TO THE PROPOSED RULE—Continued 

Activity ID Related provision Justification 

1645241 ........................ Records & Documentation Related to 

Equipment Inspection.

Problems were discovered with the helmet. However, diver-owned/-maintained helmet 

lacked a comprehensive record of repairs and maintenance. No records available to indicate when breathing hoses used by diver were last pressure tested or hydrostatic tested. 

Proposed regulation requires that log books be updated to track equipment tests. This 

could have ensured equipment was inspected periodically or a pre-dive inspection of 

equipment was conducted. 

Audits .......................... Auditing requirement may have identified the marginal state of maintenance of the diver’s 

helmet. Furthermore, audit would have likely discovered that the vessel did not have a 

supply of medical-use oxygen on board. 

Personnel Operational 

Requirements.

Standby diver was not outfitted with any rescue related equipment to address the situation 

as required by proposed rule. 

Drills ............................ Drills required by proposed rule would help ensure diver follows procedure in an emergency. 

Diver did not slide the pneumofathometer underneath his neoprene neck dam and into his 

helmet. This would have taken him several seconds to do, but it could have provided him 

with an alternate source of breathing air. 

2270536 ........................ Personnel Operational 

Requirements.

Report indicated that company personnel displayed fatigue due to lack of sleep. Proposed 

rule would include 12 hour work hour limits in 24 hour period. 

Drills ............................ Drills would have improved the probability divers followed written and established safety procedure. As indicated in interviews, ‘‘there was no safety meeting for the dive crew prior to 

incident. Divers were unaware of any safety procedure or plan to follow in case an emergency to retrieve an injured diver out of the water.’’ As stated under the observations by 

the inspecting officer, ‘‘Training for dive team personnel seemed to be lacking.’’ 

Records and Documentation Related to 

Equipment Inspection.

Interviews indicated that the diver’s umbilical may have been fouled. Documentation of 

maintenance and inspection of equipment is required under the proposed regulation. This 

could have helped ensure equipment was periodically inspected. 

2734747 ........................ Medical Exams ........... Proper medical examination may have revealed tears or irregularities in the diver’s lungs 

and kept him from diving. 

Audits .......................... Audits would ensure compliance with the medical fitness requirement for divers. 

Records and Documentation Related to 

Medical Records.

Documentation of medical examination is required by the proposed rule and maintains a history of medical conditions that could be used to avoid putting a diver in danger. 

2765094 ........................ Personnel Operational 

Requirements.

Standby diver was not ready to enter water as required by rule. 

Audits .......................... Regular Audits may identify failures of sufficient manning/certification levels of the dive 

team. 

Drills ............................ Rescue diver had trouble donning gear when preparing to enter water. Investigating officer 

recommendation is for monthly emergency rescue and recovery diving training for all commercial diving vessels. In addition to a fatality, multiple injuries resulted from incident. 

3281272 ........................ Personnel Operational 

Requirements.

One of the supervisors was also the standby diver. Proposed rules would not allow multiple 

responsibilities. 

Audits .......................... Regular Audits may identify failures of sufficient manning/certification levels of the dive 

team. 

Medical Exam ............. Diver had previously unknown cardiac condition. A medical exam focused on hyperbaric exposure would have led to a cardiac exam which could have identified the cardiac condition and not permitted the dive. 

3100303 ........................ Records and Documentation Related to 

Medical Records.

Documentation of diver’s medical fitness may identify the diver’s condition and medication 

risk. 

2866598 Drills ............................ Delays were experience in recovering troubled diver. Drills would have identified the difficulty of one tender/diver conducting diver retrieval. 

Personnel Operational 

Requirements.

Superintendent also was serving as dive supervisor. The proposed rules would not allow 

multiple responsibilities. 

Audits .......................... Audits would ensure compliance with the medical fitness requirement for divers. 

Records and Documentation.Documentation serving as a guide and checklist during the JHA may have prevented the 

diver’s entanglement and the uncontrolled ascent of the lift bags. 

1970383 ........................ Medical Exams ........... Lab test results indicated diver had hypertensive heart disease and drowned. Potential causal factor for this fatality was a pre-existing medical condition apparently aggravated by the 

individual performing strenuous activity while diving. Medical exams may have identified 

this precondition and prevented fatality. 

Injuries 

2762375 ........................ Personnel Operation 

Requirements.

The need for a diver to work for such extended periods indicates a lack of sufficient manning as required by rule. 

Audits .......................... Regular audits would identify substandard practices and excessive work hours resulting in 

fatigue. 

1600506 ........................ Personnel Operational 

requirements.

Dive supervisor was acting as the diving tender. The Diving Supervisor could not oversee 

the safety of the operation if he was performing dive tender duties. The proposed rules 

would not allow multiple responsibilities. 

2765094 ........................ (See Details Above) ... (See Details Above). 


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10U.S. Department of Transportation 

Memorandum, Guidance on Treatment of the 

Economic Value of a Statistical Life in U.S. 

Department of Transportation Analyses, available at 

http://www.dot.gov/sites/dot.dev/files/docs/

VSL%20Guidance%202013.pdf 

For safety and security analysis, the 

VSL approach is used to monetize the 

value of fatalities prevented. The VSL 

does not represent the dollar value of a 

person’s life, but the amount society 

would be willing to pay to reduce the 

probability of death. The VSL value 

used in this analysis to calculate an 

average annual cost of fatalities 

mitigated is $9.1 million.10 The 

resulting benefit of the NPRM is $2.4 

million. Subtracting out the $1.46 

million in manning costs yields a 

marginal benefit of $940,000 for the 

manning provisions only. This amount 

is also the marginal fatality benefit for 

the rule since benefits from the other 

items could not be quantified even 

though they provide benefits. For 

example, the summaries of the 

following two case studies illustrate 

how complex and difficult it is to 

estimate benefits for this rule let alone 

quantify them. 

Case Review Example 1 

Incident Report 2765094 

Vessel: Rowan Halifax/Global Explorer 

Date:8/29/06 

Damages:0 

Deaths:1 

Injuries:2 

Edited Brief from MISLE (see RA for 

complete text) 

Commercial divers using surfacesupplied air were working on the 

rigging of the legs of a sunken MODU. 

A diver was attempting to attach a 2 and 

3⁄4 inch chain to a shackle for pre-rigging 

the MODU. Shortly after diver 1entered 

the water, there was a loss of 

communication with him, although a 

gurgling sound inside helmet was heard. 

The standby diver was ordered to 

splash. Diver 1 visibly panics and 

begins ascent towards diving bell Diver 

2 dons gear, but has trouble with airflow 

to helmet. Problem fixed and he enters 

the water. Somehow Diver 1’s helmet 

lands in worksite. Diver 2 descends, 

switching to 14% O2. He pulled his way 

to Diver 1 via latter’s hose. He notices 

Diver 1’s helmet from 20 feet away. 

Diver 2 arrives at Diver 1, shakes him 

with no response. Diver 2 notifies 

topside to pull up slack. Divers arrive at 

bell and with standby diver, attempt to 

pull Diver 1 into bell. Diver 1 is finally 

pulled up topside. Diver 2 becomes 

fouled on the bell, then unfouls himself. 

He begins his ascent but switches to air 

‘‘on the fly’’. Vessel paramedic performs 

lifesaving procedures. Since the 

paramedic is not hyperbaric qualified, 

backup is ordered into hyperbaric 

chamber to continue lifesaving 

procedures. Shore side physician finally 

orders halt to lifesaving procedures. 

Shortly afterwards, Diver 2 shows signs 

of the bends, while backup, still ‘‘dirty’’, 

from an earlier dive that day, 

experiences decompression sickness. 

Investigation concluded that there was 

inadequate supervision and a good rule 

was misused. 

Location Lat 028°04′′4′ N, Lon 

092°42′′0′ W Gulf of Mexico. 

Reviewer Notes: Supervisor did not have a 

standby diver ready on a moment’s notice to 

splash and assist another diver in the water. 

The proposed NPRM rules provide for a very 

strict regime for the supervisor to follow. 

From Section 290 (a), (b) and (c) clearly 

require the supervisor to make sure ‘‘. . . 

that minimum dive team requirements are 

met . . .’’ and ‘‘ensure that the necessary 

levels of personnel and equipment are 

available for all commercial diving 

operations.’’ Further, Section 197.222 of the 

NPRM requires ‘‘Each supervisor . . . must 

. . .: (a) Comply with this subpart and The 

applicable requirements for dive supervisors 

and diving modes outlined in sections 3.0 

and 4.0 of the ADCI Standards (incorporated 

by reference . . .) . . . 

Fatality at least partially resulted from 

inadequate supervision according to the 

report’s conclusions. From the facts of the 

report, the standby diver was not ready to 

splash at a moment’s notice and 

subsequently had equipment issues. This 

delay contributed to valuable time in getting 

the troubled diver out of the water. Also, the 

vessel paramedic was not trained in 

hyperbaric ailments. 

Regular Audits may identify failures of 

sufficient manning/certification levels of the 

dive team. 

Regular drills may have mitigated this 

incident. The rescue diver had trouble 

donning gear when preparing to enter water. 

Investigating officer recommendation is for 

monthly emergency rescue and recovery 

diving training for all commercial diving 

vessels. In addition to a fatality, multiple 

injuries resulted from incident. 

Case Review Example 2 

Incident Report 3929340 

Vessel: NS Power 

Date:1/26/2011 

Damages:0 

Deaths:1 

Injuries:0 

Edited Brief from MISLE (see RA for 

complete text) 

On January 8, 2011, a series of divers 

were engaged in bottom cleaning, 

through solo dives, on the NS Power 

from a series of other vessels including 

the King Arthur. Four divers used in 

sequence to perform bottom cleaning 

work on the NS Power. During the 

course of the work evolution, a diver’s 

helmet neck seal failed flooding the 

helmet. While the diver was able to 

leave the water, delay caused time 

constraints on the activity.. Then 

another diver reported regulator 

problems in his dive. Attempts to 

retrieve him are less than by the book 

and result in his drowning. Some 13 

hours after the beginning of the dive 

evolution, Galveston receives word of 

an unresponsive diver on the King 

Arthur. 

15 NM SE Galveston Texas Galveston 

Bay 

Reviewer Notes: From the MISLE report: 

dive support team members were negligent in 

their duties while a diver was in the water 

resulting in the loss of life. Investigation 

concluded that there was inadequate 

supervision and a good rule was misused as 

well as active failures of equipment. 

Supervisor did not have a standby diver 

ready on a moment’s notice to splash and 

assist another diver in the water. The 

proposed NPRM rules provide for a very 

strict regime for the supervisor to follow. 

From Section 290 (a), (b) and (c) clearly 

require the supervisor to make sure ‘‘. . . 

that minimum dive team requirements are 

met . . .’’ and ‘‘ensure that the necessary 

levels of personnel and equipment are 

available for all commercial diving 

operations.’’ Further, Section 197.222 of the 

NPRM requires ‘‘Each supervisor . . . must 

. . .: (a) Comply with this subpart and The 

applicable requirements for dive supervisors 

and diving modes outlined in sections 3.0 

and 4.0 of the ADCI Standards (incorporated 

by reference . . .) . . . 

Regular Audits may identify failures of 

sufficient manning/certification levels of the 

dive team. 

Regular drills may have mitigated this 

incident. The rescue diver had trouble 

donning gear when preparing to enter water. 

In both cases, the addition of one more 

dive team member so that responsibilities 

were adequately spread around might have 

made all the difference in the world to the 

victims. In addition, other requirements of 

the NPRM rule could have mitigated the 

incidents. The rule’s other benefits besides 

proper manning and manning procedures, 

while very visible, are more difficult to 

quantify. They are drills, audits, records and 

documentation, as well as medical 

requirements. 

As seen in the first example case, regular 

drills likely would have mitigated one of the 

problems in that incident. Drills provide 

regular practice for situations that require 

immediate instinctive response. 

Regular audits would have provided a 

paper trail to maintenance needs and if 

recommendations were followed through on. 

Audit procedures likely would have 

mitigated issues ion both incidents. Records 

and documentation are parallel with audits 

in providing a trail of responsibility for 


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11Op. cit. 12Public Law 96–354 (5 U.S.C. 601–612). 

13http://www.sba.gov/advo/laws/regflex.html 

14The RFA considers ‘‘small entity’’ as having the 

same meaning as the terms ‘‘small business,’’ 

‘‘small organization’’ and ‘‘small governmental 

jurisdiction.’’ 

maintaining equipment in proper working 

order. 

Finally, at least two incidents in our 

baseline and one in the cases above might 

have been mitigated if the divers were 

undergoing regular medical examinations. 

Also, one other medical requirement in the 

NPRM rule has certain saturation dive team 

members taking CPR and first aid training. 

This requirement, only for the saturation dive 

team technicians (all other dive team 

members already satisfy this requirement), is 

critical to the successful operation of that 

dive mode. 

Injury mitigation also is a benefit of this 

rule. Almost $117,000 per year in injury 

mitigation benefits are received from this rule 

as well. These benefits result from improved 

protocols in a wide variety of areas covered 

by the rule. 

The total net benefits from the rule are 

$1,056,000 combined fatality mitigation and 

injury mitigation. 

We also used a breakeven analysis 

approach for benefit estimation for the other 

rule items. In general, the typical CDO 

incident involves the death or injury of 1 

diver, therefore the breakeven comparison 

against the VSL for 1 fatality is applicable, 

rather than other breakeven scenarios. 

TABLE 11—INCREMENTAL BREAKEVEN ANALYSIS OF PROPOSED RULE

Item Benefits description 

Average annual cost * Net benefits 

(7%, 

$ millions) 

Fatalities reduced to 

Annualized breakeven 

(7%, millions) 

Proposed Rule Increment: 

Manning .......................... Increase 1 crewman/

team for SSA for both 

ADCI and non-ADCI 

firms.

2.4 ................................. 1 .46 0.94 .............. N/A. 

Documentation & Recordkeeping.Assists CG with enforcement.Not Quantifiable ............ 0 .205 N/A ............... 1 every 44 years. 

Drills ................................ Non-ADCI Firm Drills 

provides regular training.

Not Quantifiable ............ 0 .0437 N/A ............... 1 every 208 years. 

Audits .............................. Non-ADCI Firm Audits 

assists CG with enforcement.

Not Quantifiable ............ .0426 N/A ............... 1 every 214 years. 

Medical Exams ............... Medical Exams for NonADCI Firms provides 

safety measure.

Not Quantifiable ............ 0 .0238 N/A ............... 1 every 389 years. 

Medical Training ............. Support Saturation 

Diver Crewmen receive First Aid and 

CPR Training.

Not Quantifiable ............ 0 .003 N/A ............... 1 every 3,056 years. 

TOTAL ..................... ....................................... ≥2.4 ............................... 1 .755 ≥0.645 ..........

Source: USCG Calculations 

* Total may not sum due to rounding. 

We assume that this proposed rule 

would result in a constant reduction in 

the risk of fatality due to a commercial 

diving fatal accident every year 

following the rule’s implementation and 

therefore use annualized costs in the 

equation. For these other rule items, we 

use annualized costs at a 7-percent 

discount rate over a 10-year period, or 

$.3 million, for this proposed rule. We 

then take the $9.1 million,11 as the 

benefit that would be derived from the 

proposed rule if one fatality per year is 

prevented and compare it to the 

annualized individual item’s cost that 

would be incurred (e.g. for drills: $9.1 

million/$43,729=218 years). At a 7- 

percent discount rate, this proposed 

rule’s other cost elements would need to 

prevent anywhere from 1 fatality in 44 

years to 1 in 3,056 years to breakeven. 

B. Small Entities 

Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act 

(5 U.S.C. 601–612), we have conducted 

an Initial Regulatory Flexibility 

Analysis and considered whether this 

proposed rule would have a significant 

economic impact on a substantial 

number of small entities. The analysis is 

as follows: The U.S. Coast Guard 

(USCG) has performed this analysis of 

the impacts on small businesses from 

the proposed rule. USCG performed this 

assessment using the cost information 

discussed in cost chapter of this RA. 

Whenever an agency is required by 

section 553 of the Regulatory Flexibility 

Act of 1980 12 (RFA) or any other law, 

to publish general notice of proposed 

rulemaking for any proposed rule, or 

publishes a notice of proposed 

rulemaking for an interpretative rule 

involving the internal revenue laws of 

the United States, the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act requires that the agency 

prepare and make available for public 

comment an initial regulatory flexibility 

analysis. The RFA requires that such 

analysis describe the impact of the 

proposed rule on small entities and that 

the initial regulatory flexibility analysis 

or a summary be published in the 

Federal Register at the time of the 

publication of general notice of 

proposed rulemaking for the rule. 

In addition, the RFA requires that the 

agency transmit a copy of an initial 

regulatory flexibility analysis to the 

Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 

Business Administration. In the case of 

an interpretative rule involving the 

internal revenue laws of the United 

States, The RFA’s requirements apply to 

interpretative rules published in the 

Federal Register for codification in the 

Code of Federal Regulations, but only to 

the extent that such interpretative rules 

impose on small entities a collection of 

information requirement. 

Under the Regulatory Flexibility 

Act 13 the Coast Guard must consider 

whether the rule would have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. 

Small entities 14 include small 


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15The RFA defines ‘‘small business’’ has the same 

meaning as the term ‘‘small business concern’’ 

under section 3 of the Small Business Act, unless 

an agency, after consultation with the Office of 

Advocacy of the Small Business Administration 

and after opportunity for public comment, 

establishes one or more definitions of such term 

which are appropriate to the activities of the agency 

and publishes such definition(s) in the Federal 

Register. 

16The RFA defines the term ‘‘small organization’’ 

means any not-for-profit enterprise which is 

independently owned and operated and is not 

dominant in its field, unless an agency establishes, 

after opportunity for public comment, one or more 

definitions of such term which are appropriate to 

the activities of the agency and publishes such 

definition(s) in the Federal Register; 

17The RFA defines small governmental 

jurisdiction ‘‘means governments of cities, counties, 

towns, townships, villages, school districts, or 

special districts, with a population of less than fifty 

thousand, unless an agency establishes, after 

opportunity for public comment, one or more 

definitions of such term which are appropriate to 

the activities of the agency and which are based on 

such factors as location in rural or sparsely 

populated areas or limited revenues due to the 

population of such jurisdiction, and publishes such 

definition(s) in the Federal Register.’’ 

businesses,15 small not-for-profit 

organizations that are independently 

owned and operated and are not 

dominant in their fields,16 and small 

governmental jurisdictions with 

populations of less than 50,000.17

Based on the information from this 

analysis, we found that: 

• There are no governments or notfor-profit organizations which are 

anticipated to be affected by the 

proposed rule. 

• There are 87 U.S. entities (all 

private firms) that would potentially be 

impacted by the proposed rule. Of the 

87, 75 are ADCI-registered firms of 

which we have some information on, 

and 12 are non-ADCI firms of which we 

have no information on but are assumed 

to be small. Furthermore, of the 75 firms 

we can identify, we found ownership 

and revenue data for only 45 firms. Of 

these 45 firms, 37 were determined to be 

small entities based on available data. 

• We assume firms without available 

ownership or revenue data are small. 

Therefore, of the 87 firms considered 

only 8 can be considered non-small 

given the evidence available for this 

analysis. 

• Initial and annual recurring costs of 

the proposed rule would result in less 

than 1 percent impact on revenue for 32 

percent of the small entities with 

available data; 

• 68 percent of small entities with 

available data will incur costs greater 

than 1 percent of revenue. 

This chapter provides an Initial 

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis for 

commercial diving operations. 

Preliminary Initial Regulatory 

Flexibility Analysis 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 

(Pub. L. 96–354) establishes ‘‘as a 

principle of regulatory issuance that 

agencies shall endeavor, consistent with 

the rule and of applicable statutes, to fit 

regulatory and informational 

requirements to the scale of the 

businesses, organizations, and 

governmental jurisdictions subject to 

regulation. To achieve this principle, 

agencies are required to solicit and 

consider flexible regulatory proposals 

and to explain the rationale for their 

actions to assure that such proposals are 

given serious consideration.’’ 

Under the RFA, we are required to 

consider if this rule will have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. 

Agencies must perform a review to 

determine whether a rule will have such 

an impact. If the agency determines that 

it will, the agency must prepare a 

regulatory flexibility analysis as 

described in the RFA. Under Section 

603(b) of the RFA, the Initial Regulatory 

Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) must 

provide and address: 

• A description of the reasons why 

action by the agency is being 

considered; 

• A succinct statement of the 

objectives of, and legal basis for, the 

proposed rule; 

• A description of and, where 

feasible, an estimate of the number of 

small entities to which the proposed 

rule will apply; 

• A description of the projected 

reporting, recordkeeping and other 

compliance requirements of the 

proposed rule, including an estimate of 

the classes of small entities which will 

be subject to the requirement and the 

type of professional skills necessary for 

preparation of the report or record; 

• An identification, to the extent 

practicable, of all relevant Federal rules 

which may duplicate, overlap or 

conflict with the proposed rule; 

• A description of any significant 

alternatives to the proposed rule which 

accomplish the stated objectives of the 

applicable statutes and which minimize 

any significant economic impact of the 

proposed rule on small entities. 

The term ‘‘small entities’’ comprises 

small businesses, not-for-profit 

organizations that are independently 

owned and operated and are not 

dominant in their fields, and 

governmental jurisdictions with 

populations of less than 50,000. The 

rule affects only small private entities. 

The following describes the Initial 

Regulatory Flexibility Act (TRFA) 

process for this rule. 

We determined that the rule affects a 

variety of small private entities and 

therefore, based on the requirements 

mentioned above, we have prepared the 

following IRFA assessing the impact on 

small entities for this proposed rule. 

The analysis presented below addresses 

the issues specific to small entities that 

we have not addressed elsewhere in this 

RA 

5.2 IRFA Requirements 

5.2.1 Descriptions of Reasons Why 

Action of by the Agency Is Being 

Considered 

Agencies take regulatory action for 

various reasons, one being the failure of 

the market to reach the socially optimal 

outcome. This can occur when there are 

economic incentives lacking for 

industry to pursue that outcome and 

such market failures are the impetus for 

this proposed rule. A negative 

externality is the byproduct of a 

transaction between two parties that is 

not accounted for in the transaction. 

Vessels and commercial diving 

operations that operate with lower 

safety standards may cause harm or 

increased risk of harm without 

accounting for the consequences to third 

parties, who do not directly participate 

in the business transactions of the 

affected entities. These costs are not 

borne by the responsible entities and are 

therefore external to the business 

decisions of the responsible entity. 

Section 4.2 describes the externality 

addressed by this rule. 

Objectives of, and Legal Basis for, the 

Proposed Rule 

The purpose of this rulemaking is to 

clarify and update our existing 

commercial diving regulations to reflect 

current industry best practices and to 

facilitate the use of approved third-party 

organizations (TPOs) in ensuring 

regulatory compliance. There has been 

no update since the 1978 original diving 

rules. 

In addition, a series of reports on 

commercial diving safety demonstrated 

a need for updating USCG commercial 

diving regulations. These reports were 

developed in response to a series of 

commercial diving accidents that gained 

major public attention starting with one 

in 1996. The report titled ‘‘Investigation 

into the Circumstances Surrounding the 

Commercial Diving Accident Onboard 

the Mobile Offshore Diving Unit Cliff’s 

Drilling Rig No. 12 on March 4, 1996 

with the Loss of Life’’ influenced the 

Coast Guard to improve its regulations 

for commercial diving. That report, 

released in March, 2001, and also 

known as the RIG 12 Report, started a 


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18We used information and data from Manta 

(http://Manta.com). 19The SBA lists small business size standards for 

industries described in the North American 

Industry Classification System (NAICS). See http:// 

www.smallbusinessnotes.com/fedgovernment/sba/ 

13cfr121/201-4849.html (as of April 7, 2008). 

20See commercial dive firm population 

calculation in Appendix B. 

21These descriptions were excerpted from the 

U.S. Census Bureau. (http://www.census.gov/cgibin/sssd/naics/naicsrch). 

process that has slowly gained 

momentum these past few years. The 

most recent findings, the 2008 National 

Offshore Safety Advisory Committee 

(NOSAC) report, provided Coast Guard 

with additional appropriate information 

regarding the industry and its safety 

efforts. The objective of the proposed 

rule is to establish safety regulations 

governing the inspection, standards, and 

operation of commercial diving 

operations. The proposed rule would 

promote safer work practices and reduce 

casualties in commercial diving 

operations by ensuring that those 

operations adhere to recommended 

safety standards and operational 

protocols. 

The statutory bases for the Coast 

Guard’s rulemaking are located in: 33 

U.S.C. 1509(b), which requires safety 

regulations for deepwater ports; 43 

U.S.C. 1333(d)(1), which permits safety 

regulations for Outer Continental Shelf 

(OCS) facilities and their equipment; 46 

U.S.C. 3306, which requires regulations 

to implement subtitle II of Title 46 of 

the U.S. Code with respect to inspected 

vessels, including offshore supply 

vessels (OSVs) and their equipment; 46 

U.S.C. 3703, which requires safety and 

environmental protection regulations for 

liquid bulk dangerous cargo carriers and 

their equipment, to be issued after 

consultation with Federal, State, and 

local governments and with private 

sector entities; and 46 U.S.C. 6101, 

which requires regulations for reporting 

and investigating marine casualties. 

These statutes confer regulatory 

authority on the Secretary of Homeland 

Security, who has delegated this 

authority to the Coast Guard; DHS 

Delegation No. 0170.1(75), (90), and 

(92). In addition, we are conducting this 

rulemaking in accordance with a 

December 19, 1979, Memorandum of 

Understanding between the Coast Guard 

and the Occupational Safety and Health 

Administration (OSHA), which 

regulates commercial diving operations 

conducted near shore or in U.S. internal 

waters. 

Description and Estimate of the Number 

of Small Entities to Which the Proposed 

Rule Will Apply 

5.2.3.1 Data Development 

We used MISLE owner and operator 

name and address information as well 

as ADCI member information to 

research public databases (MANTA) for 

entity type (subsidiary or parent 

company), primary line of business, 

employee size, revenue, and other 

information.18 We matched this 

information to the Small Business 

Administration’s ‘‘Table of Small 

Business Size Standards’’ to determine 

if an entity is small in its primary line 

of business as classified in the North 

American Industry Classification 

System (NAICS).19

ADCI member data and Coast Guard 

data shows that there are 87 entities 

engaging in marine oriented commercial 

diving in the 2009–2011 timeframe. We 

acknowledge that only 75 diving firms 

belong to the ADCI.20 USCG estimates 

that number of non-ADCI firms to be 12 

based on our total population estimate 

(see affected population section for 

details). We found revenue and 

employment data for 45 firms that were 

ADCI in origin. Of the 45 firms, 37 were 

determined to be small businesses 

according to Small Business 

Administration standards. We assume 

that entities without small business data 

are small. In Table 12, we provide a 

summary of the small business data. As 

a result of our analysis, we concluded 

that small entities make up 

approximately 79 percent of the total 

affected marine population ((37 known 

small firms + 10 estimated and likely 

small firms + 30 firms with no revenue 

data)/87 total marine firms). 

TABLE 12—FIRM DATA DEVELOPMENT

Firm type Number 

of firms 

Marine Commercial Marine Diving 

Firms in ADCI ........................... 75 

Revenue and Employment Info .... 45 

Number of Small Business Firms 

Based on Available Data .......... 37 

Source: USCG Calculations. 

Table 13 provides small entity 

information, in the detail of the NAICS 

Code industries affected by this rule. 

TABLE 13—SMALL ENTITIES BY NAICS CODES WITH SBA SIZE STANDARDS

NAICS Codes Description 

SBA Size 

standards 

(≤$M) 

Number of 

small entities * 

Percent of small 

entities 

236220 ................................... Commercial & Inst. Building Construction ........................... 33 .5 1 4 .2 

237990 ................................... Other Heavy and Civil Engineering Cons ........................... 33 .5 3 12 .5 

238910 ................................... Site Preparation Contractors ............................................... 14 5 20 .8 

541330 ................................... Marine Engineering and Naval Architecture ........................ 18 .5 1 4 .2 

541990 ................................... All Other Prof., Scientific & Tech. Services ......................... 7 11 45 .8 

561499 ................................... All Other business Support Services ................................... 7 1 4 .2 

561990 ................................... All Other Support Services .................................................. 18 .5 2 8 .3 

Total ............................... .............................................................................................. .......................... 24 100 

Source: USCG Calculations. 

* ADCI Firms identified with revenue data. 

Industries Affected by the Proposed 

Rule 

A brief description of the industries 21

most affected by this proposed rule is 

presented as follows: 

236220 Commercial and 

Institutional Building Construction— 

This industry comprises establishments 

primarily responsible for the 

construction (including new work, 

additions, alterations, maintenance, and 

repairs) of commercial and institutional 

buildings and related structures, such as 

stadiums, grain elevators, and indoor 

swimming facilities. This industry 

includes establishments responsible for 

the on-site assembly of modular or 

prefabricated commercial and 

institutional buildings. Included in this 


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industry are commercial and 

institutional building general 

contractors, commercial and 

institutional building for-sale builders, 

commercial and institutional building 

design-build firms, and commercial and 

institutional building project 

construction management firms. 

237990 Other Heavy and Civil 

Engineering Construction—This 

industry comprises establishments 

primarily engaged in heavy and 

engineering construction projects 

(excluding highway, street, bridge, and 

distribution line construction). The 

work performed may include new work, 

reconstruction, rehabilitation, and 

repairs. Specialty trade contractors are 

included in this group if they are 

engaged in activities primarily related to 

engineering construction projects 

(excluding highway, street, bridge, 

distribution line, oil and gas structure, 

and utilities building and structure 

construction). Construction projects 

involving water resources (e.g., dredging 

and land drainage), development of 

marine facilities, and projects involving 

open space improvement (e.g., parks 

and trails) are included in this industry. 

238910 Site Preparation 

Contractors—This industry comprises 

establishments primarily engaged in site 

preparation activities, such as 

excavating and grading, demolition of 

buildings and other structures, and 

septic system installation. Earth moving 

and land clearing for all types of sites 

(e.g., building, non-building, and 

mining) are included in this industry. 

Establishments primarily engaged in 

construction equipment rental with 

operator (except cranes) are also 

included. 

541330 Engineering Services—This 

industry comprises establishments 

primarily engaged in applying physical 

laws and principles of engineering in 

the design, development, and utilization 

of machines, materials, instruments, 

structures, processes, and systems. The 

assignments undertaken by these 

establishments may involve any of the 

following activities: Provision of advice, 

preparation of feasibility studies, 

preparation of preliminary and final 

plans and designs, provision of 

technical services during the 

construction or installation phase, 

inspection and evaluation of 

engineering projects, and related 

services. 

541990 All Other Professional, 

Scientific, and Technical Services—This 

industry comprises establishments 

primarily engaged in the provision of 

professional, scientific, or technical 

services (except legal services; 

accounting, tax preparation, 

bookkeeping, and related services; 

architectural, engineering, and related 

services; specialized design services; 

computer systems design and related 

services; management, scientific, and 

technical consulting services; scientific 

research and development services; 

advertising, public relations and related 

services; market research and public 

opinion polling; photographic services; 

translation and interpretation services; 

and veterinary services). 

561499 All Other Business Support 

Services—This U.S. industry comprises 

establishments primarily engaged in 

providing business support services 

(except secretarial and other document 

preparation services; telephone 

answering and telemarketing services; 

private mail services or document 

copying services conducted as separate 

activities or in conjunction with other 

office support services; monetary debt 

collection services; credit reporting 

services; repossession services; and 

court reporting and stenotype recording 

services). 

561990 All Other Support 

Services—This industry comprises 

establishments primarily engaged in 

providing day-to-day business and other 

organizational support services (except 

office administrative services, facilities 

support services, employment services, 

business support services, travel 

arrangement and reservation services, 

security and investigation services, 

services to buildings and other 

structures, packaging and labeling 

services, and convention and trade 

show organizing services). 

Census Data by NAICS 

Table 5–3 presents census data for 

selected industries in Table 14. The 

Small Business Administration uses 

industry NAICS to determine if an 

entity is small based on their revenue 

data. The table below provides a 

distribution of the number of entities 

per industry by revenue. 

TABLE 14—DISTRIBUTION OF FIRMS BY REVENUE

NAICS Code Industry title 

Number of entities by revenue 

$0–$99k $100k–$500k $500k–$1M $1M–$5M $5M–$10M $10M+ Grand total 

236220 ............. Commercial and Inst. Building Construction.2,373 9,805 5,695 11,601 3,319 4,415 37,208 

237990 ............. Other Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction.1,463 4,504 1,770 2,083 339 343 10,502 

238910 ............. Site Preparation Contractors ................... 3,968 14,725 5,091 5,217 887 608 30,496 

Source: US Census Bureau 2002. (http://www.census.gov/econ/census02/guide/INDRPT23.HTM). 

Revenue Impact on Small Entities 

The regulatory costs in this rule 

(including Manning, Drills, Audits, 

Records & Documentation and Medical 

Examinations) are evaluated in total in 

the following conventional IRFA 

analysis. To estimate the revenue 

impact on the identified small 

businesses, we followed guidance from 

the U.S. Small Business 

Administration’s Office of Advocacy’s 

‘‘A Guide for Government Agencies: 

How to Comply with the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act.’’ We compared the total 

cost per business to the revenue data 

collected to assess the impact of the rule 

to those businesses. Using this 

information we were able to estimate 

the impact as a percentage of revenue 

for the affected firms. 

As a result of our analysis, we 

concluded that small entities with a 

significant impact likely comprise 68 

percent of the small entity population 

evaluated. Of the 37 small entities with 

available business data, we determined 

that 32 percent of small entities would 

have an annual cost-to-revenue impact 

of less than 1 percent. Further, we 

estimated that 41 percent of the small 

entities would have a cost-to-revenue 

impact between 1 and 3 percent and 27 

percent would have an impact equal to 

or greater than 3 percent. These results 

are summarized in Table 15. We 

estimate 68 percent of small entities 

would have an impact greater than 1 

percent from a cost to revenue ratio 

perspective. 


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TABLE 15—REVENUE IMPACTS ON SMALL ENTITIES

Impact Sample Percentage 

0% ≤ Impact ≤ 1% ................................................................................................................................................... 12 32 

1% > Impact < 3% ................................................................................................................................................... 15 41 

≥ 3% Impact ............................................................................................................................................................. 10 27 

Total .................................................................................................................................................................. 37 100 

Source: USCG Calculations in Appendix B. 

Description of the Projected Reporting, 

Recordkeeping, and Other Compliance 

Requirements of Small Entities 

The Coast Guard expects new 

reporting or record keeping 

requirements resulting from this rule. 

The proposed rule impacts commercial 

marine diving operations under Coast 

Guard jurisdiction and requires each 

operation perform documentation 

preparation and maintenance tasks that 

fall under the category of reporting and 

recordkeeping. This documentation 

provides a historical record of when a 

piece of equipment was inspected or 

serviced and by whom. The process will 

also include the documentation of new 

equipment as often as new equipment is 

added to a firm’s asset base. In addition, 

the documentation also takes into 

account logbook entries of diving 

activities as well as maintenance of 

logbooks, audit reporting, and 

operations manuals. 

Duplication With Other Federal Rules 

There are no relevant Federal rules 

that may duplicate, overlap, or conflict 

with the proposed rule. OSHA has 

commercial diving responsibility to the 

3-mile limit, and Coast Guard has 

responsibility beyond the 3-mile limit, 

and also for any activity off of a Coast 

Guard inspected vessel within the 3- 

mile limit. The latter is composed of 

most of the non-Gulf of Mexico 

commercial divers discussed earlier. 

Description of Any Significant 

Alternatives to the Proposed Rule 

The Coast Guard considered four 

alternatives to the NPRM alternative. A 

description of these alternatives is 

presented in Chapter 1. In general, 

safety rules do not lend themselves to 

alternatives favoring smaller entities. 

Being a small entity does not change 

necessarily the safety requirement. 

Three alternatives involved a different 

regulatory approach from a status quo 

and ranged from involving the IMO in 

a global rulemaking to a consolidation 

of OSHA and US Coast Guard rules. All 

were rejected for reasons presented in 

Chapter 1. 

SBREFA Compliance 

In accordance with the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601–612) and 

section 213(a) of the Small Business 

Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 

1996 (Pub. L. 104–121), the Coast Guard 

considered whether this rulemaking 

would have a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities. The term ‘‘small entities’’ 

comprises small business, not-for-profit 

organizations and governmental 

jurisdictions with populations of less 

than 50,000. In reviewing the potential 

costs of compliance and the relative 

impact on a small business’ revenue, the 

Coast Guard cannot certify the proposed 

rulemaking would not have a significant 

economic impact on a substantial 

number of small entities. 

The Coast Guard will help small 

entities understand the proposed 

rulemaking so that they can better 

evaluate its effect on them and 

participate in the rulemaking process. 

The preamble of the proposed 

rulemaking provides small businesses or 

organizations an opportunity to 

comment and lists a point of contact for 

any questions concerning the proposed 

rulemaking’s provisions or options for 

compliance. 

Executive Order 13272: Consideration 

for Small Entities 

Section 1 of Executive Order 13272 

directs Federal agencies to establish 

procedures and policies to promote 

compliance with the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act. It also requires Federal 

agencies to review thoroughly draft 

rules to assess and take appropriate 

account of the potential impact on small 

businesses, small governmental 

jurisdictions, and small organizations, 

as provided by the Act. 

Executive Order 13272 requires 

Federal agencies to notify the Chief 

Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 

Business Administration of any 

proposed rulemakings that may have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. 

The proposed rulemaking is anticipated 

to have a significant economic impact 

on a substantial number of small 

entities. USCG will seek input from the 

Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 

Business Administration in the 

promulgation of this rulemaking. 

The Coast Guard solicits comments 

from Advocacy on the proposed 

rulemaking and will give every 

appropriate consideration to any 

comments provided by Advocacy on the 

proposed rulemaking. Similarly, USCG 

has proffered a comment period to small 

entities in compliance with the 

Executive Order and relevant laws and 

regulations. 

Small businesses are encouraged to 

contact the agency for more information 

on the proposed rulemaking. For 

questions on this proposed rulemaking, 

call Ken Smith at the US Coast Guard 

(202) 372–1413. The public may also 

write the Coast Guard at the following 

address: U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters, 

2100 Second Street SW., Washington, 

DC 20593–0001. 

C. Assistance for Small Entities 

Under Section 213(a) of the Small 

Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996 (Pub. L. 104–121), 

we want to assist small entities in 

understanding this proposed rule. If you 

think that your business, organization, 

or governmental jurisdiction qualifies as 

a small entity and you have questions 

concerning its provisions or options for 

compliance, please consult Mr. Ken 

Smith, U.S Coast Guard, using the 

contact information listed above. Small 

businesses may send comments on the 

actions of Federal employees who 

enforce, or otherwise determine 

compliance with Federal regulations to 

the Small Business and Agriculture 

Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman 

and the Regional Small Business 

Regulatory Fairness Boards. The 

Ombudsman evaluates these actions 

annually and rates each agency’s 

responsiveness to small business. If you 

wish to comment on actions by Coast 

Guard employees, call 1–888–REG– 

FAIR (1–888–734–3247). The Coast 

Guard will not retaliate against small 

entities that question or complain about 

this proposed rulemaking or any policy 

or action of the Coast Guard. 

The Coast Guard Office of Domestic 

Compliance has prepared a notice to be 


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22The Executive Order directs Federal agencies to 

take action to use and encourage public 

participation; it states ‘‘Regulations shall be 

adopted through a process that involves public 

participation. To that end, regulations shall be 

based, to the extent feasible and consistent with 

law, on the open exchange of information and 

perspectives among State, local, and Tribal officials, 

experts in relevant disciplines, affected 

stakeholders in the private sector, and the public as 

a whole.’’ 

In accordance with Executive Order 13563, USCG 

solicited public input on the current voluntary 

compliance of the regulated public on several of the 

proposed provisions. This action was limited due 

to the restrictions of the Paperwork Reduction Act 

for which contacts with the public exceeding nine 

contacts on the same question must be approved by 

OMB. In addition, a Notice of Inquiry was issued 

in the Federal Register in January 2012. 

circulated to the general public and to 

be placed on the Coast Guard’s Web site 

to assist small businesses and other 

interested parties in understanding the 

proposed rulemaking. The Coast Guard 

plans to continue its coordination and 

communication with maritime 

organizations such as the Chamber of 

Shipping of America and other ship 

owner associations so that they may 

inform and assist their respective 

members with understanding the rule. 

In compliance with Executive Order 

13563,22 USCG will offer a public 

comment period of at least 60 days. 

Information about the proposed rule 

will be provided to USCG contacts as 

well as through Federal Register notice 

and press releases to encourage public 

participation. 

D. Collection of Information 

This proposed rule would call for a 

new collection of information under the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 

U.S.C. 3501–3520). As defined in 5 CFR 

1320.3(c), ‘‘collection of information’’ 

comprises reporting, recordkeeping, 

monitoring, posting, labeling, and other 

similar actions. The title and 

description of the new information 

collection, a description of those who 

must collect the information, and an 

estimate of the total annual burden 

follow. The estimate covers the time for 

reviewing instructions, searching 

existing sources of data, gathering and 

maintaining the data needed, and 

completing and reviewing the 

collection. 

Title: Marine Occupational Health 

and Safety Standards for Commercial 

Diving Operations—46 CFR 197 

Subpart B. 

OMB Control Number: 1625–NEW. 

Summary of the Collection of 

Information: This proposed rule would 

include reporting and record keeping 

requirements ranging from updating the 

operations manual, maintaining and 

periodically updating a log book, 

reporting and storing examination 

scores and certifications, and 

maintaining records of equipment 

inspections. The collection of 

information would aid the regulated 

public in assuring safe practices 

associated with commercial diving 

operations. 

Need for Information: The Coast 

Guard needs this information to 

determine whether an entity meets the 

regulatory requirements. 

Proposed Use of Information: The 

Coast Guard would use this information 

to determine compliance with the 

regulatory requirements. 

Description of the Respondents: The 

respondents are owners and operators of 

U.S. commercial diving operations. 

Number of Respondents: The burden 

of this proposed rule for this collection 

of information includes certifications, 

procurement of written materials, 

preparation of records, and records of 

inspections. This collection of 

information applies to owners/operators 

of commercial diving operations. We 

estimate the maximum number of 

respondents to be 87. 

Frequency of Responses: This 

proposed rule would vary the number of 

responses each year by requirement. 

Details are provided in the preliminary 

regulatory analysis. 

Burden of Response: The burden of 

response for each regulatory 

requirement varies. Details are provided 

in the preliminary regulatory analysis. 

Estimate of Total Annual Burden: We 

estimate an annual burden of 6,059 

hours for the industry. 

As required by the Paperwork 

Reduction Act, we will submit a copy of 

this proposed rule to OMB for its review 

of the collection of information. 

We ask for public comment on the 

proposed collection of information to 

help us determine how useful the 

information is; whether it can help us 

perform our functions better; whether it 

is readily available elsewhere; how 

accurate our estimate of the burden of 

collection is; how valid our methods for 

determining burden are; how we can 

improve the quality, usefulness, and 

clarity of the information; and how we 

can minimize the burden of collection. 

If you submit comments on the 

collection of information, submit them 

both to OMB and to the Docket 

Management Facility where indicated 

under ADDRESSES, by the date under 

DATES. 

You need not respond to a collection 

of information unless it displays a 

currently valid control number from 

OMB. Before the Coast Guard could 

enforce the collection of information 

requirements in this proposed rule, 

OMB would need to approve the Coast 

Guard’s request to collect this 

information. 

E. Federalism 

A rule has implications for federalism 

under Executive Order 13132, 

Federalism, if it has a substantial direct 

effect on the States, on the relationship 

between the national government and 

the States, or on the distribution of 

power and responsibilities among the 

various levels of government. We have 

analyzed this rule under that Order and 

have determined that it is consistent 

with the fundamental federalism 

principles and preemption requirements 

described in Executive Order 13132. 

Our analysis is explained below. 

It is well settled that States may not 

regulate in categories reserved for 

regulation by the Coast Guard. It is also 

well settled, now, that all of the 

categories covered in 46 U.S.C. 3306, 

3703, 7101, and 8101 (design, 

construction, alteration, repair, 

maintenance, operation, equipping, 

personnel qualification, and manning of 

vessels), as well as the reporting of 

casualties and any other category in 

which Congress intended the Coast 

Guard to be the sole source of a vessel’s 

obligations, are within the field 

foreclosed from regulation by the States. 

(See the decision of the Supreme Court 

in the consolidated cases of United 

States v. Locke and Intertanko v. Locke, 

529 U.S. 89, 120 S.Ct. 1135 (March 6, 

2000)). This proposed rule regulates 

equipment and operations for 

commercial diving conducted from 

inspected vessels in order to promote 

the safety of life. States may not regulate 

within this category, and therefore, this 

rule is consistent with the principles of 

federalism and preemption 

requirements in Executive Order 13132. 

Additionally, Congress specifically 

granted the authority to regulate 

artificial islands, installations, and other 

devices permanently or temporarily 

attached to the OCS and in the waters 

adjacent thereto as it relates to the safety 

of life to the Secretary of the Department 

in which the Coast Guard is operating. 

This includes floating installations and 

other devices engaged in OCS activities. 

43 U.S.C. 1333(d)(1) states that the 

Secretary ‘‘shall have authority to 

promulgate and enforce such reasonable 

regulations with respect to lights and 

other warning devices, safety 

equipment, and other matters relating to 

the promotion of safety of life and 

property on the artificial islands, 

installations, and other devices . . . as 

he may deem necessary.’’ As this 

proposed rule would regulate 

equipment and operations to ensure 

safety of life for commercial diving 


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being conducted from such OCS 

installations, it falls within the scope of 

authority Congress granted exclusively 

to the Secretary. This authority has been 

delegated to the Coast Guard and is 

exercised in this proposed rule. 

Therefore, since the States may not 

regulate within this category, 

preemption under Executive Order 

13132 is not an issue. 

Finally, Congress granted the 

authority to regulate deepwater ports to 

the Secretary of Transportation. 33 

U.S.C. 1509(b) states that the Secretary 

of Transportation ‘‘shall issue and 

enforce regulations with respect to 

lights and other warning devices, safety 

equipment, and other matters relating to 

the promotion of safety of life and 

property in any deepwater port and the 

waters adjacent thereto.’’ When the 

Coast Guard was an agency within the 

Department of Transportation, the 

authority to issue regulations with 

respect to safety on deepwater ports was 

delegated to the Coast Guard. See 49 

CFR 1.46(s) (2002). The Homeland 

Security Act of 2002, Public Law 107– 

296, transferred the Coast Guard to the 

Department of Homeland Security. 

Pursuant to the Homeland Security Act, 

authorities that were delegated to the 

Coast Guard remained intact during this 

transfer by operation of law. The 

authority was then delegated to the 

Commandant of the Coast Guard 

through Department of Homeland 

Security Delegation 0170.1. Since this 

rule regulates equipment and operation 

to ensure safety for commercial diving 

being conducted from deepwater ports, 

it falls within the scope of authority that 

has been transferred and delegated to 

and exercised by the Coast Guard. 

F. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1531–1538) requires 

Federal agencies to assess the effects of 

their discretionary regulatory actions. In 

particular, the Act addresses actions 

that may result in the expenditure by a 

State, local, or tribal government, in the 

aggregate, or by the private sector of 

$100,000,000 (adjusted for inflation) or 

more in any one year. Though this 

proposed rule would not result in such 

an expenditure, we do discuss the 

effects of this rule elsewhere in this 

preamble. 

G. Taking of Private Property 

This proposed rule would not cause a 

taking of private property or otherwise 

have taking implications under 

Executive Order 12630, Governmental 

Actions and Interference with 

Constitutionally Protected Property 

Rights. 

H. Civil Justice Reform 

This proposed rule meets applicable 

standards in sections 3(a) and 3(b)(2) of 

Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice 

Reform, to minimize litigation, 

eliminate ambiguity, and reduce 

burden. 

I. Protection of Children 

We have analyzed this proposed rule 

under Executive Order 13045, 

Protection of Children from 

Environmental Health Risks and Safety 

Risks. This proposed rule is not an 

economically significant rule and would 

not create an environmental risk to 

health or risk to safety that might 

disproportionately affect children. 

J. Indian Tribal Governments 

This proposed rule does not have 

tribal implications under Executive 

Order 13175, Consultation and 

Coordination with Indian Tribal 

Governments, because it would not have 

a substantial direct effect on one or 

more Indian tribes, on the relationship 

between the Federal Government and 

Indian tribes, or on the distribution of 

power and responsibilities between the 

Federal Government and Indian tribes. 

K. Energy Effects 

We have analyzed this proposed rule 

under Executive Order 13211, Actions 

Concerning Regulations That 

Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use. We have 

determined that it is not a ‘‘significant 

energy action’’ under that order because 

it is not a ‘‘significant regulatory action’’ 

under Executive Order 12866 and is not 

likely to have a significant adverse effect 

on the supply, distribution, or use of 

energy. The Administrator of the Office 

of Information and Regulatory Affairs 

has not designated it as a significant 

energy action. Therefore, it does not 

require a statement of energy effects 

under Executive Order 13211. 

L. Technical Standards 

The National Technology Transfer 

and Advancement Act (15 U.S.C. 272 

note) directs agencies to use voluntary 

consensus standards in their regulatory 

activities unless the agency provides 

Congress, through the Office of 

Management and Budget, with an 

explanation of why using these 

standards would be inconsistent with 

applicable law or otherwise impractical. 

Voluntary consensus standards are 

technical standards (e.g., specifications 

of materials, performance, design, or 

operation; test methods; sampling 

procedures; and related management 

systems practices) that are developed or 

adopted by voluntary consensus 

standards bodies. The proposed 

regulations use voluntary consensus 

standards developed by ADCI and 

would allow commercial diving 

operators to apply for equivalency 

determinations if they comply with 

similar voluntary consensus standards 

used by other organizations. 

M. Environment 

We have analyzed this proposed rule 

under Department of Homeland 

Security Management Directive 023–01 

and Commandant Instruction 

M16475.lD, which guide the Coast 

Guard in complying with the National 

Environmental Policy Act of 1969 

(NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321–4370f), and 

have made a preliminary determination 

that this action is one of a category of 

actions that do not individually or 

cumulatively have a significant effect on 

the human environment. A preliminary 

environmental analysis checklist 

supporting this determination is 

available in the docket where indicated 

under the ‘‘Public Participation and 

Request for Comments’’ section of this 

preamble. This rule is likely to be 

categorically excluded under section 

2.B.2, figure 2–1, paragraphs (34)(a), (c), 

(d) and (e) of the Instruction and 6(a) of 

the Federal Register, Vol. 67, No. 141, 

Tuesday, July 23, 2002, page 48243. 

This proposed rule involves regulations 

that are procedural, involving reporting 

and recordkeeping requirements; 

regulations concerning the training and 

qualifying of maritime personnel; 

regulations concerning manning and 

equipping of vessels; regulations 

concerning equipment approval and 

carriage requirements; and regulatory 

actions involving vessel operation safety 

standards. We seek any comments or 

information that may lead to the 

discovery of a significant environmental 

impact from this proposed rule. 

List of Subjects 

46 CFR Part 8 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Incorporation by reference, 

Organization and functions 

(Government agencies), Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements, Vessels. 

46 CFR Part 197 

Benzene, Diving, Marine safety, 

Incorporation by reference, 

Occupational safety and health, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Vessels. 

For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, the Coast Guard proposes to 

amend 46 CFR parts 8 and 197 as 

follows: 


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PART 8—VESSEL INSPECTION 

ALTERNATIVES 

■ 1. Revise the authority citation for part 

8 to read as follows: 

Authority: 46 U.S.C. 3103, 3306, 3316, 

3703; Department of Homeland Security 

Delegation No. 0170.1(92.a), (92.b). 

■ 2. Amend § 8.320 as follows: 

■ a. In paragraph (b)(13), remove the 

word ‘‘and’’; 

■ b. In paragraph (b)(14), after the word 

‘‘Certificate;’’, remove the period and 

add in its place ‘‘; and’’; and 

■ c. Add paragraph (b)(15). 

The addition reads as follows: 

§ 8.320 Classification society authorization 

to issue international certificates. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(15) International Diving System 

Safety Certificate. 

* * * * * 

PART 197—GENERAL PROVISIONS 

■ 3. Revise the authority citation for part 

197 to read as follows: 

Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1509; 43 U.S.C. 1333; 

46 U.S.C. 3306, 3703, 6101; Department of 

Homeland Security Delegation No. 0170.1 

(75), (90), (92.b), (92.d). 

■ 4. Revise subpart B to read as follows: 

Subpart B—Commercial Diving 

Operations 

Sec. 

General 

197.200 Applicability. 

197.201 Definitions. 

197.202 Incorporation by reference. 

197.203 Equivalents. 

197.204 Commercial diving operations 

conducted in foreign waters. 

197.205 Enforcement. 

197.206–197.208 [Reserved] 

Audits 

197.209 Third-party audits. 

197.210 Internal audits. 

197.211 External audits. 

197.212 Pre-audit notification. 

197.213 Audit reporting. 

197.214–197.219 [Reserved] 

Operational Duties 

197.220 Commercial diving operators. 

197.221 Persons in charge. 

197.222 Dive supervisors. 

197.223 Operations manual. 

197.224 Operational duties in the event of 

marine casualty or serious marine 

incident. 

197.225 Safety management system. 

197.226–197.239 [Reserved] 

Personnel Training and Qualifications 

197.240 General requirements. 

197.241 Standby divers. 

197.242 Dive supervisors. 

197.243 Divers and dive tenders. 

197.244 Life-support technicians. 

197.245 Saturation technicians. 

197.246 Individuals conducting underwater 

burning, welding, or exothermic cutting. 

197.247 Diver medical technicians. 

197.248–197.249 [Reserved] 

Health and Medical Requirements 

197.250 Medical examinations. 

197.251 Pre-operational verification. 

197.252 Work hours. 

197.253 Ascent to altitude after diving or 

flying after diving. 

197.255–197.259 [Reserved] 

Specific Operations 

197.260 Operations with potential for 

differential pressures in adjacent areas. 

197.261 Operations conducted from a 

dynamic positioning vessel. 

197.262 Operations conducted from a 

vessel that is liveboating. 

197.263 Operations involving SCUBA. 

197.264 Operations involving multiple 

dives by a diver. 

197.265 Operations in which a diver’s 

decompression is required, but has been 

omitted. 

197.266 Operations in contaminated water. 

197.267 Operations involving underwater 

welding and burning. 

197.268–197.269 [Reserved] 

Equipment 

197.270 General requirements. 

197.271 Commercial diving operator’s 

general equipment duties. 

197.272 Person in charge’s equipment 

duties. 

197.273 Dive supervisor’s equipment 

maintenance logbook duties. 

197.274 Diver’s equipment duties. 

197.275 Volume tanks. 

197.276 Compressed gas cylinders. 

197.277 Pressure vessels for human 

occupancy. 

197.278 Pressure piping. 

197.279 First aid and treatment equipment. 

197.280 Diving ladders and stages. 

197.281 Surface-supplied helmets and 

masks. 

197.282 Diver’s safety harness. 

197.283 Buoyancy-changing devices. 

197.284 Inflatable flotation devices. 

197.285 Oxygen safety. 

197.286 Miscellaneous equipment 

requirements. 

Dive Team Staffing 

197.290 Dive team staffing requirements. 

197.303–197.309 [Reserved] 

Subpart B—Commercial Diving 

Operations 

General 

§ 197.200 Applicability. 

(a) Except as provided in paragraph 

(b) of this section, this subpart applies 

to commercial diving operations taking 

place at or from any— 

(1) Deepwater port or safety zone 

thereof as defined in 33 CFR part 150; 

(2) Artificial island, installation, or 

other device on the Outer Continental 

Shelf (OCS) as defined in 33 CFR part 

140 and their safety zones defined in 33 

CFR part 147; 

(3) Vessel operating on the navigable 

waters of the United States, as defined 

in 33 CFR part 2; 

(4) United States vessel required to 

have a certificate of inspection issued by 

the Coast Guard, including a mobile 

offshore drilling unit regardless of its 

geographic location or; 

(5) Foreign-flagged vessel engaged in 

an OCS activity as defined in 33 CFR 

part 140, or connected to a deepwater 

port as defined in 33 CFR part 150. 

(b) This subpart does not apply to 

commercial diving operations 

performed solely for— 

(1) Marine scientific research and 

development purposes by an 

educational institution; 

(2) Research and development for the 

advancement of diving equipment and 

technology; or 

(3) Search and rescue or related 

public safety purposes conducted by or 

under the control of a governmental 

agency. 

(c) A commercial diving operation 

may deviate from the requirements of 

this subpart to the extent necessary to 

prevent or minimize a situation that is 

likely to cause death, injury, or major 

environmental damage. The 

circumstances leading to the situation, 

the deviations made, and the corrective 

action taken, if appropriate, to reduce 

the possibility of recurrence must be 

recorded by the diving supervisor in the 

logbook required by 46 CFR 

197.221(c)(10). 

(d) The owner or operator of a foreignflagged vessel to which this part applies 

shall submit documentation specified in 

this section to the cognizant OCMI 

before that vessel enters the navigable 

waters of the United States, engages in 

OCS activities, or performs work 

connected to a deepwater port. 

Acceptable forms of documentation are 

as follows: 

(1) An international diving systems 

safety certificate issued by the vessel’s 

flag administration or a party acting on 

behalf of the flag administration. 

(2) Certification from the vessel’s flag 

administration or party acting on behalf 

of the flag administration that the vessel 

complies with the regulations found in 

this part or the requirements of a 

recognized classification society that 

has been determined by the 

Commandant, Office of Design and 

Engineering (CG–ENG) to provide an 

equivalent level of safety. 

§ 197.201 Definitions. 

As used in this subpart— 

Accredited school means a 

commercial diving educational 


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organization recognized by the 

Association of Commercial Diving 

Educators as meeting the standards of 

ANSI/ACDE–001–2009. 

Alcohol means any form or derivative 

of ethyl alcohol (ethanol). 

Approved third-party organization 

means an organization approved by the 

Commandant. 

Audit has the meaning defined in 46 

CFR 197.209. 

Auditor means a person meeting the 

qualifications set forth in 46 CFR 

197.209(d). 

Barotrauma means injury of a body 

part or organ as a result of changes in 

barometric pressure. 

Bell means a compartment either at 

ambient pressure (open bell) or 

pressurized (closed bell) that allows a 

diver to be transported to and from an 

underwater work site, allows the diver 

access to the surrounding environment, 

and is capable of being used as a refuge 

during diving operations. 

Breathing gas means a gas supplied to 

a diver for aspiration. 

Commandant means the Office of 

Commercial Vessel Compliance, 

Commandant (CG–CVC), 2703 Martin 

Luther King Jr. Ave. SE., Stop 7501, 

Washington, DC 20593–7501 unless 

otherwise specified. 

Commercial diver means a diver 

engaged in underwater work for hire, 

excluding sport, fishing, and 

recreational diving or the instruction or 

supervision thereof. 

Commercial diving employee means 

any person providing commercial 

diving services or support to a 

commercial diving operator, and 

includes any commercial diver 

employed by or working on behalf of a 

commercial diving operator. 

Commercial diving operation means 

all activities in support of a commercial 

diver. 

Commercial diving operator or CDO 

means any person or entity that 

employs, contracts, or secures the 

services of commercial divers to 

undertake commercial diving 

operations. 

Cylinder means a pressure vessel for 

the storage of gas under pressure. 

Dangerous drug means a narcotic 

drug, a controlled substance, or a 

controlled substance analog, as defined 

in section 102 of the Comprehensive 

Drug Abuse and Control Act of 1970, 21 

U.S.C. 802. 

Decompression chamber means a 

pressure vessel for human occupancy, 

such as a surface decompression 

chamber, closed bell, or deep diving 

system especially equipped to 

recompress, decompress, and treat 

divers. 

Decompression table means a profile 

or set of profiles of depth-time 

relationships for ascent rates and 

breathing mixtures to be followed after 

a specific depth-time exposure or 

exposures. 

Deepwater port has the meaning 

defined in 33 CFR 148.5. 

Deficiency means a failure to meet 

minimum requirements of an applicable 

statute or regulation. 

Depth means the depth of a dive, the 

maximum pressure expressed in feet of 

seawater attained by a diver. 

Dive means work performed by a 

diver or the activity that is taken in 

support of that work and that is the 

subject of a dive plan. 

Dive location means a distinct 

geographic location or a portion of a 

vessel or facility from which a diving 

operation is conducted. 

Dive mode or diving mode means a 

type of diving defined by the equipment 

used and supported by the relevant 

procedures, techniques, and processes, 

and includes self-contained underwater 

breathing apparatus, saturation, surfacesupplied air, or surface-supplied mixedgas modes. 

Dive plan is the written plan 

described in 46 CFR 197.220(i). 

Dive planning meeting means the 

meeting described in 46 CFR 197.220(i). 

Diver, unless otherwise modified, 

means a commercial diver working 

beneath the surface, exposed to 

hyperbaric conditions, and using 

underwater breathing apparatus. 

Dive supervisor means the person 

responsible to the commercial diving 

operator for planning, resourcing, 

supervising, and approving a dive to 

ensure its safety and directly 

responsible for the safety and health of 

all dive team members during the dive. 

Dive team means the working divers, 

dive tenders, standby divers, dive 

supervisors, persons in charge, life 

support and saturation technicians, and 

diver medical technicians, when 

provided, that are engaged in a specific 

diving operation. 

Dive tender means a properly trained 

and certified individual acting (dive 

tending) in support of a working or 

standby diver. 

Diving systems safety certificate 

means a certificate issued to a U.S. flag 

vessel subject to inspection under 46 

U.S.C. 3301, or for a foreign flag vessel 

by or on behalf of its flag 

administration, pursuant to the 

International Code of Safety for Diving 

Systems; 

Dynamic positioning or DP refers to 

systems designed to maintain a vessel in 

a fixed position and heading that 

incorporates computerized control 

systems, thrusters, propulsion 

machinery, and advanced tracking 

systems in order to maintain that fixed 

position. 

External audit means an audit 

conducted by an approved third-party 

organization. 

Facility means a deepwater port, or an 

artificial island, installation, or other 

device on the Outer Continental Shelf 

subject to Coast Guard jurisdiction. 

FSW means feet of sea water (or 

equivalent static pressure head). 

Hyperbaric condition means a 

pressure condition in excess of surface 

atmospheric pressure. 

Internal audit means an audit that is 

conducted by a party that has a direct 

affiliation to the vessel, facility, owner 

or managing operator, or organization 

being audited. 

Life support technician means a 

properly trained and certified dive 

support person responsible for the safe 

operation of a hyperbaric system, gas 

blending system, or gas control and 

delivery system, and who is responsible 

for providing for the medical wellness 

of the dive team. 

Liveboating means the support of a 

surfaced-supplied diver from a vessel 

underway without DP ability. 

Major non-conformity means an 

identifiable deviation that poses a 

serious threat to personnel or vessel 

safety, or a serious risk to the 

environment that requires immediate 

corrective action. 

Marine casualty or accident means 

any casualty or accident as defined in 

46 CFR 4.03–1. 

Mixed-gas dive means a dive mode in 

which the diver in the water is supplied 

with a breathing gas other than air. 

New dive location means a specific 

dive location from which no dive 

operation has been conducted in the last 

90 days. 

No-decompression limits means the 

depth-time limits of the nodecompression limits and repetitive 

dive group designation table for nodecompression air dives, U.S. Navy 

Diving manual or equivalent. 

Non-conformity means an observed 

situation where objective evidence 

indicates the non-fulfillment of a 

specified requirement. 

Objective evidence means quantitative 

or qualitative information, records, or 

statements of fact pertaining to safety or 

to the existence and implementation of 

a safety management system element, 

which is based on observation, 

measurement, or testing that can be 

verified. This information may include, 

but is not limited to, equipment 

certificates and maintenance 

documents, training records, repair 


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records, Coast Guard documents and 

certificates, surveys, or recognized class 

society reports. 

OCS activity has the meaning defined 

in 33 CFR 140.10. 

OCS facility has the meaning defined 

in 33 CFR 140.10. 

Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection 

or OCMI means any person designated 

as such by the Commandant of the Coast 

Guard and delegated the authority to 

perform the functions described in 33 

CFR 1.01–20. 

Operations manual means the 

operations manual required by 46 CFR 

197.223. 

Person in charge or PIC means a 

vessel’s master or the person acting or 

designated as such in accordance with 

§ 197.221(a) of this subpart. 

Pressure vessel means a container 

capable of withstanding an internal 

maximum working pressure of more 

than 15 psi(g). 

Psi (g) means pounds per square inch 

(gauge). 

Pressure vessel for human occupancy 

or PVHO means a pressure vessel that 

encloses a human being within its 

pressure boundary and includes diving 

bells, personnel transfer capsules, 

decompression chambers, 

recompression chambers, and 

hyperbaric chambers. The term does not 

include pressure vessels for human 

occupancy that may be subjected to 

external pressures in excess of 15 psi(g) 

but can only be subjected to maximum 

internal pressures of 15 psi(g) or less 

(i.e., submersibles, or one atmosphere 

observation bells). 

Procedure means an established series 

of actions, acts, or operations which 

must be executed in the same manner in 

order to achieve a uniform approach to 

compliance with applicable policies. 

Risk management measure means the 

assignment of additional or different 

personnel, equipment, or other 

resources, the implementation of 

effective policies or practices, or any 

other measure appropriate for the 

management or reduction of risks that 

may be anticipated during a dive. 

Safety management system means a 

structured and documented system 

enabling a commercial diving operation 

to effectively implement the commercial 

diving operator’s safety and 

environmental protection policies and 

that is routinely exercised and audited 

in a way that ensures the policies and 

procedures are incorporated into the 

daily performance of the commercial 

diving operation. 

Saturation diving means a dive mode 

that involves saturating a diver’s tissues 

with an inert gas in the breathing 

mixture to allow an extension of bottom 

time without additional decompression. 

Self-contained underwater breathing 

apparatus or SCUBA means a dive 

mode in which the diver is supplied 

with a compressed breathing mixture 

from diver-carried equipment. 

Serious marine incident has the 

meaning defined in 46 CFR 4.03–2. 

Third-party auditor means a person 

who conducts external audits for an 

approved third-party organization. 

Third-party organization means an 

entity that may be approved by the 

Coast Guard to act on behalf of the Coast 

Guard for the purpose of verifying 

compliance with applicable 

requirements outlined in Titles 33 or 46 

of the Code of Federal Regulations, and 

that is not directly connected to the 

Coast Guard, an owner or operator of a 

vessel, facility, or operation of a vessel 

or facility. 

Unit, in the context of a unit on the 

Outer Continental Shelf, has the 

meaning defined in 33 CFR 140.10. 

Vessel has the meaning given it by 33 

CFR 140.10. 

Working pressure means the pressure 

to which a pressure containment device 

is exposed at any particular instant 

during normal operating conditions. 

§ 197.202 Incorporation by reference. 

(a) Certain material is incorporated by 

reference into this subpart with the 

approval of the Director of the Federal 

Register under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 

CFR part 51. To enforce any edition 

other than that specified in this section, 

the Coast Guard must publish notice of 

change in the Federal Register and the 

material must be available to the public. 

All approved material is available for 

inspection at the U.S. Coast Guard by 

calling the Office of Regulations and 

Administrative Law at 202–372–3870 or 

emailing HQS-SMBCoastGuardRegulationsLaw@uscg.mil, 

and is available from the sources listed 

below. It is also available for inspection 

at the National Archives and Records 

Administration (NARA). For 

information on the availability of this 

material at NARA, call 202–741–6030 or 

go to http://www.archives.gov/federal_

register/code_of_federal_regulations/

ibr_locations.html. 

(b) Association of Diving Contractors 

International, 5206 Cypress Creek 

Parkway, Suite 202, Houston, TX 77069, 

http://adc-int.org/. 

(1) International Consensus Standards 

for Commercial Diving and Underwater 

Operations, 6th Edition, 2010 (‘‘ADCI 

Standards’’), IBR approved for: 46 CFR 

197.220, 197.222, 197.240, 197.242, 

197.243, 197.244, 197.245, 197.250, 

197.260, 197.261, 197.262, 197.263, 

197.266, 197.267, 197.270, 197.275, 

197.276, 197.277, 197.279, 197.280, 

197.281, and 197.282. 

(2) [Reserved] 

(c) International Maritime 

Organization (IMO), 4 Albert 

Embankment, London SE1 7SR, United 

Kingdom, http://www.imo.org. 

(1) IMO Resolution A.831(19), 

International Code of Safety for Diving 

Systems, 1995, IBR approved for 46 CFR 

197.204. 

(2) IMO Resolution A.692(17), 

Guidelines and Specifications for 

Hyperbaric Evacuation Systems, IBR 

approved for 46 CFR 197.270. 

(d) American Society of Mechanical 

Engineers (ASME), Three Park Avenue, 

New York, NY 10016–5990, http://

www.asme.org/. 

(1) ASME PVHO–1–2013, Safety 

Standard for Pressure Vessels for 

Human Occupancy, 2013 (‘‘ASME 

PVHO–1’’), IBR approved for 46 CFR 

197.277 and 197.286. 

(2) ASME B31.1–2010, ASME Code 

for Pressure Piping, Power Piping, 2010 

(‘‘ASME B31.1’’), IBR approved for 46 

CFR 197.278 and 197.286. 

(3) ASME National Board Inspection 

Code, NBBPVI, NB23–2011 (‘‘ASME 

NBBPVI’’), IBR approved for 46 CFR 

197.286. 

(e) American National Standards 

Institute (ANSI), 25 West 43rd Street, 

Fourth Floor, New York, NY 10036, 

http://www.ansi.org. 

(1) ANSI/ISO 15618–1:2001, 

Qualification testing of welders for 

underwater welding—Part 1: Diverwelders for hyperbaric wet welding 

(‘‘ANSI/ISO 15618’’), IBR approved for 

46 CFR 197.246. 

(2) ANSI/ACDE–01–2009, Divers— 

Commercial Diver Training—Minimum 

Standards, (‘‘ANSI/ACDE–01–2009’’), 

IBR approved for 46 CFR 197.209, 

197.243, and 197.246. 

(f) Compressed Gas Association, 

14501 George Carter Way, Suite 103, 

Chantilly, VA 20151–2923, http://

www.cganet.com/. 

(1) Publication G–4.1, Cleaning 

Equipment for Oxygen Service, 2009 

(‘‘Compressed Gas Association 

Publication G–4.1’’), IBR approved for 

46 CFR197.286. 

(2) Publication G–7, Compressed Air 

for Human Respiration, 6th Edition, 

2008, (Compressed Gas Association 

Publication G–7’’), IBR approved for 46 

CFR197.286. 

(3) Publication G–7.1, Commodity 

Specification for Air, 6th Edition, 2011, 

(Compressed Gas Association 

Publication G–7.1), IBR approved for 46 

CFR197.286. 

(g) U.S. General Services 

Administration, One Constitution 


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Square, 1275 First St. NE., Washington, 

DC 20417, http://www.gsa.gov/portal/

category/100000. 

(1) Federal Specification, BB–N–411C, 

Nitrogen Technical, 2000 (‘‘Federal 

Specification BB–N–411C’’), IBR 

approved for 46 CFR 197.286. 

(2) Federal Specification, Oxygen, 

Technical, Gas and Liquid, BB–O–925a, 

1961 (‘‘Federal Specification BB–O– 

925a’’), IBR approved for 46 CFR 

197.286. 

(h) International Organization for 

Standardization (ISO), 1, ch. de la VoieCreuse, CP 56–CH–1211 Geneva 20, 

Switzerland. 

(1) ISO 9001–2008, American 

National Standard, Quality Management 

Systems—Requirements, IBR approved 

for 46 CFR 197.209 and 197.225. 

(2) ISO 15618—2001, Qualification 

testing of welders for underwater 

welding—Part 1: Diver-welders for 

hyperbaric wet welding, IBR approved 

for 46 CFR 197.246. 

(i) U.S. Government Printing Office, 

723 North Capitol St. NW., Washington, 

DC 20401, http://www.gpo.gov/. 

(1) U.S. Navy Diving Manual, 6th 

Edition, April 2008, IBR approved for 46 

CFR 197.264 and 197.265. 

(2) [Reserved] 

§ 197.203 Equivalents. 

(a) The Commandant may accept 

substitutes for equipment, materials, 

apparatus, arrangements, procedures, or 

tests required in this subpart if the 

substitute provides an equivalent level 

of safety. 

(b) The person or entity receiving the 

equivalency determination must keep a 

copy of that determination and make it 

available to any of the person’s or 

entity’s employees, an approved thirdparty organization, or Coast Guard 

personnel upon request. 

§ 197.204 Commercial diving operations 

conducted in foreign waters. 

A U.S. vessel that is conducting 

commercial diving operations in foreign 

waters, and a foreign vessel that is 

conducting commercial diving 

operations on the OCS of the U.S., must 

have diving systems that comply with 

the International Code of Safety for 

Diving Systems (incorporated by 

reference, see 46 CFR 197.202) and 

possess a valid international diving 

systems safety certificate issued by the 

vessel’s flag administration or a party 

acting on that flag administration’s 

behalf. U.S. vessels needing an 

international diving systems safety 

certificate must contact a recognized 

classification society authorized by the 

Coast Guard to issue international 

certificates in accordance with 46 CFR 

8.320. 

§ 197.205 Enforcement. 

(a) For the purpose of enforcing this 

subpart, and to the extent needed to 

verify compliance with this subpart, the 

Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection 

(OCMI) may at any time inspect the 

records and observe the operations of 

any commercial diving operator (CDO) 

or third-party organization (TPO), and 

may interview any employee or person 

working on behalf of the CDO or TPO. 

(b) For noncompliance with this 

subpart, the OCMI may suspend or 

revoke a U.S. vessel’s certificate of 

inspection in accordance with 46 CFR 

part 2, or may suspend a U.S. vessel’s 

international diving systems safety 

certificate. 

(c) Vessels, OCS facilities, or 

deepwater ports that do not comply 

with these regulations are subject to the 

following enforcement actions: 

(1) The District Commander or the 

Captain of the Port (COTP) may prohibit 

a noncompliant vessel from engaging in 

commercial diving operations. A 

noncompliant vessel conducting 

commercial diving operations on the 

navigable waters of the United States, as 

defined in 33 CFR 2.36, is subject to 

orders and penalties authorized by the 

Ports and Waterways Safety Act and its 

implementing regulations. 

(2) The OCMI may prohibit a 

noncompliant vessel or OCS facility 

from engaging in commercial diving 

operations. A noncompliant OCS 

facility, or vessel engaged in an OCS 

activity, is subject to penalties and 

orders authorized by the Outer 

Continental Shelf Lands Act and its 

implementing regulations. 

(3) The OCMI may prohibit a 

noncompliant deepwater port from 

engaging in commercial diving 

operations. A noncompliant deepwater 

port, or a vessel connected to a 

deepwater port, is subject to penalties 

and orders authorized by the Deepwater 

Port Act and its implementing 

regulations. 

§§ 197.206–197.208 [Reserved] 

Audits 

§ 197.209 Third-party audits. 

(a) As used in this section, an ‘‘audit’’ 

means a systematic, independent, and 

documented process for obtaining audit 

evidence, which can be evaluated 

objectively to determine the extent to 

which audit criteria are fulfilled. An 

audit may be limited to random 

selection of a representative sampling 

throughout the system that presents the 

auditor with sufficient objective 

evidence of system compliance. It 

includes a thorough review of 

appropriate reports, documents, records, 

and other objective evidence to verify 

compliance with applicable regulations. 

It may include, but is not limited to— 

(1) Examining records; 

(2) Asking responsible persons how 

they accomplish specific tasks; 

(3) Observing persons performing 

required tasks; 

(4) Examining equipment to insure 

proper maintenance and operation; and 

(5) Checking training records and 

work environments. 

(b) This section establishes 

procedures for third-party organizations 

(TPOs) to obtain the Commandant’s 

approval to perform audits on behalf of 

the Coast Guard for the purpose of 

determining regulatory compliance of 

vessels, personnel, and equipment with 

Coast Guard regulations issued under 

this part, and establishes criteria for the 

performance of those audits. 

(c) A TPO that the Commandant 

approves may— 

(1) Conduct audits of logs, records, 

documents, equipment, drills, or other 

data to verify compliance with 

applicable Coast Guard regulations; 

(2) Conduct audits of specific vessel 

operations and interview a TPO’s 

personnel to verify compliance with 

applicable Coast Guard regulations; and 

(3) Issue reports detailing the results 

of audits. 

(d) To receive the Commandant’s 

approval to perform audits in 

accordance with this section, a TPO 

must demonstrate the skills and 

experience necessary to assess 

compliance with the requirements of 

this part. It must demonstrate, without 

consideration for any recreational 

diving experience, that each of its 

auditors has— 

(1) Successfully completed a 

commercial diving training course 

meeting the requirements of ANSI/

ACDE–01–2009 (incorporated by 

reference, see 46 CFR 197.202); 

(2) Served as a diving supervisor 

overseeing the specific diving mode to 

be audited, with an auditor of 

commercial SCUBA, surface-supplied 

air, or mixed-gas diving having overseen 

at least 500 commercial dives in that 

mode and an auditor of saturation 

diving having overseen at least 100 

commercial dives in that mode; 

(3) Successfully completed a lead 

auditor/assessor course that meets the 

requirements of International 

Organization for Standardization (ISO) 

9001–2008 (incorporated by reference, 

see 46 CFR 197.202) or a Coast Guardrecognized equivalent; and 

(4) Either conducted at least eight 

audits within the past 5 years of a 

commercial diving operation utilizing a 

recognized consensus standard, or 


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successfully completed a required 

auditor apprenticeship consisting of at 

least four audits under the direction of 

a lead auditor. 

(e) A TPO that the Commandant 

approves must notify the Commandant 

when it adds or removes an auditor. For 

each new auditor, the organization must 

demonstrate that the auditor 

qualifications specified in paragraph (c) 

of this section have been met. 

§ 197.210 Internal audits. 

(a) Each commercial diving operator 

(CDO), and vessel or facility owner that 

permits a commercial diving operation 

to take place on board, must perform an 

annual internal audit using one or more 

designated employees or persons 

contracted to perform the audit. 

(b) The internal audit is not 

necessarily conducted as one event, and 

may be performed in segments over 

time, not to exceed 1 year. 

(c) The internal audit must be of 

sufficient depth and breadth to ensure 

the CDO or vessel or facility owner that 

permits a commercial diving operation 

to take place on board has established 

adequate procedures and 

documentation to validate and maintain 

compliance with this subpart. 

(d) Each internal auditor must have 

the authority to examine 

documentation, question personnel, 

examine vessel equipment, witness 

system testing, and observe personnel 

training as necessary to verify 

compliance. 

§ 197.211 External audits. 

(a) Each commercial diving operator 

(CDO), and vessel or facility owner that 

permits a commercial diving operation 

to take place on board, must have an 

external compliance audit conducted by 

an approved third-party organization at 

least twice in each 5-year period. 

Additionally, an external compliance 

audit must be conducted as soon as 

possible after any commercial diving 

casualty that is a serious marine 

incident. 

(b) The external audit must be of 

sufficient depth and breadth to ensure 

that the CDO or vessel or facility owner 

that permits a commercial diving 

operation to take place on board 

complies with the requirements of this 

subpart. 

(c) Each external auditor must be 

provided access to examine any 

requested documentation, question 

personnel, examine equipment, witness 

system testing, and observe personnel 

training, to the extent necessary to 

verify compliance with this subpart. 

(d) The external auditor may broaden 

the scope of the audit if he or she finds 

a condition that is inconsistent with the 

records maintained or identifies an 

unsafe condition. 

(e) The external auditor may verify 

compliance through a review of 

objective evidence and may conduct a 

visual sampling onboard vessels or 

facilities where commercial diving 

operations are conducted to determine 

whether or not the conditions onboard 

the vessel or at the facility are consistent 

with the records reviewed. 

§ 197.212 Pre-audit notification. 

(a) Each commercial diving operator 

(CDO) or vessel or facility owner that 

permits a commercial diving operation 

to take place on board must notify the 

cognizant Officer in Charge, Marine 

Inspection (OCMI) at least 5 working 

days before the start of any external 

audit conducted under 46 CFR 197.211. 

(b) The OCMI may require that a Coast 

Guard representative accompany the 

auditor during part, or all, of an external 

audit. 

(c) The Coast Guard may conduct an 

audit of the CDO or vessel or facility at 

any time. 

§ 197.213 Audit reporting. 

(a) An approved third-party 

organization conducting external audits 

in accordance with this subpart must 

submit an audit report to the cognizant 

Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection 

(OCMI) within 30 days after completing 

each audit under 46 CFR 197.211, 

except that any major non-conformity 

must be reported to the local OCMI 

upon completion of the audit. 

(b) Each audit report must contain the 

name of the auditor, the audit results, 

and any continuing actions such as 

resolution of deficiencies and nonconformities. 

(c) The TPO must keep each audit 

report for 5 years and make it available 

to the Coast Guard upon request. 

(d) CDOs must retain copies of TPO 

audit reports and make them available 

for examination by the Coast Guard 

upon request. 

§§ 197.214–197.219 [Reserved] 

Operational Duties 

§ 197.220 Commercial diving operators. 

Each commercial diving operator 

(CDO) must ensure that— 

(a) Commercial diving operations 

comply with or exceed the requirements 

of the ADCI Standards (incorporated by 

reference, see 46 CFR 197.202) as 

modified by this subpart; 

(b) Each commercial diving operation 

or support function is conducted in a 

way that minimizes any prevailing or 

anticipated risk to life, property, or the 

environment; 

(c) Each commercial diving operation 

is conducted with the required 

equipment and the proper operational 

procedures to ensure the safety of all 

commercial diving employees involved 

in the commercial diving operation; 

(d) Each commercial diving employee 

taking part in a commercial diving 

operation receives written designation 

of the employee’s individual roles and 

responsibilities for each commercial 

diving operation and has the equipment, 

knowledge, skills, experience, training, 

and certification necessary to perform 

the duties to which he or she is 

assigned; 

(e) The name of the dive supervisor 

for each commercial diving operation is 

provided to the person in charge (PIC) 

of the vessel or facility before beginning 

the operation; 

(f) Drills are conducted in accordance 

with table 197.220(f) in this section, and 

compliance documented by logging the 

date, location, nature, and scope of each 

drill and the name and job title of each 

drill participant; 

TABLE 197.220(F)—DRILL REQUIREMENTS

Requirement Detail 

Ensure that each dive team member can perform his or her assigned dive team duties.Drill at least once every 30 calendar days, before initiating a commercial diving operation at a new dive location, when adding a new member to the dive team, or whenever you change an emergency drill procedure or emergency response equipment described in the operations manual. Note: For each dive 

mode used, drill using the unique equipment, personnel, and operational procedures required by that 

mode. 

Diver recovery ................................. At least once every 90 days, drill on: (1) Deployment of standby divers; (2) recovery of a diver from depth 

to a decompression chamber and first aid station; and (3) for dive systems utilizing hyperbaric rescue 

chambers or hyperbaric rescue craft, a full launch and recovery drill at least every 90 days or when adding a new member to the dive team or when initiating a new dive location. 


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TABLE 197.220(F)—DRILL REQUIREMENTS—Continued 

Requirement Detail 

Emergency rescue .......................... Drill at least once every 30 calendar days. Ensure that personnel can successfully deploy the equipment 

and perform the procedures described in the operations manual for emergency rescue (it is not necessary to deploy the emergency aviation resources or vessels required to transport divers to offsite medical facilities). 

(g) Each commercial diving 

employee’s compliance with this 

subpart is documented, that the 

documentation is retained for at least 5 

years, and that the documentation is 

made available upon request to the 

Coast Guard or approved third-party 

organizations operating under this 

subpart; 

(h) The dive supervisor complies with 

this subpart and prepares and updates 

the operations manual described in 46 

CFR 197.223; the operations manual is 

provided at the dive site; and all dive 

team members, including the dive 

supervisor, are trained in, familiar with, 

and compliant with the operations 

manual’s contents; 

(i) All dive team members participate 

in a dive planning meeting before each 

dive, that the meeting ensures that a 

dive plan is prepared specific to each 

dive identifying the person in charge of 

the vessel or facility, the dive 

supervisor, and the roles and 

responsibilities of all dive team 

members, the anticipated conditions 

and risks that could affect the dive and 

risk management measures 

implemented to reduce risks; and that 

each dive team member reviews and 

signs the plan to document participation 

in the meeting and agreement with the 

plan; 

(j) All dive team members have access 

to approved documentation, manuals, 

guidance, policies, procedures, 

checklists, and any other publications 

for use in planning or conducting the 

dive and for properly using equipment 

in connection with the dive; and 

(k) The local Officer in Charge, 

Marine Inspection is provided with a 

dive notice containing the contents 

specified in table 197.220(k) of this 

section at least 24 hours before any 

commercial diving operation begins. 

TABLE 197.220(K)—DIVE NOTICE, REQUIRED CONTENTS

Content Detail 

Contact information ......................... For the CDO, dive supervisor, and PIC: Name, telephone or e-mail, or other contact information. 

Date and time ................................. Scheduled start and end date and time. 

Dive location ................................... Geographic position (latitude and longitude). 

Diving system safety certificate ...... Certificate number, date of expiration, flag administration, and issuing authority if other than the administration. 

Mode ............................................... Mode of diving to be used. 

Support platform ............................. Name of each vessel or facility providing dive support. 

Work ................................................ Description of work to be performed including maximum depth and exposure time. 

§ 197.221 Persons in charge. 

(a) The owner or operator of a vessel 

or facility must designate in writing an 

individual to be the person in charge 

(PIC) of the vessel or facility. 

(b) Where a master is designated, the 

master is the PIC. 

(c) The PIC must— 

(1) Participate in the dive planning 

meeting and sign the dive plan; 

(2) Not allow any commercial diving 

operation to begin until— 

(i) The operation’s dive supervisor has 

been designated; 

(ii) The dive supervisor provides the 

PIC with a report on the nature and 

planned times of the planned operation; 

and the planned involvement of the 

vessel or facility, its equipment, and its 

personnel in the operation; 

(3) Not permit any commercial diving 

operation involving dynamic 

positioning or liveboating to begin 

without first— 

(i) Establishing a means of rapid 

communication with the dive 

supervisor while the diver is entering, 

in, or leaving the water; and 

(ii) Ensuring a boat and crew for diver 

pickup is provided in the event of an 

emergency; 

(4) Ensure that a boat and crew for 

SCUBA diver pickup is provided when 

SCUBA divers are not line-tended from 

the dive location; 

(5) Coordinate the activities of the 

vessel or facility with the dive 

supervisor; 

(6) Ensure that the vessel or facility 

equipment and personnel are kept clear 

of the dive location except after 

coordinating with the dive supervisor; 

(7) Provide accurate and detailed 

plans of the area of the facility, 

infrastructure, or vessel that is the 

subject of the work to be performed; 

(8) Ensure that any structures or 

components being worked on are 

prepared so as to minimize any danger 

that could pose a threat to the members 

of the dive team; 

(9) Anticipate and monitor all 

conditions and risks that may affect the 

commercial diving operation, ensure the 

availability of risk management 

measures if needed, and terminate the 

operation if an unsafe condition exists; 

and 

(10) Maintain a logbook and make it 

available to the Coast Guard or 

approved TPOs upon request. For 

vessels subject to 46 U.S.C. 11301, this 

may be the logbook required by that 

section and kept on form CG–706. The 

following must be included in the 

logbook: 

(i) Date, time, and location at the start 

and completion of dive operations; 

(ii) Approximate underwater and 

surface conditions (weather, visibility, 

temperatures, and currents); 

(iii) Name of the dive supervisor; 

(iv) General nature of work 

performed; and 

(v) Maximum depth and exposure 

time. 

§ 197.222 Dive supervisors. 

Each dive supervisor for a commercial 

diving operation has the final authority 

to determine the required diving 

equipment, personnel, procedures, and 

diving modes needed to safely 

accomplish the intended task, and 

must— 


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(a) Comply with this subpart and the 

applicable requirements for dive 

supervisors and diving modes outlined 

in sections 3.0 and 4.0 of the ADCI 

Standards (incorporated by reference, 

see 46 CFR 197.202) for the specific 

modes of diving for which supervision 

is provided; 

(b) Ensure that diving operations 

conducted from a vessel or facility 

subject to this subpart comply with this 

subpart; 

(c) Before beginning any commercial 

diving operation, give the person in 

charge (PIC) the report required by 46 

CFR 197.221(c)(2)(ii), and coordinate 

with the PIC any changes that are made 

to that report; 

(d) Anticipate and monitor all 

conditions and risks that may affect the 

dive, implement risk management 

measures as needed, and terminate the 

dive if necessary to ensure dive team 

safety; 

(e) Conduct the dive planning meeting 

required by 46 CFR 197.220(i) and draft 

and sign the dive plan; 

(f) Be properly trained and qualified 

to operate each diving system or mode 

used in the operation; 

(g) Be able to read and communicate 

in a language clearly understood by all 

members of the dive team; 

(h) Supervise and direct the actions of 

each dive team member; 

(i) Coordinate with the PIC to ensure 

that clear and prompt notice of the 

commercial diving operation is given to 

any person, vessel, installation, or 

organization whose work could interfere 

with or affect the planned dive; 

(j) Maintain an official dive log with 

information outlined in section 5.13 of 

the ADCI Standards and the— 

(1) Dive mode used; 

(2) PIC’s name; and 

(3) Name, date, time, treatment, 

circumstances, and extent of any 

fatality, injury, or illness that results in 

incapacitation of more than 72 hours or 

requires any dive team member to be 

hospitalized for more than 24 hours; 

(k) Ensure that, for each diving 

operation deviating from the 

requirements of this subpart, the dive 

log records the— 

(1) Circumstances leading to the 

situation; 

(2) Deviation made; and 

(3) Corrective action taken to reduce 

the possibility of recurrence; 

(l) Keep a record in the dive log 

noting where and when testing occurred 

for each of the following, along with the 

test results— 

(1) Medical kit check (monthly); 

(2) Air compressor test; 

(3) Breathing mixture check; 

(4) Breathing supply system check; 

(5) Cleaning of diving equipment for 

oxygen service, including which 

equipment was cleaned, the general 

cleaning procedure, and the names of 

persons involved; 

(6) Breathing supply hose and system 

tests; 

(7) Breathing gas supply system 

inspection; 

(8) Depth gauge and timekeeping 

device test; 

(9) Pressure vessel for human 

occupancy test and inspection; 

(10) Diving equipment inspection; 

(11) Pressure piping test and 

inspection; and 

(12) Volume tank and cylinder test 

and inspection; 

(m) Supervise the planning and 

execution of the diving operation, 

including the responsibility for the 

safety and health of the dive team; and 

(n) Notify the PIC whenever 

decompression sickness or gas 

embolism is suspected or symptoms are 

evident, and provide a written report on 

the assessment of the decompression 

procedure that includes the following: 

(1) Details of the investigation 

completed for each incident including 

dive and decompression profiles and 

the composition, depth, and time of 

breathing mixture changes; 

(2) Symptoms, including depth and 

time of onset; 

(3) Nature and results of the 

treatment; 

(4) Evaluation of each incident based 

on the investigation, consideration of 

the past performance of the 

decompression table used, and 

individual susceptibility; and 

(5) The corrective action taken to 

reduce the probability of recurrence. 

§ 197.223 Operations manual. 

(a) Each dive supervisor must provide 

the operations manual to the person in 

charge (PIC) prior to commencement of 

any diving operation and make it 

available at the dive location to all 

members of the dive team. 

(b) The dive supervisor must modify 

the operations manual to reflect any 

change in the configuration or operation 

of the vessel or facility or in the specific 

diving operation as planned. 

(c) The operations manual must 

provide for the safety and health of the 

divers, and must address the— 

(1) Safety procedures and checklists 

for each diving mode used; 

(2) Assignments and responsibilities 

of each dive team member for each 

diving mode used; 

(3) Equipment procedures and 

checklists for each diving mode used; 

(4) Dive team members’ drills and 

training; 

(5) Procedures for conducting a job 

safety analysis; and 

(6) Procedures to be taken before, 

during, and after a dive for each diving 

mode conducted. 

(d) The operations manual must also 

provide emergency procedures in the 

event of— 

(1) Fire; 

(2) Equipment failure; 

(3) Adverse environmental conditions 

including, but not limited to, weather 

and sea state; 

(4) Medical illness; 

(5) Injuries; and 

(6) Barotrauma. 

(e) The operations manual must also 

provide procedures dealing with the use 

of— 

(1) Hand-held power tools; 

(2) Welding and burning equipment; 

and 

(3) Explosives. 

§ 197.224 Operational duties in the event 

of marine casualty or serious marine 

incident. 

(a) In the event of a marine casualty 

or a serious marine incident the 

commercial diving operator must— 

(1) Ensure that the commercial diving 

operation is suspended as soon as all 

actions have been taken to protect the 

safety of life and the environment, and 

resumed only after all commercial 

diving employees have fully complied 

with the reporting requirements of 46 

CFR part 4 and this section; 

(2) Analyze the event and take all 

reasonable action required to prevent 

further events from occurring; 

(3) Arrange for a timely post-casualty 

audit to be conducted in accordance 

with 46 CFR 197.211; 

(4)(i) Ensure that any equipment that 

may have contributed to the event is 

immediately removed from service and 

secured against unauthorized access and 

any change in its material condition is 

recorded; 

(ii) Ensure that any repair to the 

equipment described in paragraph 

(a)(4)(i) of this section and any deviation 

from the requirements of paragraph 

(a)(4)(i) are reported to the local Officer 

in Charge, Marine Inspection (OCMI) as 

soon as possible; 

(iii) Ensure that any equipment 

described in paragraph (a)(4)(i) of this 

section and any documentation relating 

to the event is retained, made available 

to the OCMI upon request, and not 

disposed of until the OCMI gives 

written permission; and 

(5) Ensure that the commercial diving 

operation and all commercial diving 

employees comply with any conditions 

imposed by the OCMI to protect life, 

property, or the environment. 


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(b) In addition to the reporting 

requirements of 46 CFR subpart 4.05 

and 33 CFR 146.30 and 150.815, the 

person in charge (PIC) must notify the 

OCMI as soon as possible after a diving 

casualty occurs if the casualty involves 

loss of life or a diving-related injury that 

causes incapacitation for more than 72 

hours or hospitalization for more than 

24 hours. 

(c) The notice required in paragraph 

(b) of this section must contain the— 

(1) Name and official number (if 

applicable) of the vessel or facility; 

(2) Name of the owner or operator of 

the vessel or facility; 

(3) Name of the PIC; 

(4) Name of the dive supervisor; 

(5) Description of the casualty 

including presumed cause; 

(6) Maximum depth and exposure 

time; and 

(7) Nature and extent of the injury. 

(d)(1) In addition to the notice 

required in paragraph (b) of this section, 

the PIC must provide a written report in 

accordance with 46 CFR subpart 4.05 

within 5 days of the casualty. 

(2) When the marine casualty or 

serious marine incident occurs on a 

vessel’s diving installation, the report 

must be submitted on Form CG2692. 

When the marine casualty or serious 

marine incident occurs on a facility’s 

diving installation, the report can be in 

narrative written form if it contains the 

information required in paragraph (c) of 

this section and the information 

required to be submitted on Form 

CG2692. 

(3) The report must be accompanied 

by a copy of the dive supervisor 

investigation report required in 46 CFR 

197.222(n) when decompression 

sickness is involved. 

(4) The report must include 

information relating to alcohol or drug 

involvement as required in 46 CFR 

4.05–12. 

(e) Each dive supervisor must 

promptly notify the PIC of any divingrelated casualty, accident, or injury. 

(f) The owner, agent, or PIC of a vessel 

or facility for which a report of casualty 

is made under paragraph (d) of this 

section must retain all records onboard 

that are maintained on the vessel or 

facility and those records required by 

this subpart, including all logbooks and 

reports, for 6 months after the report of 

a casualty is made or until advised by 

the OCMI that records need not be 

retained onboard, and must make them 

available for examination by any Coast 

Guard official or approved third-party 

organization authorized to investigate 

the casualty. 

(g) Each CDO and owner of a vessel 

or facility that determines that a 

casualty or incident is, or is likely to 

become, a serious marine incident, must 

comply with the applicable chemical 

testing and reporting requirements 

outlined in 46 CFR subpart 4.06. 

§ 197.225 Safety management system. 

(a) Each commercial diving operator, 

and each vessel or facility owner that 

permits a commercial diving operation 

to take place on board or at the facility, 

must conduct the internal and external 

audits required by 46 CFR 197.210 and 

197.211 and must conduct operations in 

accordance with a safety management 

system meeting the requirements of ISO 

9001–2008, or equivalent standard 

recognized by the Office of Design and 

Engineering Standards, Commandant 

(CG–ENG). 

(b) Each vessel engaged on an 

international voyage and subject to the 

International Convention for the Safety 

of Life at Sea must be operated in 

accordance with a Safety Management 

System meeting the requirements of the 

International Safety Management Code. 

§§ 197.226–197.239 [Reserved] 

Personnel Training and Qualifications 

197.240 General requirements. 

(a) Each commercial diving employee 

employed in a commercial diving 

operation must have the knowledge, 

skills, experience, training, and 

certification necessary to perform the 

duties to which he or she is assigned 

and must meet the requirements of the 

role to which he or she is assigned as 

outlined in section 3 of the ADCI 

Standards (incorporated by reference, 

see 46 CFR 197.202), except insofar as 

it has been modified by this subpart. 

(b) Each commercial diving team 

member must be trained in and 

maintain valid certification for 

cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) 

and first aid (American Red Cross 

standard course or equivalent). 

§ 197.241 Standby divers. 

(a) No standby diver may perform any 

other duty that might interfere with his 

or her duties as a standby diver while 

another diver is in the water. 

(b) Each standby diver must— 

(1) Be fully dressed and able to enter 

the water in less than 1 minute and 

when directed to do so by the dive 

supervisor; 

(2) Stay in the immediate location of 

the dive and dive support equipment 

while a diver is in the water; and 

(3) Stay aware of events and 

conditions relevant to the dive. 

§ 197.242 Dive supervisors. 

(a) Except insofar as it has been 

modified by this subpart, each dive 

supervisor of a commercial diving 

operation must meet the requirements 

for the specific mode of diving being 

supervised, as outlined in section 3 of 

the ADCI Standards (incorporated by 

reference, see 46 CFR 197.202). 

(b)(1) A surface-supplied air dive 

supervisor must meet the requirements 

of a surface-supplied air diver, and 

complete at least 150 dives serving as a 

qualified surface-supplied air diver. 

(2) A mixed-gas dive supervisor must 

meet the requirements of a mixed-gas 

diver and— 

(i) Complete at least 150 mixed-gas 

dives as a qualified mixed-gas diver; 

and 

(ii) Complete at least 150 dives as a 

surface-supplied air diving supervisor. 

(3) A saturation dive supervisor must 

meet the requirements of a saturation 

diver, and— 

(i) Complete at least 150 dives as a 

saturation diver; and 

(ii) Complete at least 150 dives as a 

mixed-gas diving supervisor. 

§ 197.243 Divers and dive tenders. 

(a) Except insofar as it has been 

modified by this subpart, each diver and 

dive tender for a commercial diving 

operation must meet the commercial 

diving training requirements of section 

2.2 and the diving personnel 

responsibilities, qualifications and 

certification requirements of section 3 of 

the ADCI Standards (incorporated by 

reference, see 46 CFR 197.202). 

(b) In lieu of the requirements in 

section 3.5.3(a) and (b) of the ADCI 

Standards (incorporated by reference, 

see 46 CFR 197.202), a mixed-gas diver 

must complete at least 100 dives as an 

air diver; and complete at least 50 dives 

as tender to a mixed-gas diver. 

(c) In lieu of the requirements in 

section 3.7.3(a) and (b) of the ADCI 

Standards (incorporated by reference, 

see 46 CFR 197.202), a saturation diver 

must complete at least 200 dives as an 

air or mixed-gas diver; and complete at 

least 100 dives as a mixed-gas diver. 

(d) A commercial diver or dive tender 

conducting diving operations prior to 

(30 DAYS AFTER DATE OF 

PUBLICATION OF FINAL RULE) and 

having more than 5 years of commercial 

diving experience is exempt from 

having to meet the formal training 

requirements specified in section 2.2.1 

of the ADCI Standards (incorporated by 

reference, see 46 CFR 197.202). 

(e) A commercial diver or dive tender 

conducting diving operations prior to 

(30 DAYS AFTER DATE OF 

PUBLICATION OF FINAL RULE) and 

having less than 5 years of commercial 

diving experience must meet the formal 

training requirements specified in 


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section 2.2.1 of the ADCI Standards 

(incorporated by reference, see 46 CFR 

197.202) not later than 3 years after (30 

DAYS AFTER DATE OF PUBLICATION 

OF FINAL RULE). 

§ 197.244 Life-support technicians. 

Each life-support technician for a 

commercial diving operation must meet 

the requirements of section 3.9 of the 

ADCI Standards (incorporated by 

reference, see 46 CFR 197.202). 

§ 197.245 Saturation technicians. 

Each saturation technician for a 

commercial diving operation must meet 

the requirements of section 3.10 of the 

ADCI Standards (incorporated by 

reference, see 46 CFR 197.202). 

§ 197.246 Individuals conducting 

underwater burning, welding, or exothermic 

cutting. 

Each individual conducting 

underwater burning, welding, or 

exothermic cutting must provide the 

commercial diving operator and dive 

supervisor with documentation showing 

successful completion of a course for 

underwater welding, burning, and 

cutting containing curriculum based on 

ANSI/ACDE–01–2009 (incorporated by 

reference, see 46 CFR 197.202) and 

successful completion of a written and 

practical exam based on ANSI/ISO 

15618 (incorporated by reference, see 46 

CFR 197.202). 

§ 197.247 Diver medical technicians. 

Each individual acting as a diver 

medical technician must meet the 

requirements for commercial divers 

outlined in 46 CFR 197.243(a), be 

trained as an emergency medical 

technician according to the National 

Association of Emergency Medical 

Technicians, and be trained as a 

certified medical technician according 

to the National Board of Diving and 

Hyperbaric Medical Technology. 

§§ 197.248–197.249 [Reserved] 

Health and Medical Requirements 

§ 197.250 Medical examinations. 

(a) Except insofar as it has been 

modified by this subpart, each 

commercial diving employee subjected 

to hyperbaric conditions must comply 

with section 2.3 of the ADCI Standards 

(incorporated by reference, see 46 CFR 

197.202). 

(b) Each commercial diving employee 

subjected to hyperbaric conditions 

must— 

(1) Be physically and mentally able to 

safely wear and operate any required 

equipment, tools, and safety gear 

necessary to accomplish diving 

operations or otherwise be exposed to 

hyperbaric activities without undue 

danger to themselves or others; 

(2) At the time of hire, and at least 

once every 12 months thereafter, 

undergo a medical examination by a 

licensed physician to determine the 

employee’s physical and cognitive 

ability to meet the standard described in 

paragraph (b)(1) of this section, and 

must ensure that he or she provides the 

commercial diving operator and the 

dive supervisor with a written medical 

report from his or her attending 

physician that includes the— 

(i) Date of the examination; 

(ii) Physician’s name, business 

address, and telephone number; and 

(iii) Physician’s medical 

determination of fitness for diving or 

otherwise being subjected to hyperbaric 

conditions, and any restrictions or 

limitations that would apply to work 

activities. 

§ 197.251 Pre-operational verification. 

(a) Before each commercial diving 

operation, the commercial diving 

operator (CDO) and the dive supervisor 

must ensure that each person who may 

be subjected to hyperbaric conditions 

has complied with 46 CFR 197.250. 

(b) No CDO or dive supervisor may 

knowingly— 

(1) Expose an employee to hyperbaric 

conditions if the employee has not 

complied with the requirements of this 

subpart; or 

(2) Use the employee in a manner that 

is not consistent with any restrictions or 

limitations listed by a physician under 

46 CFR 197.250(b)(2)(iii). 

(c) Each CDO and dive supervisor 

must ensure that no dive team member 

is under the influence of alcohol, a 

dangerous drug, or a legal prescription 

or non-prescription medication whose 

use is inadvisable by a medical 

physician while performing the duty to 

which the person is assigned. 

§ 197.252 Work hours. 

Each commercial dive operator and 

dive supervisor must ensure that each 

dive member is provided the 

opportunity to obtain at least 12 hours 

of rest within any 24-hour period, 

except in an emergency or drills that 

may be required in accordance with 46 

CFR 15.710(d). 

§ 197.253 Ascent to altitude after diving or 

flying after diving. 

Commercial divers leaving a dive site 

and traveling over mountains or 

departing by air must comply with 

Chapter 9–14 of the U.S. Navy Diving 

Manual (incorporated by reference, see 

46 CFR 197.202). 

§§ 197.254–197.259 [Reserved] 

Specific Operations 

§ 197.260 Operations with potential for 

differential pressures in adjacent areas. 

Each commercial diving operator 

performing a commercial diving 

operation that has the potential for 

developing differential pressures in 

adjacent areas must comply with section 

5.17 of the ADCI Standards 

(incorporated by reference, see 46 CFR 

197.202), and ensure that the 

recommendations outlined in section 

5.17.3 of the ADCI Standards are 

implemented. 

§ 197.261 Operations conducted from a 

dynamic positioning vessel. 

(a) Each commercial diving operator 

(CDO) performing commercial diving 

operations from a vessel using a 

dynamic positioning (DP) system must 

comply with section 8.3 of the ADCI 

Standards (incorporated by reference, 

see 46 CFR 197.202). 

(b) Each CDO to whom this section 

applies must— 

(1) Ensure that the DP system for the 

vessel is periodically inspected, tested, 

and maintained in accordance with the 

applicable manufacturer and/or 

classification society requirements for 

the specific DP system used; 

(2) Ensure that periodic inspections, 

tests, and maintenance for the DP 

system on the vessel are recorded in the 

logbook required by 46 CFR 

197.221(c)(10); and 

(3) Ensure that the onboard dive 

location is not located within 5 meters 

of a propulsion source. 

§ 197.262 Operations conducted from a 

vessel that is liveboating. 

Each commercial diving operator 

performing commercial diving 

operations from a vessel that is 

liveboating must comply with section 

8.2 of the ADCI Standards (incorporated 

by reference, see 46 CFR 197.202) and 

must notify the person in charge before 

a diver enters or exits the water. 

§ 197.263 Operations involving SCUBA. 

Each commercial diving operator 

performing commercial diving 

operations involving the use of a selfcontained underwater breathing 

apparatus must comply with section 4.2 

of the ADCI Standards (incorporated by 

reference, see 46 CFR 197.202), and 

must ensure that a boat is available for 

diver pickup when a diver is not linetended from the dive location. 

§ 197.264 Operations involving multiple 

dives by a diver. 

Each commercial diving operator 

requiring divers to engage in multiple 


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dives must first make sure that 

equivalent air depth calculations are 

determined by the dive supervisor and 

the diver, and that those calculations are 

entered into the Standard Navy Air 

Tables contained in the U.S. Navy Dive 

Manual (incorporated by reference, see 

46 CFR 197.202) to determine the 

subsequent dive profile. 

§ 197.265 Operations in which a diver’s 

decompression is required, but has been 

omitted. 

Commercial diving operators must 

ensure that the procedures identified in 

the U.S. Navy Diving Manual, Sixth 

Edition (incorporated by reference, see 

46 CFR 197.202) are followed when a 

diver’s decompression is required but 

has been omitted. 

§ 197.266 Operations in contaminated 

water. 

Commercial diving operations 

conducted in contaminated water must 

comply with section 5.38 of the ADCI 

Standards (incorporated by reference, 

see 46 CFR 197.202). 

§ 197.267 Operations involving underwater 

welding and burning. 

Commercial diving operations 

involving underwater welding and 

burning must comply with section 5.31 

of the ADCI Standards (incorporated by 

reference, see 46 CFR 197.202). 

§§ 197.268–197.269 [Reserved] 

Equipment 

§ 197.270 General requirements. 

(a) Each diving installation used on 

each vessel or facility subject to this 

subpart must comply with this subpart. 

(b) In addition to the requirements of 

this subpart, equipment that is 

permanently installed on vessels and is 

part of the diving installation must 

comply with subchapters F and J of this 

chapter or other equivalent standards 

acceptable to the Office of Design and 

Engineering Standards, Commandant 

(CG–ENG). 

(c) All equipment used to support a 

commercial diving operation, including, 

but not limited to, breathing gas hoses, 

umbilicals, compressor systems, volume 

tanks, compressed-gas cylinders, 

pressure vessels for human occupancy, 

diving ladders and stages, launch and 

recovery systems, entry and egress 

systems, emergency evacuation systems, 

helmets, masks, harnesses, gauges, 

timekeeping devices, and diver’s dress 

must meet the applicable equipment 

requirements outlined in the ADCI 

Standards (incorporated by reference, 

see 46 CFR 197.202), in addition to the 

requirements of this subpart. 

(d) A modular or packaged 

commercial diving unit placed aboard a 

vessel for use in a commercial diving 

operation must have documentation 

indicating that the unit and its 

installation have been reviewed and 

approved for its intended use by a 

recognized classification society that 

meets the requirements of 46 CFR part 

8, or by another organization acceptable 

to the Office of Design and Engineering 

Standards, Commandant (CG–ENG). 

(e) Where a hyperbaric lifeboat is 

provided as an emergency evacuation 

system it must— 

(1) Be used for no other purpose; 

(2) Not be counted to meet applicable 

carriage requirements for survival craft; 

(3) Meet the hyperbaric evacuation 

system requirements of IMO Resolution 

A.692(17) (incorporated by reference, 

see 46 CFR 197.202); and 

(4) Be type-approved by a recognized 

classification society as defined in 46 

CFR 8.100, or issued a Coast Guard 

approval certificate under approval 

series 160.135. 

§ 197.271 Commercial diving operator’s 

general equipment duties. 

(a) Each commercial diving operator 

(CDO) must ensure all commercial 

diving employees comply with this 

subpart and document compliance with 

paragraphs (b) through (e) of this section 

in an equipment maintenance logbook. 

(b) The CDO must maintain, inspect, 

test, and use all equipment in 

accordance with the manufacturer’s 

recommendations. 

(c) The CDO must inspect, maintain, 

and repair all equipment in accordance 

with a documented maintenance system 

that designates the person or persons 

authorized to perform inspection and 

maintenance and that includes the 

following for each item of equipment— 

(1) A permanently marked (by the 

manufacturer or equipment owner) 

unique identification number; except 

that no number is required for 

consumable supplies; 

(2) A description and timeframes for 

periodic tests and maintenance, whether 

regularly scheduled or to be performed 

after repair or modification; 

(3) Cable and lifting component 

certificates; and 

(4) Manufacturer service life 

specifications, including the 

equipment’s date of entry into dive 

service and recommended date of 

removal from service. 

(d) The CDO must ensure that all 

equipment used for commercial diving 

operations is repaired or modified in 

accordance with manufacturer’s 

recommendations by technicians 

certified by the manufacturer to make 

repairs or modifications. 

(e) The CDO must ensure that any 

non-conforming equipment is 

physically destroyed, stored, displayed, 

or otherwise removed from service to 

prevent its use and marked or tagged to 

indicate why it was removed and 

whether the removal is temporary or 

permanent. 

197.272 Person in charge’s equipment 

duties. 

Each person in charge (PIC) of a 

facility or a vessel providing equipment 

or support systems identified in this 

subpart and used by the commercial 

diving operator must document 

compliance with the manufacturer’s 

equipment maintenance requirements in 

an equipment maintenance logbook. 

The PIC must keep the logbook for at 

least 5 years and make it available for 

inspection by the dive supervisor at the 

dive location. 

197.273 Dive supervisor’s equipment 

maintenance logbook duties. 

Each dive supervisor must keep the 

equipment maintenance logbook 

required by 46 CFR 197.272 and make 

it available for inspection at the dive 

location. 

197.274 Diver’s equipment duties. 

Each diver using personal dive 

equipment must maintain, inspect, and 

use the equipment in accordance with 

the manufacturer’s specifications and 

this subpart. Before using personal 

equipment, the diver must provide the 

person in charge and the dive 

supervisor with documentation showing 

compliance with this requirement. 

§ 197.275 Volume tanks. 

(a) Each commercial diving operator 

(CDO) must ensure that each volume 

tank used in a diving system for a 

commercial diving operation complies 

with section 6.11.1 of the ADCI 

Standards (incorporated by reference, 

see 46 CFR 197.202). 

(b) Each CDO must ensure that each 

volume tank— 

(1) Is equipped with intakes located 

away from areas containing internal 

combustion engine exhaust fumes or 

other hazardous contaminants; and 

(2) Has an efficient filtration system if 

the tank is in a compressor used to 

supply breathing air to a diver. 

§ 197.276 Compressed gas cylinders. 

Each commercial diving operator 

must ensure that each compressed gas 

cylinder— 

(a) Complies with section 6.11.2 of the 

ADCI Standards (incorporated by 

reference, see 46 CFR 197.202); 

(b) Complies with the applicable 

requirements of 49 CFR part 173, 


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subpart G; 46 CFR part 178, subpart C; 

and 46 CFR part 180, subpart C; and 

(c) Is tested after any repair, 

modification, or alteration to the 

pressure boundaries. 

§ 197.277 Pressure vessels for human 

occupancy. 

(a) Each commercial dive operator 

must ensure that each pressure vessel 

for human occupancy (PVHO) complies 

with section 6.12 of the ADCI Standards 

(incorporated by reference, see 46 CFR 

197.202); is designed, constructed, 

tested, and maintained (including any 

pressure relief device and associated 

systems) in accordance with ASME 

PVHO–1 (incorporated by reference, see 

46 CFR 197.202); or complies with the 

design and classification requirements 

of a classification society recognized in 

accordance with 46 CFR part 8; and 

complies with paragraphs (b) through 

(g) of this section. 

(b) Each PVHO must— 

(1) Have a check valve located on the 

outside of the PVHO within 1 foot of the 

pressure boundary on all piping 

exclusively carrying fluids into the 

PVHO; 

(2) Have a pressure gauge in the 

interior of each compartment that is— 

(i) Designed for human occupancy; 

and 

(ii) Capable of having the 

compartment pressure controlled from 

inside the PVHO; 

(3) Have a protective device on the 

inlet side of PVHO exhaust lines; and 

(4) Have a means of overriding and 

controlling from the exterior all interior 

breathing and pressure supply controls. 

(c) Each closed bell must meet the 

requirements of this section and have 

lifting equipment attached to the closed 

bell capable of returning the occupied 

closed bell when fully flooded to the 

dive location. 

(d) Each closed bell must have a life 

support capability for the intact closed 

bell and its occupants for: 

(1) Twelve hours after an accident 

severing the umbilical to the surface 

when the umbilical to the surface is the 

only installed means of retrieving the 

closed bell; or 

(2) A period of time, at least equal to 

1 hour plus twice the time required to 

retrieve the bell from its designed 

operating depth and attach an auxiliary 

life support system, after an accident 

severing the umbilical to the surface 

when the umbilical is one of the two 

independent installed means of 

retrieving the closed bell, each meeting 

the requirements of this paragraph (d). 

(e) Each closed bell must be capable 

of attachment to another PVHO that 

allows the transfer of personnel and 

diver’s equipment under pressure from 

the closed bell to a PVHO that— 

(1) Meets the requirements of this 

section; 

(2) Is capable of attachment to a 

decompression chamber meeting the 

requirements of this section; and 

(3) Allows the transfer of personnel 

and diver’s equipment under pressure 

from the PVHO to the decompression 

chamber. 

(f) Each open bell must meet the 

requirements of section 6.8.2 of the 

ADCI Standards or other equivalent 

standard accepted by the Office of 

Design and Engineering Standards, 

Commandant (CG–ENG). 

§ 197.278 Pressure piping. 

Each piping system that is not an 

integral part of the vessel or facility, but 

is carrying fluids under pressures 

exceeding 15 pounds per square inch 

gauge, must be designed, maintained, 

and repaired in accordance with ASME 

B31.1 (incorporated by reference, see 46 

CFR 197.202) or other equivalent 

standard accepted by the Office of 

Design and Engineering Standards, 

Commandant (CG–ENG), and must have 

the point of connection to the integral 

piping system of the vessel or facility 

clearly marked. 

§ 197.279 First aid and treatment 

equipment. 

(a) First aid and treatment equipment 

used at a commercial diving operation 

must comply with sections 5.4 and 5.20 

of the ADCI Standards (incorporated by 

reference, see 46 CFR 197.202) or other 

equivalent standard accepted by the 

Office of Operating and Environmental 

Standards, Commandant (CG–OES) and 

must comply with this subpart. 

(b) The location of each commercial 

diving operation must have— 

(1) A medical kit approved by a 

physician that includes any additional 

supplies necessary to treat minor trauma 

and illnesses resulting from hyperbaric 

exposure; 

(2) A copy of an American Red Cross 

Standard First Aid handbook or 

equivalent; and 

(3) The capability to remove an 

injured diver from the water. 

(c) Each commercial diving operation 

must have a two-way communications 

system to obtain emergency assistance, 

except when the vessel or facility shipto-shore, two-way communications 

system is readily available. 

(d) Each dive location supporting 

mixed-gas dives, dives deeper than 100 

feet of sea water, or dives outside the 

no-decompression limits must meet the 

requirements of paragraph (b) of this 

section and have— 

(1) A decompression chamber that 

complies with 46 CFR 197.277; 

(2) Decompression tables; 

(3) A supply of breathing gasses 

sufficient to treat for decompression 

sickness; 

(4) A medical kit as required by 

paragraph (b)(1) of this section that can 

be carried into the decompression 

chamber and that is suitable for use 

under hyperbaric conditions; and 

(5) The capability to assist an injured 

diver into the decompression chamber. 

§ 197.280 Diving ladders and stages. 

(a) Each diving ladder and stage must 

meet the requirements of section 6.8 of 

the ADCI Standards (incorporated by 

reference, see 46 CFR 197.202) or other 

equivalent standard accepted by the 

Office of Operating and Environmental 

Standards, Commandant (CG–OES) and 

must comply with this subpart. 

(b) Each diving ladder must be firmly 

in place and available at the dive 

location for a diver to enter or exit the 

water unless a diving stage or bell is 

provided. 

(c) Each diving stage must have an 

open-grating platform and must be 

available for a diver to enter or exit the 

water from the dive location and must 

be available for in-water decompression 

if the diver is— 

(1) Wearing a heavyweight diving 

outfit; or 

(2) Diving outside the nodecompression limits, except when a 

bell is provided. 

§ 197.281 Surface-supplied helmets and 

masks. 

(a) Each surface-supplied helmet or 

mask must meet the requirements of 

section 6.4 of the ADCI Standards 

(incorporated by reference, see 46 CFR 

197.202) or other equivalent standard 

accepted by the Office of Operating and 

Environmental Standards, Commandant 

(CG–OES) and must comply with this 

subpart. 

(b) Each surface-supplied air helmet 

or mask must— 

(1) Ventilate at least 4.5 atmospheric 

cubic feet per minute at any depth at 

which it is operated; or 

(2) Be able to maintain the diver’s 

inspired carbon dioxide partial pressure 

below 0.02 atmospheres absolute when 

the diver is producing carbon dioxide at 

the rate of 1.6 standard liters per 

minute; and 

(3) Have an exhaust valve. 

§ 197.282 Diver’s safety harness. 

Each safety harness used in surfacesupplied diving must meet the 

requirements of section 6.3.4 of the 

ADCI Standards (incorporated by 


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reference, see 46 CFR 197.202) or other 

equivalent standard accepted by the 

Office of Operating and Environmental 

Standards, Commandant (CG–OES), and 

it must have an attachment point for the 

umbilical life line that distributes the 

pulling force of the umbilical over the 

diver’s body and prevents strain on the 

mask or helmet. 

§ 197.283 Buoyancy-changing devices. 

(a) A dry suit or other buoyancychanging device not directly connected 

to the exhaust valve of the helmet or 

mask must have an independent 

exhaust valve. 

(b) When used for SCUBA diving, a 

buoyancy-changing device must have an 

inflation source separate from the 

breathing gas supply. 

§ 197.284 Inflatable flotation devices. 

An inflatable flotation device for 

SCUBA diving must— 

(a) Be capable of maintaining the 

diver at the surface in a face-up 

position; 

(b) Have a manually activated 

inflation device; 

(c) Have an oral inflation device; 

(d) Have an over-pressure relief 

device; and 

(e) Have a manually operated exhaust 

valve. 

§ 197.285 Oxygen safety. 

(a) Equipment used with oxygen or 

oxygen mixtures greater than 40 percent 

by volume must be designed for that 

use. 

(b) Oxygen systems with pressures 

greater than 125 pounds per square inch 

gauge must have slow-opening shut-off 

valves; except that pressure boundary 

shut-off valves may be ball valves. 

(c) The dive supervisor must ensure 

that equipment used with oxygen or 

oxygen mixtures greater than 40 percent 

by volume is cleaned of flammable 

materials, both before being placed into 

service, and after any repair, alteration, 

modification, or suspected 

contamination. 

§ 197.286 Miscellaneous equipment 

requirements. 

Each commercial diving operator 

must ensure that the commercial diving 

operation equipment listed in table 

197.286 of this section complies with 

the requirements shown in that table. 

TABLE 197.286—MISCELLANEOUS EQUIPMENT REQUIREMENTS

Equipment Requirement 

Breathing gas supply, diver-carried 

reserve.

Must be sufficient to allow diver to reach surface, or another source of breathing gas if primary supply fails, 

or be reached by a standby diver equipped with another source of breathing gas for the diver. Unused 

ports must be capped off to prevent unintended loss of watertight integrity. 

Breathing gas supply, primary ........ Must be sufficient to support the diver, the standby diver, and the open or closed bell when provided, for 

duration of planned dive; and sufficient to supply the decompression chamber, for duration of the dive, 

or the treatment of an injured diver plus 1 hour after dive’s completion. Unused ports must be capped off 

to prevent unintended loss of watertight integrity. 

Breathing gas supply, secondary ... Must be sufficient to support the diver while returning to the surface, the diver during decompression, the 

standby diver, the open or closed bell when returning the diver to surface, and the decompression 

chamber for duration of dive plus 1 hour after dive’s completion. Unused ports must be capped off to 

prevent unintended loss of watertight integrity. 

Oxygen ............................................ Oxygen used for breathing mixtures must meet the requirements of Federal Specification BB–O–925a, (incorporated by reference, see 46 CFR 197.202), and be type 1 (gaseous) grade A or B. 

Nitrogen ........................................... Nitrogen used for breathing mixtures must meet the requirements of Federal Specification BB–N–411c, (incorporated by reference, see 46 CFR 197.202), be type 1 (gaseous); class 1 (oil free); and grade A, B, 

or C. 

Helium ............................................. Helium used for breathing mixtures must be grades A, B, or C produced by the Federal government, or 

equivalent. 

Compressed air ............................... Compressed air used for breathing mixtures must meet the standards of the Compressed Gas Association 

Publications G–7 and G–7.1 (incorporated by reference, see 46 CFR 197.202). 

Diving system power ....................... Must minimize risk of injury, fire, explosion, or exposure of personnel to emissions or negative interaction 

with other equipment. Provide independent backup supply that, if the primary supply is disabled, will not 

interfere with the power requirements of the vessel or facility that supplies the backup, is ready for immediate use, and is sufficient to support safe termination of diving. 

Equipment to which a manufacturer’s service life specification applies.The date the equipment entered into service, underwent repairs, and the date the service life expires must 

be entered into the equipment logbook. 

Equipment used with oxygen mixture greater than 23.5 percent by 

volume.

Must be marked ‘‘FOR OXYGEN USE ONLY’’ and cleaned in accordance with Compressed Gas Association Publication G–4.1 (incorporated by reference, see 46 CFR 197.202). 

Gauges and timekeeping devices .. A diver depth gauge (if the dive is surface supplied) and timekeeping device must be at each dive location. 

All gauges and timepieces must be calibrated according to manufacturer’s specifications. Devices for 

monitoring diver exposure time under pressure must be easily readable. 

Oxygen system, pressure greater 

than 125 psi(g).

Slow-opening shut-off valves must be provided, except for pressure boundary shut-off valves, which may 

be ball valves. 

Pressure piping repairs ................... Must be in accordance with ASME B31.1 (incorporated by reference, see 46 CFR 197.202) or 46 CFR part 

56, as applicable. 

Pressure vessel repairs .................. Must be in accordance with ASME NBBPVI, ASME PVHO–1, (incorporated by reference, see 46 CFR 

197.202), 46 CFR part 54, or 49 CFR part 180 subpart C, as applicable. 

Dive Team Staffing 

§ 197.290 Dive team staffing requirements. 

(a) Each commercial diving operator 

and dive supervisor must ensure that 

each diving operation is conducted with 

enough personnel to keep all personnel 

safe, to offset anticipated risks, and to 

properly perform the work. Diving 

operations lasting less than 12 hours, 

unless otherwise specified, must meet 

the minimum dive team requirements 

set forth in table 197.290 of this section. 


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TABLE 197.290—MINIMUM DIVE TEAM STAFFING SIZE AND COMPOSITION

Operation Minimum dive 

team size Minimum dive team composition 

Saturation diving * ..................................... 14 ** 2 Dive supervisors, 2 Divers, 2 Standby divers (see note 1), 4 Dive tenders, Lifesupport technician supervisor, Life-support technician, Saturation system technician supervisor, Saturation system technician. 

SCUBA ...................................................... 4 Dive supervisor, Diver, Tender (see note 2), Standby diver (see note 1). 

Surface-supplied air diving ....................... 5 Dive supervisor, Diver, Tender (see note 2), Standby diver (see note 1), Standby 

diver tender (see note 3). 

Surface-supplied diving, mixed-gas .......... 5 Dive supervisor, Diver, Tender (see note 2), Standby diver (see note 1), Standby 

diver tender (see note 3). 

Notes: 

1. A standby diver must be fully dressed and either staged in the water as a safety diver, or capable of entering the water within 1 minute, at 

the dive supervisor’s direction, to support a diver in distress. 

2. The tender’s only duty is to support the working diver to which assigned. 

3. A standby diver tender may perform other duties directly supporting the dive in progress, except when the tender’s standby diver is deployed. 

* Staffing standards reflects operations exceeding 12-hour work cycles. 

** With the exception of the supervisors and technicians, one member of the team shall be a diver medical technician. 

(b) Dive supervisors must ensure that 

the minimum dive team requirements 

shown in table 197.290 are met based on 

one dive and any applicable 

decompression time required. When 

necessary, dive supervisors may 

increase manning levels and may 

require additional equipment for any 

diving in excess of one dive and any 

applicable decompression time 

required. 

(c) Commercial dive operators and 

dive supervisors must ensure that 

proper pre-job planning is conducted in 

accordance with 46 CFR 197.220(i) to 

ensure that the necessary levels of 

personnel and equipment are available 

for all commercial diving operations. 

(d) Mixed gas commercial diving 

operations must include a life support 

technician dedicated for the purpose of 

operating the mixed gas system. 

§§ 197.303–197.309 [Reserved] 

Dated: January 30, 2015. 

J.G. Lantz, 

Director of Commercial Regulations and 

Standards, United States Coast Guard. 

[FR Doc. 2015–02714 Filed 2–18–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9110–04–P 


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