[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 11 (Friday, January 16, 2009)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 2865-2866]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-847]



[[Page 2865]]

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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

33 CFR Part 125

[USCG-2006-24189]


Maritime Identification Credentials

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Notice of acceptable identification credentials; phased 
cancellation.

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SUMMARY: This document informs the public that, after their Captain of 
the Port (COTP) has implemented access control procedures using the 
Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC), the COTP no 
longer needs to enforce the previously published notice requiring name-
based vetting of certain port workers.

DATES: This announcement is effective January 16, 2009.

ADDRESSES: Documents indicated in this preamble as being available in 
the docket are part of docket USCG-2006-24189 and are available for 
inspection or copying at the Docket Management Facility, U.S. 
Department of Transportation, West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12-
140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001 between 9 
a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. They 
may also be viewed online at www.regulations.gov at any time.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions on this 
document, call James Bull, Coast Guard, telephone 202-372-1144. If you 
have questions on viewing material in the docket, call Renee V. Wright, 
Program Manager, Docket Operations, telephone 202-366-9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background and Purpose

    Under the authority of 50 U.S.C. 191 and Coast Guard regulations 
(33 CFR part 125), the Coast Guard has the authority to require 
identification credentials for access to waterfront facilities and to 
port and harbor areas, including vessels and harbor craft in those 
areas. The Commandant of the Coast Guard, pursuant to 33 CFR 125.15(a), 
is authorized to direct, from time to time, the Captains of the Port 
``to prevent access of persons who do not possess one or more of the 
identification credentials listed in Sec.  125.09 to those waterfront 
facilities, and port and harbor areas, including vessels and harbor 
craft therein, where the following shipping activities are conducted: * 
* * [t]hose essential to the interests of national security and 
defense, to prevent loss, damage or injury, or to insure the observance 
of rights and obligations of the United States.''
    On April 28, 2006, the Coast Guard published a ``Notice of 
acceptable identification credentials'' in the Federal Register at 71 
FR 25066 (``April 28, 2006 Notice''), which directed the COTPs to deny 
access to waterfront facilities regulated under 33 CFR part 105 to 
persons that did not have appropriate identification credentials, as 
defined by 33 CFR 125.09. This action was deemed necessary in the 
interests of national security and to protect these facilities from 
loss, damage, or injury. The appropriate credentials included a 
Merchant Mariner Document, an Armed Forces Identification Card, Federal 
law enforcement credentials, identification credentials issued to 
public safety officers, and other credentials defined in the April 28, 
2006 Notice in accordance with 33 CFR 125.09(g).
    The April 28, 2006 Notice set out a procedure by which the 
Transportation Security Administration (TSA) analyzed relevant 
information, submitted by the facility owner or operator either 
directly to TSA or via the Coast Guard, before determining whether or 
not an employee or longshoreman posed or was suspected of posing a 
security threat warranting denial of access to the port facility. This 
information included the employee's or longshoreman's legal name, date 
of birth, social security number (optional), and alien identification 
number (if applicable). TSA notified the facility and the COTP of 
persons that posed or were suspected of posing a security threat, and 
those persons were denied access to facilities regulated under 33 CFR 
part 105, as not having approved identification credentials under 33 
CFR 125.09(f).

Facility Access Under TWIC

    The April 28, 2006 Notice stated that ``when regulations 
implementing the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) 
are issued, the Coast Guard will reevaluate this action.'' (71 FR 
25066). The Final Rule implementing TWIC was published in the Federal 
Register on January 25, 2007 (72 FR 3492). TWIC enrollment began in 
October of 2007 (72 FR 57342); there are now 149 enrollment centers 
open. On May 7, 2008, the Coast Guard and TSA issued a final rule 
extending the TWIC compliance date. (73 FR 25562). All persons required 
to obtain a TWIC, and all vessels and facilities required to use a TWIC 
as an access control measure, must comply by April 15, 2009, unless the 
Coast Guard issues an earlier compliance date.
    On May 7, 2008, the Coast Guard began announcing earlier rolling 
compliance dates for facilities, as provided in 33 CFR 105.115(e). (73 
FR 25757). Those compliance dates, in order of occurrence and by COTP 
Zone, are listed in Table 1, below.

Cancellation of Procedure Established by April 28, 2006 Notice

    The procedure established in the April 28, 2006 Notice was intended 
to be an interim measure that would be reevaluated once the TWIC 
program was operational. As part of this procedure, TSA conducted a 
name-based security threat assessment on more than 800,000 workers. 
This number far exceeds the population estimates we had when the April 
28, 2006 Notice was published, and has enhanced security in the 
nation's maritime sector. However, the security threat assessment TSA 
is now able to conduct through the TWIC program is more robust. Also, 
the TWIC enrollment process, which includes comprehensive 
identification verification standards and more detailed information 
provided by the worker, produces more complete information on which to 
base a security threat assessment. Thus, the results of the TWIC threat 
assessments are more accurate than the name-based check run under the 
April 28, 2006 Notice.
    As a result of the above, the Coast Guard has determined that, once 
TWIC has been implemented in a COTP Zone (according to the date 
announced in the Federal Register and reflected in Table 1), the 
personal identification requirements implemented by the April 28, 2006 
Notice are no longer necessary.

  Table 1--Dates of TWIC Compliance and Cancellation of TSA Name-Based
                                 Vetting
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                                          Then your TWIC Compliance date
                                         (and the date when you may stop
     If you are in COTP zone . . .         using the procedure from the
                                         April 28, 2006 Notice) is . . .
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Boston, Northern New England,            October 15, 2008 (Notice
 Southeastern New England.                published at 73 FR 25757).
Cape Fear River, Corpus Christi, North   November 28, 2008 (Notice
 Carolina.                                published at 73 FR 40739).

[[Page 2866]]

 
Buffalo, Detroit, Duluth, Lake           December 1, 2008 (The original
 Michigan, Sault St. Marie.               Notice, published at 73 FR
                                          39323, set a compliance date
                                          of October 31, 2008. A new
                                          Notice, published at 73 FR
                                          64208, delayed compliance
                                          until December 1, 2008).
Charleston, Long Island Sound,           December 1, 2008 (Notice
 Jacksonville, Savannah.                  published at 73 FR 44653).
Baltimore, Delaware Bay, Mobile, Lower   December 30, 2008 (Notice
 Mississippi River, Ohio Valley,          published at 73 FR 50721).
 Pittsburgh, San Diego.
Hampton Roads, Morgan City, New          January 13, 2009 (Notice
 Orleans, Upper Mississippi River,        published at 73 FR 52924).
 Miami, Key West, St. Petersburg.
Honolulu, Prince William Sound,          February 12, 2009 (Notice
 Southeast Alaska, Western Alaska.        published at 73 FR 56730).
Portland, Puget Sound, San Francisco     February 28, 2009 (Notice
 Bay.                                     published at 73 FR 60951).
New York...............................  March 23, 2009 (Notice
                                          published at 73 FR 60951).
Guam, Houston-Galveston , Los Angeles-   April 14, 2009 (Notice
 Long Beach, San Juan.                    published at 73 FR 63377).
Port Arthur............................  April 14, 2009 (The original
                                          Notice, published at 73 FR
                                          40739, set a compliance date
                                          of October 31, 2008. A new
                                          Notice, published at 73 FR
                                          64208, delayed compliance
                                          until April 14, 2009).
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    As of the above-listed effective date of TWIC compliance in each 
COTP zone, the Coast Guard is rescinding its previous direction to 
COTPs to prevent access to all facilities regulated under 33 CFR part 
125 to persons who do not have an identification credential listed in 
33 CFR 125.09, as amended by the April 28, 2006 Notice. Once they have 
implemented access control procedures utilizing TWIC, owners and 
operators of these facilities, and unions, may cease the transmission 
of information on employees and longshoremen (respectively) to TSA. 
Unless further notice appears in the Federal Register, by April 14, 
2009, all transmissions of information under the April 28, 2006 Notice 
should cease.

    Dated: January 12, 2009.
James A. Watson,
Rear Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard, Director of Prevention Policy.
 [FR Doc. E9-847 Filed 1-15-09; 8:45 am]
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