7552 Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 29 / Friday, February 12, 2016 / Notices 

Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes 

of Health, DHHS, 6001 Executive Boulevard, 

Room 4234, MSC 9550, Bethesda, MD 20892, 

301–443–9511, jrao@nida.nih.gov. 

(Catalogue of Federal Domestic Assistance 

Program Nos.: 93.279, Drug Abuse and 

Addiction Research Programs, National 

Institutes of Health, HHS) 

Dated: February 8, 2016. 

Natasha M. Copeland, 

Program Analyst, Office of Federal Advisory 

Committee Policy. 

[FR Doc. 2016–02849 Filed 2–11–16; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4140–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

National Institutes of Health 

National Institute of General Medical 

Sciences; Notice of Closed Meeting 

Pursuant to section 10(d) of the 

Federal Advisory Committee Act, as 

amended (5 U.S.C. App.), notice is 

hereby given of the following meeting. 

The meeting will be closed to the 

public in accordance with the 

provisions set forth in sections 

552b(c)(4) and 552b(c)(6), Title 5 U.S.C., 

as amended. The grant applications and 

the discussions could disclose 

confidential trade secrets or commercial 

property such as patentable material, 

and personal information concerning 

individuals associated with the grant 

applications, the disclosure of which 

would constitute a clearly unwarranted 

invasion of personal privacy. 

Name of Committee: NIGMS Initial Review 

Group; Training and Workforce Development 

Subcommittee—C. 

Date: March 7, 2016. 

Time: 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. 

Agenda: To review and evaluate grant 

applications. 

Place: Ritz-Carlton Hotel, 1700 Tysons 

Boulevard, McLean, VA 22102. 

Contact Person: Mona R. Trempe, Ph.D., 

Scientific Review Officer, Office of Scientific 

Review, National Institute of General Medical 

Sciences, National Institutes of Health, 45 

Center Drive, Room 3AN12, Bethesda, MD 

20892, 301–594–3998, trempemo@

mail.nih.gov. 

(Catalogue of Federal Domestic Assistance 

Program Nos. 93.375, Minority Biomedical 

Research Support; 93.821, Cell Biology and 

Biophysics Research; 93.859, Pharmacology, 

Physiology, and Biological Chemistry 

Research; 93.862, Genetics and 

Developmental Biology Research; 93.88, 

Minority Access to Research Careers; 93.96, 

Special Minority Initiatives; 93.859, 

Biomedical Research and Research Training, 

National Institutes of Health, HHS) 

Dated: February 8, 2016. 

Melanie J. Gray, 

Program Analyst, Office of Federal Advisory 

Committee Policy. 

[FR Doc. 2016–02851 Filed 2–11–16; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4140–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

Coast Guard 

[Docket No. USCG–2016–0017] 

Policy Letter: Guidance for Training of 

Deck Officers on Vessels Subject to 

the International Code for Ships 

Operating in the Polar Waters 

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS. 

ACTION: Notice of availability. 

SUMMARY: The Coast Guard announces 

the availability, in the docket, of a 

policy letter which provides voluntary 

guidance for the training of deck officers 

on vessels operating in polar waters. It 

recommends training measures that will 

achieve a higher level of safety for 

mariners working in this specialized 

polar environment. It is applicable to 

SOLAS vessels operating outside the 

boundary line and subject to the 

International Code for Ships Operating 

in Polar Waters (Polar Code). The draft 

policy letter and voluntary guidance 

would not apply to vessels on voyages 

that do not operate in areas subject to 

the Polar Code. 

DATES: This policy letter is effective on 

February 12, 2016. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If 

you have questions about this 

document, contact Cathleen Mauro, 

Marine Personnel Qualifications 

Division (CG–OES–1), U.S. Coast Guard; 

telephone 202–372–1449, or 

Cathleen.B.Mauro@uscg.mil. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Viewing Materials in the Docket 

The policy letter is available in the 

docket and can be viewed by going to 

www.regulations.gov, inserting USCG– 

2016–0017 in the ‘‘Keyword’’ box, and 

then clicking ‘‘Search.’’ 

Background and Purpose 

Current shipping trends show an 

increase in the number of vessels 

regularly transiting remote polar areas. 

Vessels in polar waters experience 

unpredictable and poor weather 

conditions, degraded navigation tools, 

threats to operating equipment and 

increased stability concerns. In response 

to the challenges faced by these vessels 

and the concern for their safe operation, 

the International Maritime Organization 

(IMO) has adopted a mandatory code, 

the International Code for Ships 

Operating in Polar Waters, commonly 

referred to as the Polar Code. The Polar 

Code addresses safety and 

environmental requirements for vessels, 

as well as the level of training required 

for deck officers, and is expected to 

come into force on January 1, 2017. 

In order to obtain input from U.S. 

stakeholders and to facilitate the 

development of the U.S. position at the 

IMO on the training requirements 

needed to support the Polar Code, the 

Merchant Marine Personnel Advisory 

Committee (MERPAC) chartered a 

working group in 2013 to address 

mariner training in support of the polar 

code. The working group developed a 

proposal that included the training 

competencies for U.S. mariners serving 

on ships operating in polar waters. The 

working group held multiple meetings 

and provided recommendations on 

minimum standards of competence, sea 

service, and recency requirements for 

polar training at the basic and advanced 

levels. The group also developed 

recommendations on how existing 

mariners with experience operating in 

polar waters would be grandfathered 

under the new requirements. MERPAC 

adopted the working group’s 

recommendations, which provided the 

basis of the U.S. position regarding the 

relevant amendments to the 

International Convention on Standards 

of Training, Certification and 

Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW 

Convention), 1978, as amended, and the 

Seafarers’ Training, Certification and 

Watchkeeping Code (STCW Code). The 

STCW Convention and Code provide 

the international standards for seafarers. 

Through the work of the IMO’s Subcommittee on Human Element, Training 

and Watchkeeping (HTW), amendments 

to the STCW Convention and Code were 

developed to define the training 

requirements needed to support the 

implementation of the Polar Code. 

These amendments were approved by 

the Maritime Safety Committee on its 

Ninety Fifth Session (MSC 95), and are 

expected to be adopted by the IMO in 

July of 2016. The amendments are 

expected to enter into force on January 

1, 2018. 

Cognizant that there is a gap between 

the time the Polar Code enters into force 

on January 1, 2017 and the adoption of 

the amendments to the STCW 

Convention by IMO in July of 2016, the 

Coast Guard has developed a policy 

letter that recommends training 

guidelines for deck officers on vessels 

operating in polar waters. The Coast 

Guard is providing this guidance to 


asabaliauskas on DSK9F6TC42PROD with NOTICES2
Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 29 / Friday, February 12, 2016 / Notices 7553 

ensure there are sufficiently trained 

mariners by the time the Polar Code 

enters into force. 

Discussion 

Recognizing that the operation of 

ships sailing in polar waters calls for 

specific education, training, experience 

and related qualifications for officers, 

Resolution 11 of the 2010 amendments 

to the STCW Convention included nonmandatory guidance on training for 

deck and engineer officers serving on 

ships operating in polar waters. The 

guidance is contained in Section 

B–V/g of the STCW Code. The training 

requirements of the Polar Code, 

however, go beyond what is addressed 

in Section B–V/g of the STCW Code, by 

utilizing a risk-assessment to addresses 

the applicability of different levels of 

training required for deck officers 

engaged on ships operating in polar 

waters. Chapter 12 of The Polar Code 

identifies the level of training required 

for deck officers on ships subject to the 

Polar Code taking into account the type 

of vessel and the ice conditions in the 

operating area. The levels of training are 

either Basic or Advanced Training for 

Ships Operating in Polar Waters. The 

interim guidance in this policy is based 

upon the amendments to the STCW 

Convention and Code supporting the 

mandatory training requirements in 

Chapter 12 of the Polar Code. 

The requirements to meet the 

standards of competence for Basic or 

Advanced Training for Ships Operating 

in Polar Waters are defined in the STCW 

amendments supporting the Polar Code. 

A mariner may satisfy the standard of 

competence for Basic or Advanced 

Training in Polar Code Operations by 

meeting the respective sea service and 

training requirements prescribed in 

Enclosure (1) of the Policy Letter. 

By meeting the basic or advanced 

training standard required by the Polar 

Code, mariners are also meeting the 

familiarization requirements of 46 CFR 

15.405, which states that each 

credentialed mariner must be familiar 

with the relevant characteristics of the 

vessel appropriate to his or her duties 

and responsibilities prior to assuming 

those duties and responsibilities. On 

board a seagoing vessel, this 

responsibility rests with both the 

mariner and the employer as set forth in 

46 CFR 15.1105, which requires 

mariners subject to STCW to complete 

familiarization training before 

performing any duty or being assigned 

any responsibility unless they are 

familiar with those duties and 

responsibilities and with all of the 

vessel’s arrangements, installations, 

equipment, procedures, and 

characteristics relevant to his or her 

routine and emergency duties or 

responsibilities. 

If training regulations are published, 

training completed to meet the 

requirements described in the policy 

letter may be evaluated on a case by 

case basis, and considered to meet part 

of the transitional provisions of the 

training requirements for Basic or 

Advanced Polar Waters Operations. 

Voluntary Policy 

The guidance provided in this policy 

letter is voluntary, except where 

existing regulatory requirements are 

discussed. Although it may assist the 

industry, public, Coast Guard, and other 

Federal and State regulators in applying 

existing statutory and regulatory 

requirements, the policy letter and 

guidance it contains are not a substitute 

for applicable legal requirements nor are 

they regulations themselves. We note 

the ongoing work of the IMO in this 

area, in particular regarding training of 

personnel engaged in polar waters. 

Developments within this body will be 

taken into account during possible 

future revisions of the draft policy letter. 

During the course of local operations, 

each Coast Guard Captain of the Port 

(COTP) has discretionary authority on 

how best to address specific safety and 

security concerns within his or her area 

of responsibility consistent with 33 CFR 

1.01–30. Nothing in the policy letter or 

the guidance it contains is meant to 

override or limit the discretion of the 

COTP when addressing the unique 

safety concerns of vessels operating in 

polar waters. 

This notice is issued under authority 

of 5 U.S.C. 552(a). 

Dated: February 8, 2016. 

J.G. Lantz, 

Director of Commercial Regulations and 

Standards, U.S. Coast Guard. 

[FR Doc. 2016–02890 Filed 2–11–16; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9110–04–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

Accreditation and Approval of AmSpec 

Services, Llc, as a Commercial Gauger 

and Laboratory 

AGENCY: U.S. Customs and Border 

Protection, Department of Homeland 

Security. 

ACTION: Notice of accreditation and 

approval of AmSpec Services, LLC, as a 

commercial gauger and laboratory. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given, 

pursuant to CBP regulations, that 

AmSpec Services, LLC, has been 

approved to gauge petroleum and 

certain petroleum products and 

accredited to test petroleum and certain 

petroleum products for customs 

purposes for the next three years as of 

August 12, 2015. 

DATES: Effective Dates: The 

accreditation and approval of AmSpec 

Services, LLC, as commercial gauger 

and laboratory became effective on 

August 12, 2015. The next triennial 

inspection date will be scheduled for 

August 2018. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Approved Gauger and Accredited 

Laboratories Manager, Laboratories and 

Scientific Services Directorate, U.S. 

Customs and Border Protection, 1300 

Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Suite 

1500N, Washington, DC 20229, tel. 202– 

344–1060. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is 

hereby given pursuant to 19 CFR 151.12 

and 19 CFR 151.13, that AmSpec 

Services, LLC, 100–B Redoubt Rd., 

Yorktown, VA 23692, has been 

approved to gauge petroleum and 

certain petroleum products and 

accredited to test petroleum and certain 

petroleum products for customs 

purposes, in accordance with the 

provisions of 19 CFR 151.12 and 19 CFR 

151.13. AmSpec Services, LLC is 

approved for the following gauging 

procedures for petroleum and certain 

petroleum products from the American 

Petroleum Institute (API): 

API 

Chapters Title 

3 .............. Tank Gauging. 

7 .............. Temperature Determination. 

8 .............. Sampling. 

9 .............. Density Determinations. 

12 ............ Calculations. 

17 ............ Maritime Measurement. 

AmSpec Services, LLC is accredited 

for the following laboratory analysis 

procedures and methods for petroleum 

and certain petroleum products set forth 

by the U.S. Customs and Border 

Protection Laboratory Methods (CBPL) 

and American Society for Testing and 

Materials (ASTM): Anyone wishing to 

employ this entity to conduct laboratory 

analyses and gauger services should 

request and receive written assurances 

from the entity that it is accredited or 

approved by the U.S. Customs and 

Border Protection to conduct the 

specific test or gauger service requested. 

Alternatively, inquiries regarding the 

specific test or gauger service this entity 

is accredited or approved to perform 


asabaliauskas on DSK9F6TC42PROD with NOTICES2