Document ID: USCG-2016-0142-0001
Agency: uscg
Document Type: Notice
Title: Towing Safety Advisory Committee
Posted Date: 2016-03-25T04:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 58 (Friday, March 25, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16191-16192]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-06822]

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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

[Docket No. USCG-2016-0142]

Towing Safety Advisory Committee

AGENCY: Coast Guard, Department of Homeland Security.

ACTION: Notice of Federal Advisory Committee meeting.

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SUMMARY: The Towing Safety Advisory Committee and its subcommittees 
will meet to discuss matters relating to shallow-draft inland and 
coastal waterway navigation and towing safety. The meetings will be 
open to the public.

DATES: Subcommittees are scheduled to meet on April 13, 2016, from 8 
a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and the full Committee is scheduled to meet on April 
14, 2016, from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Please note that these meetings may 
adjourn early if the Committee has completed its business.

ADDRESSES: The meetings will be held at the OMNI Riverfront Hotel, 701 
Convention Center Boulevard, New Orleans, LA 70130. The telephone 
number for the hotel is 504-524-8200 and the Web site is: http://www.omnihotels.com/hotels/new-orleans-riverfront.
    For information on facilities or services for individuals with 
disabilities or to request special assistance at the meeting, contact 
the Alternate Designated Federal Officer as soon as possible.
    To facilitate public participation, we are inviting public comment 
on the issues to be considered by the Committee as listed in the 
``Agenda'' section below. Written comments for distribution to 
Committee members must be submitted no later than April 2, 2016, if you 
want the Committee members to be able to review your comments before 
the meeting, and must be identified by Docket No. USCG-2016-0142. 
Written comments may be submitted using the Federal eRulemaking Portal 
at http://www.regulations.gov. If your material cannot be submitted 
using http://www.regulations.gov, contact the Alternate Designated 
Federal Officer for alternate instructions.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the words 
``Department of Homeland Security'' and the docket number for this 
action. All comments will be posted without alteration at http://www.regulations.gov including any personal information provided. You 
may review a Privacy Act notice regarding the Federal Docket Management 
System in the March 24, 2005, issue of the Federal Register (70 FR 
15086).
    Docket: For access to the docket to read documents or comments 
related to this notice, go to http://www.regulations.gov, type USCG-
2016-0142 in the Search box, press Enter, and then click on the item 
you wish to view.

[[Page 16192]]

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. William J. Abernathy, Alternate 
Designated Federal Officer of the Towing Safety Advisory Committee; 
Commandant (CG-OES-2), U.S. Coast Guard, 2703 Martin Luther King Jr. 
Avenue SE., Stop 7509, Washington, DC 20593-7509; telephone 202-372-
1363, fax 202-372-8382; or email William.J.Abernathy@uscg.mil.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice of this meeting is given under the 
Federal Advisory Committee Act, Title 5 U.S.C. Appendix. This Committee 
is established in accordance with, and operates under the provisions of 
the Federal Advisory Committee Act. As stated in 33 U.S.C. 1231a, the 
Towing Safety Advisory Committee provides advice and recommendations to 
the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security on matters 
relating to shallow-draft inland and coastal waterway navigation and 
towing safety.

Agenda

Day 1

    The subcommittees will meet on April 13, 2016, from 8 a.m. to 5:30 
p.m., to work on their specific task assignments:
    (1) Recommendations regarding Automation Equipment, Testing, 
Assessment, and Trial Periods on Towing Vessels.
    (2) Recommendations for the Maintenance, Repair, and Utilization of 
Towing Equipment, Lines, and Couplings.
    (3) Recommendations concerning the MODU KULLUK Report of 
Investigation.
    (4) Recommendations regarding Articulated Tug/Barge Manning and 
Operations.
    (5) Recommendations for Electronic Charting Systems.

Day 2

    On April 14, 2016, from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., the Towing Safety 
Advisory Committee will meet and receive reports concerning the 
following:
    (1) Recommendations regarding Automation Equipment, Testing, 
Assessment, and Trial Periods on Towing Vessels, progress report,
    (2) Recommendations for the Maintenance, Repair and Utilization of 
Towing Equipment, Lines and Couplings, final report,
    (3) Recommendations concerning the MODU KULLUK Report of 
Investigation, final report,
    (4) Recommendations regarding Articulated Tug/Barge Manning and 
Operations, progress report, and,
    (5) Recommendations for Electronic Charting Systems, progress 
report.
    In addition, the Committee will hear a presentation from the U.S. 
Coast Guard, District 8.
    There will be a comment period for Towing Safety Advisory Committee 
members and a comment period for the public after each report 
presentation, but before each is voted on by the Committee. The 
Committee will review the information presented on each issue, 
deliberate on any recommendations presented in the Subcommittees' 
reports, and formulate recommendations for the Secretary's 
consideration.
    A copy of all meeting documentation will be available at: https://homeport.uscg.mil/tsac no later than April 2, 2016. Alternatively, you 
may contact Mr. William Abernathy as noted in the FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT section above.
    An opportunity for oral comments by the public will be provided 
during the meeting on April 14, 2016. Speakers are requested to limit 
their comments to 3 minutes. Please note the public oral comment period 
may end before 5:30 p.m. if the Committee has finished its business 
earlier than scheduled. Please contact Mr. William J. Abernathy, listed 
above in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section to register as a 
speaker.

Minutes

    Minutes from the meeting will be available for public review and 
copying within 90 days following the close of the meeting and can be 
accessed from the Coast Guard Homeport Web site http://homeport.uscg.mil/tsac.

Notice of Future 2016 Towing Safety Advisory Committee Meetings

    To receive automatic email notices of any future Towing Safety 
Advisory Committee meetings in 2016, go to the online docket, USCG-
2016-0142 (http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=USCG-2016-0142), 
and select the sign-up-for-email-alerts option. We plan to use the same 
docket number for all Towing Safety Advisory Committee meeting notices 
in 2016, so if another 2016 meeting notice is published you will 
receive an email alert from www.regulations.gov when the notice appears 
in this docket.

    Dated: March 22, 2016.
F.J. Sturm,
Acting Director of Commercial Regulations and Standards, United States 
Coast Guard.
[FR Doc. 2016-06822 Filed 3-24-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 9110-04-P