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Coast Guard issues interim rule on vessel security
      The U.S. Coast Guard has published an interim rule applying new port and maritime security standards that include additional responsibilities for maritime officers working aboard U.S.-flagged commercial vessels.
      The interim rule seeks to administer the requirements of the International Maritime Organization's International Ship and Port Facility Security Code (ISPS) and those of the U.S. Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002, which was signed into law last November. The interim rule, published in the Federal Register July 1, 2003, requires that vessels and port facilities operate in compliance with most provisions by July 1, 2004. Provisions dealing with automatic identification systems (AIS) for vessels have earlier compliance dates.
      The Coast Guard interim rule mandates comprehensive security and incident response planning for ports, vessels and other maritime infrastructure. The interim requirements cover a broad range of commercial vessels of 100 gross registered tons and greater and do stipulate that a vessel security officer be designated aboard certain ships. The vessel security officer was a requirement of the IMO's ISPS amendment to the Safety of Life at Sea regulations, but not included in the U.S. Maritime Transportation Security Act.
      Final rules on vessel security requirements are expected by the end of 2003.
      To ensure that American Maritime Officers members are able to obtain the necessary training to serve as designated vessel security officers by July 1, 2004, the Raymond T. McKay Simulation, Training, Assessment & Research Center currently offers a 20-hour vessel security officer course.
      For more information about the vessel security officer course, contact RTM STAR Center Instructor David Greenhouse at (954) 920-3222 ext. 7243, or by e-mail.

Vessel security officers
      Under the interim rule, U.S.-flagged ships will be required to carry a designated vessel security officer, who will probably be one of the ship's watchstanding deck officers. The vessel security officer will be responsible for implementing the vessel's security plan, the creation of which is also a requirement of the interim rule.
      Additionally, the designated security officer will be responsible for:
  • Ensuring that adequate training has been provided to the ship's officers and crew members
  • Ensuring that the vessel is operating in accordance with the security plan
  • Periodically updating and auditing the vessel security plan
  • Maintaining a general knowledge of relevant international laws, domestic regulations and current security threats and patterns, among other things
      The vessel security officer may assign security duties to other vessel personnel but will remain responsible for ship security tasks. The required training "for the vessel security officer and vessel personnel" will be specified in the vessel's security plan but "will not be required by the Coast Guard," according to the Coast Guard's interim rule.
      "While formal training may be necessary, we will not mandate specifics. Vessel owners or operators must certify that security personnel are, in fact, properly trained to perform their duties," according to the Coast Guard.
      The designated security officer aboard a vessel must be familiar with the ship's security plan and incident response procedures for different maritime security (MARSEC) alert levels. This officer will serve as the liaison between the ship and the authorities, and between the ship and the operating company's security officer, said Greenhouse, who teaches the vessel security officer course.
      The class prepares AMO members to undertake the responsibilities of a vessel security officer, including creating vessel security plans and conducting vessel security assessments, developing strategies to mitigate risk and identify points of vulnerability and implementing response plans for different MARSEC threat levels, Greenhouse said.
      While the Department of Homeland Security employs five threat levels, there are three MARSEC levels:
  1. Minimum appropriate security measures required
  2. Heightened risk of a transportation security incident
  3. Probable or imminent transportation security incident for a limited time
      "We teach officers how to meet the requirements with the manpower that we have available on the ships," Greenhouse said. "It is possible that an appropriate response to MARSEC levels two and three will require additional shoreside support."
      Typically, a port will notify inbound and outbound vessels of any change in MARSEC threat level to provide each ship time to respond. The master will also maintain the authority to elevate a ship's MARSEC threat level beyond that of a port or other local maritime facility and implement the appropriate response, Greenhouse said.

Vessel AIS required
      The Coast Guard interim rule requires that certain vessels now carry AIS and will require more to install the system in the near future. AIS, a navigation and communications tool, provides course and speed information to other nearby vessels and facilities possessing the necessary equipment. Under the interim U.S. Coast Guard rule, passenger ships carrying more than 12 passengers must already be equipped with AIS. U.S.-flagged tankers must have AIS installed as of their first safety equipment survey after July 1, 2003.
      After July 1, 2004, ships other than passenger ships and tankers of 50,000 gross tons or greater must have the systems installed. Ships other than passenger ships and tankers of 300 gross tons or greater, but less than 50,000 gross tons, must have AIS onboard as of their first safety equipment survey after July 1, 2004, but no later than Dec. 31, 2004.
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