1625-0057 Stat/Authority

Page 505

TITLE 46—SHIPPING

(Pub. L. 98–89, Aug. 26, 1983, 97 Stat. 513; Pub. L.
98–364, title IV, § 402(4), July 17, 1984, 98 Stat. 446;
Pub. L. 99–307, § 1(5)(A), May 19, 1986, 100 Stat.
444.)
Historical and Revision Notes
Revised section

Source section (U.S. Code)

3304 ..................................... 46:390–393
46:882

Section 3304 permits the carriage of not more than 12
individuals in addition to the crew on international voyages or not more than 16 individuals in addition to the
crew on other voyages without subjecting a documented
vessel carrying cargo to the inspection requirements of
a passenger vessel. This section permits the bulk of vessels subject to the International Convention for Safety of
Life at Sea to carry up to 12 passengers and to permit
other cargo vessels, primarily those engaged in the coastwise trade, to carry up to 16 passengers without being
categorized as passenger vessels. It also requires that
these individuals be notified of the presence of dangerous articles or other conditions or circumstances that
constitute a risk of safety. This is of prime importance
on tank vessels that carry flammable or hazardous cargoes.
Amendments
1986—Pub. L. 99–307, § 1(5)(A)(i), substituted “Transporting” for “Carrying” in section catchline.
Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 99–307, § 1(5)(A)(ii), substituted “transporting cargo that transports” for “carrying cargo that
carries” and inserted “if the vessel is otherwise subject
to inspection under this chapter”.
Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 99–307, § 1(5)(A)(iii), substituted “Except when subsection (e) of this section applies, before”
for “Before” and “transported” for “carried”.
Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 99–307, § 1(5)(A)(iv), substituted “A
privilege” for “The privilege”.
Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 99–307, § 1(5)(A)(v), added subsec.
(e).
1984—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 98–364 added subsec. (d).
Effective Date
Section effective Apr. 15, 1984, see section 2(g)(1) of
Pub. L. 98–89, set out as a note under section 3101 of this
title.

§ 3305. Scope and standards of inspection
(a)(1) The inspection process shall ensure that
a vessel subject to inspection—
(A) is of a structure suitable for the service in
which it is to be employed;
(B) is equipped with proper appliances for lifesaving, fire prevention, and firefighting;
(C) has suitable accommodations for the crew,
sailing school instructors, and sailing school students, and for passengers on the vessel if authorized to carry passengers;
(D) has an adequate supply of potable water
for drinking and washing by passengers and crew;
(E) is in a condition to be operated with safety to life and property; and
(F) complies with applicable marine safety laws
and regulations.
(2) In determining the adequacy of the supply
of potable water under paragraph (1)(D), the Secretary shall consider—
(A) the size and type of vessel;
(B) the number of passengers or crew on board;
(C) the duration and routing of voyages; and
(D) guidelines for potable water recommended
by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Public Health Service.

§ 3305

(b) If an inspection, or examination under section 3308 of this title, reveals that a life preserver, lifesaving device, or firehose is defective and
incapable of being repaired, the owner or master
shall destroy the life preserver, lifesaving device,
or firehose in the presence of the official conducting the inspection or examination.
(c) A nautical school vessel operated by a civilian nautical school or by an educational institution under section 558 of title 40 shall be inspected like a small passenger vessel or a passenger
vessel, depending on its tonnage.
(d)(1) The Commandant of the Coast Guard shall
ensure that Officers in Charge, Marine Inspections consistently interpret regulations and standards under this subtitle and chapter 700 to avoid
disruption and undue expense to industry.
(2)(A) Subject to subparagraph (B), in the event
of a disagreement regarding the condition of a
vessel or the interpretation of a regulation or standard referred to in subsection (a) between a local
Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection conducting
an inspection of the vessel and the Officer in Charge,
Marine Inspection that issued the most recent
certificate of inspection for the vessel, such Officers shall seek to resolve such disagreement.
(B) If a disagreement described in subparagraph
(A) involves vessel design or plan review, the Coast
Guard marine safety center shall be included in
all efforts to resolve such disagreement.
(C) If a disagreement described in subparagraph
(A) or (B) cannot be resolved, the local Officer in
Charge, Marine Inspection shall submit to the
Commandant of the Coast Guard, through the cognizant Coast Guard district commander, a request
for a final agency determination of the matter in
disagreement.
(3) The Commandant of the Coast Guard shall—
(A) provide to each person affected by a decision or action by an Officer in Charge, Marine
Inspection or by the Coast Guard marine safety
center all information necessary for such person to exercise any right to appeal such decision or action; and
(B) if such an appeal is filed, process such appeal under parts 1 through 4 of title 46, Code of
Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date of
enactment of the Coast Guard Authorization Act
of 2017.
(4) In this section, the term “Officer in Charge,
Marine Inspection” means any person from the
civilian or military branch of the Coast Guard
who—
(A) is designated as such by the Commandant; and
(B) under the superintendence and direction
of the cognizant Coast Guard district commander, is in charge of an inspection zone for the
performance of duties with respect to the inspections under, and enforcement and administration of, subtitle II, chapter 700, and regulations under such laws.
(Pub. L. 98–89, Aug. 26, 1983, 97 Stat. 513; Pub. L.
99–36, § 1(a)(1), May 15, 1985, 99 Stat. 67; Pub. L.
99–640, § 13(e), Nov. 10, 1986, 100 Stat. 3551; Pub. L.
107–217, § 3(m)(2), Aug. 21, 2002, 116 Stat. 1302; Pub.
L. 108–293, title IV, § 416, Aug. 9, 2004, 118 Stat.
1047; Pub. L. 109–241, title IX, § 901(f), July 11,
2006, 120 Stat. 564; Pub. L. 115–282, title V, § 501(a),
Dec. 4, 2018, 132 Stat. 4268.)

§ 3306

TITLE 46—SHIPPING
Historical and Revision Notes
Revised section

Source section (U.S. Code)

3305 ..................................... 46:369
46:390a
46:391
46:392
46:395
46:404–1
46:405
46:406
46:407
46:408
46:660a
46:881

Section 3305 consolidates, at one place, the basic scope
of coverage of the inspection process. It is to be noted
that the time difference in enactment of various statutes has resulted in some anomalies. Thus, for example,
R.S. 4417 (46 U.S.C. 391) which had originally set periods
of inspection and vested authority in “local inspectors”
was expanded over the years to provide the base for inspection of certain classes of vessels as well as setting
out the periods and scope. The distillation of inspection
objectives and standards in later laws and the transfer of
all functions of separately created bureaus and functionaries to the Coast Guard permit this consolidation. There
are those who have a desire to see the scope and standards of inspection be more specific in law similar to
those presently applicable to boilers and boiler plating
that predate 1871. The Committee believes this serves no
useful purpose since the specifics are either antiquated
or too limiting and have, in fact, been superceded by the
statutorily authorized adoption of various industrial specifications, standards, and codes by the Coast Guard. These
include the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), American National Standards Institute (ANSI), American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), American Welding Society (AWS), Underwriters Laboratories (UL), and
many others. In addition, Coast Guard regulations must
also implement and conform to the numerous international maritime safety treaties to which the United States
is signatory. The Committee expects that the regulatory
flexibility being provided will not reduce the present vessel inspection requirements that have been historically
developed.
Section 3305(a) establishes the statutory scope of the
Coast Guard’s vessel inspection authority and duty. The
inspection process shall ensure that a vessel is of suitable structure, equipment, and accommodations, is maintained in an operating condition consistent with safety
of life and property, and complies with applicable marine
safety laws and regulations.
Subsection (b) requires that defective life preservers
and firehose be destroyed in the presence of the inspecting official, normally a qualified Coast Guard marine inspector. The Committee believes that if this equipment
is defective for use on an inspected vessel, it should be
destroyed so that it cannot be used on an uninspected or
recreational vessel.
Subsection (c) provides flexibility in the inspection of
various sizes of nautical school vessels.
References in Text
The date of enactment of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2017, referred to in subsec. (d)(3)(B), probably
means the date of enactment of the Frank LoBiondo
Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2018, Pub. L. 115–282,
which enacted subsec. (d) of this section and chapter 700
of this title and was approved Dec. 4, 2018. No act with
the title “Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2017” has
been enacted.
Amendments
2018—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 115–282 added subsec. (d).
2006—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 109–241 realigned margins.
2004—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 108–293, § 416(b), designated
existing provisions as par. (1), redesignated former pars.
(1) to (6) as subpars. (A) to (F), respectively, of par. (1),
and added par. (2).

Page 506

Subsec. (a)(4) to (6). Pub. L. 108–293, § 416(a), added par.
(4) and redesignated former pars. (4) and (5) as (5) and
(6), respectively.
2002—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 107–217 substituted “section
558 of title 40” for “section 13 of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 1986”.
1986—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 99–640 inserted “or by an educational institution under section 13 of the Coast Guard
Authorization Act of 1986”.
1985—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 99–36 substituted “lifesaving”
and “life preserver, lifesaving device, or firehose” for “lifesaving” and “life preserver or firehose”, respectively.
Effective Date
Section effective Apr. 15, 1984, see section 2(g)(1) of
Pub. L. 98–89, set out as a note under section 3101 of this
title.

§ 3306. Regulations
(a) To carry out this part and to secure the
safety of individuals and property on board vessels subject to inspection, the Secretary shall prescribe necessary regulations to ensure the proper
execution of, and to carry out, this part in the
most effective manner for—
(1) the design, construction, alteration, repair,
and operation of those vessels, including superstructures, hulls, fittings, equipment, appliances,
propulsion machinery, auxiliary machinery, boilers, unfired pressure vessels, piping, electric installations, and accommodations for passengers
and crew, sailing school instructors, and sailing
school students;
(2) lifesaving equipment and its use;
(3) firefighting equipment, its use, and precautionary measures to guard against fire;
(4) inspections and tests related to paragraphs
(1), (2), and (3) of this subsection; and
(5) the use of vessel stores and other supplies
of a dangerous nature.
(b)(1) Equipment and material subject to regulation under this section may not be used on any
vessel without prior approval of the Secretary.
(2) Except with respect to use on a public vessel, the Secretary may treat an approval of equipment or materials by a foreign government as approval by the Secretary for purposes of paragraph
(1) if the Secretary determines that—
(A) the design standards and testing procedures used by that government meet the requirements of the International Convention for the
Safety of Life at Sea, 1974;
(B) the approval of the equipment or material
by the foreign government will secure the safety of individuals and property on board vessels
subject to inspection; and
(C) for lifesaving equipment, the foreign government—
(i) has given equivalent treatment to approvals of lifesaving equipment by the Secretary;
and
(ii) otherwise ensures that lifesaving equipment approved by the Secretary may be used
on vessels that are documented and subject to
inspection under the laws of that country.
(c) In prescribing regulations for sailing school
vessels, the Secretary shall consult with representatives of the private sector having experience
in the operation of vessels likely to be certificated as sailing school vessels. The regulations shall—
(1) reflect the specialized nature of sailing
school vessel operations, and the character, de-