Coast Guard 2024 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Coast Guard is issuing an Interim Final Rule establishing a Regulated Navigation Area (RNA) for certain waters of the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, Ohio. This action is necessary to provide for the safety of life on these navigable waters near the "Irishtown Bend" in Cleveland, Ohio, during a bank stabilization construction project from December 2, 2024, with an anticipated completion date of all waterside work on July 11, 2025. This rulemaking would limit vessel speeds near the area and prohibit vessels from being inside the RNA during construction hours unless authorized by the Captain of the Port Sector Eastern Great Lakes or a designated representative. We invite your comments on this rulemaking.

The Coast Guard is establishing two temporary safety zones to protect personnel, vessels, and the marine environment from potential hazards created by commercial spaceflight activities. One safety zone is in the navigable waters of South Bay, TX and the other is in the navigable waters of the Gulf of Mexico, within 12 nautical miles of the first. Entry of vessels or persons into these zones are prohibited unless specifically authorized by the Captain of the Port, Sector Corpus Christi (COTP) or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone for certain waters of the Hackensack River. This action is necessary to provide for the safety of life on these navigable waters near the Portal Bridge during construction between November 2024 and December 2025. When enforced, entry of vessels or persons into this zone is prohibited unless specifically authorized by the Captain of the Port New York or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard is establishing two temporary safety zones on the waters of the Delaware River, in portions of Marcus Hook Range and Anchorage 7, off Marcus Hook, PA. The safety zones temporarily restrict vessel traffic from transiting or anchoring in portions of the Delaware River while maintenance dredging is being conducted within the Delaware River. The safety zones are needed to protect personnel, vessels, and the marine environment from hazards created by dredging operations. Entry of vessels or persons into these zones is prohibited unless specifically authorized by the COTP or his designated representatives.

The Coast Guard is establishing a special local regulation for the 2024 Lake Havasu City Christmas Parade of Lights that will be held on the navigable waters of Lake Havasu, AZ. This action is necessary to provide for the safety of life on these navigable waters of Lake Havasu during a vessel parade. This rule would prohibit spectators from anchoring, blocking, loitering, or transiting through the area of a predetermined parade route unless authorized by the Captain of the Port San Diego or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard seeks comments regarding the possible establishment of shipping safety fairways ("fairways") in the Gulf of Maine identified in the Approaches to Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts Port Access Route Study. This potential system of fairways is intended to ensure that traditional navigation routes are kept free from fixed structures that could impact navigation safety.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 the U.S. Coast Guard is forwarding an Information Collection Request (ICR), abstracted below, to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), requesting an extension of its approval for the following collection of information: 1625-0064, Plan Approval and Records for Subdivision and Stability Regulations; without change. Our ICR describes the information we seek to collect from the public. Review and comments by OIRA ensure we only impose paperwork burdens commensurate with our performance of duties.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 the U.S. Coast Guard is forwarding an Information Collection Request (ICR), abstracted below, to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), requesting an extension of its approval for the following collection of information: 1625-0020, Security Zones, Regulated Navigation Areas, and Safety Zones; without change. Our ICR describes the information we seek to collect from the public. Review and comments by OIRA ensure we only impose paperwork burdens commensurate with our performance of duties.

The U.S. Coast Guard (Coast Guard) announces the availability of the Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for the Expansion and Modernization of Base Seattle. In accordance with National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) NEPA implementing regulations, the Final PEIS analyzes the potential environmental and socioeconomic impacts, and identifies related mitigation measures, associated with land acquisition, facility and infrastructure modernization, and continued operation to support current and future Coast Guard missions at Base Seattle.

The Coast Guard is proposing to establish an annually recurring safety zone for certain waters of St. Louis Bay. This action is necessary to provide for the safety of life on these navigable waters near Bay St. Louis, MS during the Swim Across the Bay swim event. This proposed rulemaking would prohibit persons and vessels from being in the safety zone unless authorized by the Captain of the Port Mobile or a designated representative. We invite your comments on this proposed rulemaking.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary special local regulation (SLR) for the San Diego Fleet Week Veterans Day Boat Parade that will be held on the waters of San Diego Bay, California. This action is necessary to provide for the safety of the participants, crew, spectators, sponsor vessels, and general users of the waterway during the event on November 11, 2024. This special local regulation temporarily encompasses all navigable waters, from surface to bottom, on a pre-determined course in the northern portion of the San Diego Bay Federal Channel.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary moving security zone for navigable waters within a 500-yard radius of a certain vessel carrying cargo requiring an elevated level of security in the Corpus Christi Ship Channel and the La Quinta Channel. The temporary security zone is needed to protect the vessel, the cargo, and the surrounding waterway from terrorist acts, sabotage, or other subversive acts, accidents, or events of a similar nature. Entry of vessels or persons into this zone is prohibited unless specifically authorized by the Captain of the Port, Sector Corpus Christi or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone around salvage operations for a sunken vessel. The safety zone encompasses navigable waters on a portion of the Atlantic Ocean in the vicinity of Point Pleasant Beach, NJ within a 500-yard radius of the salvage operations. The safety zone is needed to protect personnel, vessels, and the marine environment from potential hazards created by the salvage operations of the sunken vessel. Entry of vessels or persons into this zone is prohibited unless specifically authorized by the Captain of the Port, Sector Delaware Bay.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary special local regulation for certain navigable waters in Seddon Channel near the Tampa Convention Center in Tampa, FL during the Red Bull Flugtag event. This temporary special local regulation is necessary to ensure the safety of spectators and mariners transiting the area from the dangers associated with this competitive event. This rulemaking would temporarily prohibit entering, transiting through, anchoring, blocking, or loitering within the regulated area, unless authorized by the Captain of the Port St. Petersburg or designated representative.

The Coast Guard will enforce safety zone regulations for the City of Richland Lighted Boat Parade Fireworks Display on December 6 and 7, 2024, to provide for the safety of life on navigable waterways during this display. Our regulation for safety zones within the Sector Columbia River Captain of the Port Zone identifies the regulated area for this event in Richland, WA. During the enforcement period, no person may enter or remain in the safety zone unless authorized by the Captain of the Port Sector Columbia River or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard will enforce a safety zone in Virginia for portions of Claytor Lake to protect personnel, vessels, and the marine environment from potential hazards created by hazardous debris within the waterway due to a tropical storm. Any vessel in the regulated area must comply with directions from the Coast Guard Patrol Commander or his representative, including a Federal, State, and local officer designated by or assisting the Captain of the Port Virginia (COTP) in the enforcement of the safety zone.

The Coast Guard is further delaying the effective date for certain facilities affected by the final rule entitled "Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC)Reader Requirements," published in the Federal Register on August 23, 2016. On March 9, 2020, the Coast Guard published a rule, delaying the implementation date to May 8, 2023. In December 2022, Congress statutorily extended the earliest implementation to no sooner than May 8, 2026. With this final rule, we are delaying the implementation date for certain facilities to May 8, 2029. This rule will not affect facilities receiving vessels certificated to carry more than 1,000 passengers.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the U.S. Coast Guard intends to submit an Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), requesting an extension of its approval for the following collection of information: 1625-0058, Application for Permit to Transport Municipal and Commercial Waste; without change. Our ICR describes the information we seek to collect from the public. Before submitting this ICR to OIRA, the Coast Guard is inviting comments as described below.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone on the navigable waters within Bahia de Ponce, Ponce, PR during the Discover the Caribbean Regatta event. The safety zone is necessary to ensure the safety of event participants and vessels during the event. Entry of vessels or persons into this zone is prohibited unless specifically authorized by the Captain of the Port (COTP) San Juan or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary moving security zone for navigable waters within a 500-yard radius of a certain vessel carrying cargo requiring an elevated level of security in the Corpus Christi Ship Channel and the La Quinta Channel. The temporary security zone is needed to protect the vessel, the cargo, and the surrounding waterway from terrorist acts, sabotage, or other subversive acts, accidents, or events of a similar nature. Entry of vessels or persons into this zone is prohibited unless specifically authorized by the Captain of the Port, Sector Corpus Christi or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone on the navigable waters of the Neuse River in New Bern, North Carolina adjacent to the New Bern downtown waterfront and Union Point Park. This action is necessary to provide for the safety of life on these waters during an aerobatic air show on November 30, 2024. This rule prohibits persons and vessels from being in the safety zone unless authorized by the Captain of the Port (COTP) North Carolina or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone for navigable waters within an 840-foot radius of the firework display barge in the Galveston Bay on the south side of the channel, near Kemah Boardwalk in Kemah, TX. The safety zone is needed to protect personnel, vessels, and the marine environment from potential hazards created by a fireworks display. Entry of vessels or persons into this zone is prohibited unless specifically authorized by the Captain of the Port, Sector Houston-Galveston.

The Coast Guard announces that the Chief, Prevention Division, Thirteenth District has issued a certificate of alternative compliance from the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea, 1972 (72 COLREGS), for The Delta Marine Industries Shipyard Hull #107050. We are issuing this notice because its publication is required by statute. Due to the construction and placement of the masthead light, Delta Marine Industries Shipyard Hull #107050 cannot fully comply with the light, shape, or sound signal provisions of the 72 COLREGS without interfering with the vessel's design and construction. This notification of issuance of a certificate of alternative compliance promotes the Coast Guard's marine safety mission.

The Coast Guard is establishing two temporary safety zones, a 100-yard radius moving safety zone and a 25-yard radius fixed safety zone, around the M/V PIETERSGRACHT, in the navigable waters of the Houston Ship Channel and its vicinity. The temporary safety zones are necessary to protect persons, property, and the marine environment from potential hazards associated with the transfer of gantry cranes. Persons and vessels are prohibited from entering, transiting through, anchoring in, or remaining within the safety zones unless specifically authorized by the Captain of the Port Sector Houston-Galveston or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard proposes to establish 55 temporary safety zones around the construction of each facility during the development of the Empire Wind 1 Wind Farm project area within federal waters on the Outer Continental Shelf, specifically in the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Renewable Energy Lease Area OCS-A 0512, approximately 12 nautical miles south of Long Island, NY. This action protects life, property, and the environment during construction of each facility from March 1, 2025, to February 29, 2028. When enforced, only attending vessels and vessels with authorization are permitted to enter or remain in the temporary safety zones.