Guard Establishes News

Funds appropriated for use by the US Coast Guard are about to be decreased – again. The service’s funding has decreased in four of the previous five fiscal years, generally by 1% each year. The Administration’s budget request for FY 2016 has just been submitted to Congress. It calls for a 6.2% decrease in Coast Guard funding. For FY 2015, the Coast Guard was appropriated $10,438,120. For the upcoming year, the Administration is requesting only $9,796,995. The budget request identifies various minor cuts.

Coast Guard establishes a Safety Zone Regulation from 9a.m. to 12p.m. April 13, 2014 in Flamenco Bay, during the underwater detonation of a World War II explosive in Culebra, Puerto Rico. SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — The U.S. Coast Guard has established a Safety Zone Regulation surrounding the waters of Flamenco Bay in Culebra, Puerto Rico from 9a.m. to 12p.m. Sunday in anticipation of the underwater detonation of a War World II explosive. Persons and vessels are prohibited from transiting through, anchoring in, or remaining within the Safety Zone unless authorized by the Captain of the Port San Juan. The Safety Zone is necessary to ensure the safety of vessels, and the public on the navigable waters. A U.S. Navy specialized team will carryout preparations for the detonation.

The Coast Guard captain of the port has established a temporary safety and security zone Monday in response to a report of a shooter at the Navy Yard in Washington, D.C. The safety and security zone will be in effect for an undetermined amount of time and will limit all navigation on the Anacostia River from Haines Point to the John Philip Sousa Bridge. Entering or operating in the security zone is prohibited unless authorized by the captain of the port of Baltimore. Vessels already at berth, mooring or anchor are not required to depart the security zone.

The Coast Guard formally established the Incident Management Assistance Team during a ceremony held at Base Portsmouth Thursday morning. The IMAT is the first full-time, national incident management team comprised of 41 active and reserve military and civilian personnel. The IMAT supports the operational commander in complex incident crisis management for all-hazard, all-threat incidents and events. The team is a rapidly deployable, scalable resource that addresses capability gaps within an incident management organization wherever required.

ADM Robert J. Subcommittee. capabilities. For more than 220 years, the U.S. Coast Guard has safeguarded the nation’s maritime interests and natural resources on our rivers and ports, in the coastal regions, on the high seas, and around the world. The Coast Guard saves those in peril and protects the nation’s maritime border, marine transportation system, natural resources, and the environment. Coast Guard men and women – active duty, reserve, civilian and auxiliarists alike – deliver premier service to the public. military force of maritime professionals whose broad legal authorities, assets, geographic diversity, and expansive partnerships provide a persistent presence in the inland waters, ports, coastal regions, and far offshore areas of operations.

On July 29, Congressman Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.), Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, joined his colleagues in unanimously passing H.R. 1665, the Coast Guard Acquisition Reform Act of 2009—legislation that Congressman Cummings introduced to build on the Coast Guard’s acquisition reform efforts and ensure accountability in the use of taxpayer dollars. “As families across our nation continue to lose their jobs, their homes, their savings, and their dreams, it is more critical than ever to ensure that their tax dollars are being used in the most effective and efficient way possible,” Congressman Cummings said.

The Coast Guard is encouraging boaters in the Hampton Roads area to familiarize themselves with the federal regulations governing the security zone surrounding all naval vessels more than 100 feet in length. Recently boaters have been approaching naval vessels too closely within the Port of Hampton Roads. Protecting naval vessels from sabotage and terrorist acts is one of the country's and the Coast Guard's highest priorities. For this reason, Congress mandated a 500-yard Naval Vessel Protection Zone to be established around all U.S. naval vessels more than 100 feet in length. When within 500 yards of a naval vessel, all boaters, both commercial and recreational, shall operate at the minimum speed necessary to maintain a safe course.

The Coast Guard established its first Cruise Ship Center of Expertise (COE) in Miami Sept. 30. This is the first in a series of Centers of Expertise that will be located throughout the country. Each Center of Expertise will focus on a specific segment of the maritime industry. The COE in Miami will focus on the cruise ship industry. The selection of Miami as a site for this important Center was logical since Miami has long been considered the cruise capital of the world. The cruise ship industry is an important growing industry in the U.S. According to the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) more than 9 million passengers sailed from U.S. ports in 2006 and the industry directly employs approximately 34,000 U.S. residents paying them a wage income of $1.2 billion.

The U.S. Coast Guard established a naval vessel protection zone, effective through October 12, in the vicinity of the Stapleton Homeport Pier on Staten Island and around the naval vessels (U.S. and foreign) participating in the NATO fleet visit. Nonmilitary vessels may not approach within 500 yards of these naval vessels.

The U.S. Coast Guard will stand-up the Deployable Operations Group during an establishment ceremony 7 p.m. Friday at Fort Lesley J. McNair. The Deployable Operations Group aligns all Coast Guard deployable, specialized forces under a single, unified command headed by a Rear Adm. Thomas F. Atkin. The command will provide organized, equipped, and trained forces to Coast Guard and interagency operational and tactical commanders. Deployable specialized forces are comprised of approximately 3,000 Coast Guard personnel from 12 Maritime Safety and Security Teams, the Maritime Security Response Team, two Tactical Law Enforcement Teams, eight Port Security Units, three National Strike Teams and the National Strike Force Coordination Center.

The Coast Guard launched a website to provide merchant mariners with real-time information on the status of pending mariner credential applications. Merchant mariners can check the status of application packages throughout the verification and approval process by logging onto http://homeport.uscg.mil/, clicking on the Merchant Mariners tab and then clicking on Merchant Mariner Application Status. When application information is entered, Homeport will display the information submitted with the application package and current application status information. Mariner credentials that have already been issued will be displayed in Homeport as "issued" for a 120 day period.

The Coast Guard recently published two Federal Register notices relating to physical examination requirements for merchant mariners, based on National Transportation Safety Board recommendations issued following the catastrophic 2003 Staten Island ferry marine casualty in New York Harbor. The first notice announces and seeks public comment on a draft Navigation and Vessel Inspection Circular on medical and physical evaluation guidelines for merchant mariner credentials. The public can submit comments on the draft through November 27, 2006. The second notice announces that the Coast Guard will require pilots of certain vessels to provide a copy of their annual physical examinations to the Coast Guard.

Coast Guard Captain of the Port of Wilmington, Captain Jane M. Hartley, has brought in more than 100 Coast Guard active duty and reserve personnel to provide waterborne and shoreside safety and security of military equipment loading operations here and in Morehead, City, N.C. The United States is repositioning some of its military forces where required to support the President’s global war on terrorism and to prepare for future contingencies. One of the Coast Guards responsibilities, as the lead agency for maritime homeland security and as a branch of the Armed Forces, is to ensure the safety and security of military outloads in U.S. ports. The Coast Guard has established a security zone in Morehead City to run between Jan.

Austal USA is set to deliver a new dinner cruise boat to Cloud Nine of New York. The company specializes in high end corporate and wedding dinner cruises in the New York harbor. Among special features on the 135-ft. (41.1-m) boat are a bridal suite, a fully equipped galley with dumb waiter and an overhead atrium on the upper deck. The aluminum vessel's beam is 30 ft. (9.15 m) with a molded depth of 11.4 ft. (3.5 m). It has tankage for 22,712 liters of fuel and 11,356 liters of water. Up to 149 passengers will be served by a nine-person dining crew with the support of a three-person marine crew. Two Cummins C-series powered 150 kW generators will provide for the boat's extensive electrical requirements.

Center (IRVMC) in St. certain barges along the river system 24-hours a day. presence and maritime. barges containing certain dangerous cargoes from the new operational center. Advisory System level and other factors. safety of strategic infrastructure.

Center (IRVMC) in St. certain barges along the river system 24-hours a day. presence and maritime awareness. cargoes. Security Advisory System level and other factors. river system and the safety of strategic infrastructure. The regulations were signed April 16.