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Dennis Bryant News

26 May 2020

Eye on Design: A Titanium USS Enterprise (NCC-1701 that is)

Revenue Cutter Bear before WWI. U.S. Coast Guard photo.

Dennis Bryant provided a link to a story about the USCG Cutter Bear in his March 18, 2020 newsletter. It is a great story about a great ship with a great Captain (Michael Healy) and a great crew. It shows that the right combination of ship and crew can perform miracles.This one ship, its Captain (and his wife who often shipped with him), and its crew did so many things so well that it has become the stuff of legends. I will not further discuss these adventures; some can be found in the article and the rest can be easily Googled.

02 Apr 2018

Washington State: Hybrid Electric Ferries to be Considered

Washington Governor Jay Inslee has signed into law An Act Relating to Transportation Funding and Appropriations (SB 6106).   Among other things, the bill includes $600,000 for development of a request for proposal to convert the three Washington State Ferry vessels in the Jumbo Mark II class to hybrid electric propulsion and make associated necessary 10 modifications to the Seattle, Bainbridge, Edmonds and Kingston 11 terminals. See the legislation here. The Jumbo Mark II class includes three 460-foot double-ended ferries – Puyallup, Tacoma and Wenatchee – each built in the late 1990s. The largest ferries in the Washington State fleet, each vessel can transport up to 2,499 passengers and 202 vehicles. (Source: with thanks to Dennis Bryant)

25 Nov 2014

Editorial: 75, 150 ... What’s in a Number?

Greg Trauthwein

It is not often that I break out the tux for my editorial picture, but this special edition dictates. I know that I should argue that all of our editions are special, but this one in particular, I must admit, stands out in a number of ways. In fact, all of 2014 has been somewhat ‘special,’ as the domestic maritime business has rebounded with a vigor, driven in no small part by an unprecedented energy boom in the U.S. that looks like it will make the country energy independent by 2020.

17 Mar 2014

USCG ... Past, Present & Future

Greg Trauthwein

Ebeneezer Scrooge would be proud. This is our annual United States Coast Guard edition, and it could best be dubbed the “Christmas Carol” edition as we examine USCG Past, USCG Present and USCG Future. First looking back (but not too far back), and in step with our continued celebration of Maritime Reporter & Engineering News’ 75th Anniversary, Patricia Keefe takes an insightful look at the times, tribulations, leadership and legacy of Thad Allen, past Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard.

27 Feb 2014

Coast Guard’s Proposed Maritime Preemption Assessment Framework

In the May 2013 issue of Maritime Reporter & Engineering News, Dennis Bryant published a provocative article titled Rebuilding the Presumption of Preemption. The Coast Guard has asserted in the past and believes today that consistent standards of universal application and enforcement, coupled with Federal initiatives to meet unique regional concerns, best meet local and national safety and environmental goals with the least disruption to maritime commerce. 78 Fed. Reg. 79,243.

17 Feb 2014

The Coast Guard’s Proposed Maritime Preemption Assessment Framework

Craig H. Allen, Sr.

What it may foretell about the coming towing vessel rule. In the May 2013 issue of Maritime Reporter & Engineering News, Dennis Bryant published a provocative article titled Rebuilding the Presumption of Preemption. The Coast Guard has asserted in the past and believes today that consistent standards of universal application and enforcement, coupled with Federal initiatives to meet unique regional concerns, best meet local and national safety and environmental goals with the least disruption to maritime commerce. 78 Fed. Reg. 79,243.

11 Nov 2013

Insights: Dennis L. Bryant, Bryant’s Maritime Consulting

Dennis L. Bryant retired from the U.S. Coast Guard with the rank of Captain after 27 years active duty. His billets included serving on the icebreaker NORTHWIND for several years including in 1969 when it escorted the tanker MANHATTAN through the Northwest Passage (this was back in the old days, when there was real ice in the Arctic). He also spent various tours as a law specialist, including an assignment as the Coast Guard’s Law of the Sea officer. He also served a tour in the…

20 Mar 2013

USCG

ADM Bob Papp’s Coast Guard tenure continues to be one of low profile victories, calm leadership and an emphasis on doing what is right for the Coast Guard. U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Bob Papp delivered the 2013 State of the Coast Guard (SOCG) Address at the National Defense University at Fort Lesley J. McNair in Washington, D.C. on February 27. Adm. Papp assumed command of the Coast Guard in May of 2010, he had the unenviable task of following perhaps the most charismatic leader the Coast Guard has ever had. The high profile Thad Allen, dubbed by the mainstream media as “the rock star” Commandant, also more earned his reputation by firm leadership over the course of more than one highly visible crisis after another.

06 Mar 2013

Coast Guard, Partner Agencies Work to Recover Fallen Containers

Photo: USCG

At approximately 1 p.m. Monday (March 4, 2013), the Coast Guard received a report that 22 containers fell off the 91-foot barge Atlantic Trader and into the ocean 18 miles east of Key Biscayne, Fla. Coast Guard Watchstanders at Sector Miami received notification from the Tug Spence that 22 containers on a voyage from Jacksonville, Fla., to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba fell off the barge into the water. An aircrew from Coast Guard Airstation Miami launched to the scene and initially located some of the containers floating around the Tug Spence.

06 Apr 2011

OMB: Inspection of Towing Vessels

The proposed rule for Inspection of Towing Vessels has (finally) been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. This rulemaking would implement a program of inspection for certification of US towing vessels, which were previously uninspected. recordkeeping. (4/1/11). Note from Dennis Bryant: Once this rulemaking comes into effect, US towing vessels that become subject to inspection would no longer fall under the joint jurisdiction of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). This joint jurisdiction has been a rubbing point within the towing industry for years. OMB review generally takes 2-3 months.

08 May 2008

Biofouling Center Stage

Legislation has been favorably reported out of the Senate Committee in Commerce, Science, and Transportation that would, if enacted, constitute the first official steps by the federal government to come to grips with biofouling of the hulls of ships. The Ballast Water Management Act of 2007 (S. 1578) would, among other things, require the U.S. Coast Guard to conduct a study of vessel-borne vectors (other than ballast water and sediment), specifically including vessel hulls, anchors, and equipment.

24 Mar 2008

The COFRs are Coming

Two Coast Guard small boats set a security zone around the 900-foot container ship Cosco Busan. (U.S. Coast Guard photo)

On February 5, the US Coast Guard promulgated its long-awaited proposal for updating the Certificate of Financial Responsibility (COFR) program. Owners and operators of vessels over 300 gross tons operating in United States waters have been required to provide evidence of financial responsibility to respond to oil spills from their vessels since 1972. The program was significantly broadened with enactment of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA 90), which increased the categories of damages for which oil spill liability could attach.

14 Jan 2004

Column: Recycling of Ships

As of July 1, 2003, there were approximately 29,000 commercial self-propelled ocean-going ships worldwide in excess of 1,000 gross tons each. Of these, just over 400 are U.S. flag. In addition, there are approximately 3,000 U.S. barges of over 1,000 gross tons each. Approximately 25% of these ships and barges are more than 20 years old and will be taken out of service in the near future. The vast majority of the ships and barges taken out of service will be recycled (scrapped). Exactly when a ship is taken out of service is dependent upon a variety of factors, the most important being its maintenance costs and its current charter rate. Thus, the number of ships being offered for recycling can and does gyrate widely over time.

28 Jul 1999

Harbor Services Fund Under Attack

The Administration's proposed tax to pay for harbor dredging is not a viable or equitable solution to funding navigation channel maintenance at the nation's ports, says the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA). AAPA and others testified at a House Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee Hearing on the Administration's Harbor Services Fund (HSF) proposal, H. R. 1947. The plan creates a new tax on vessels to replace the Harbor Maintenance Tax, the export-tax portion of which was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 1998. The administration proposal, submitted to Congress, but not yet introduced as a bill, would…

01 Sep 2004

SSI Concerns Continue

I recently expressed concern that the regulations promulgated by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) on May 18, 2004 relating to Protection of Sensitive Security Information (SSI) are overbroad. Comments were received from some of my readers stating that the recent USCG Navigation and Vessel Inspection Circular (NVIC) regarding Guidelines for Handling of SSI was not, as I asserted, SSI because the NVIC stated that USCG policy is that only USCG documents marked ‘SSI’ are actually SSI. I do not concur. Under the TSA regulations, which are controlling, SSI consists of a long list of information the disclosure of which would, in the opinion of TSA, be detrimental to the security of transportation.

10 Sep 2004

Government Update: Signed Confessions

Many in the maritime industry are beginning to view the oil record book as a signed confession. The number of prosecutions in the United States for fraudulent entries in oil record books is rising exponentially and fines have recently skyrocketed. In the years 1998 through 2001, research has revealed one prosecution in each year for oil record book violations. In 2002, there were seven prosecutions - and four of those were against individual chief engineers. In 2003, nine prosecutions, four of which were again against individual chief engineers. Through the middle of August 2004, there have been seven prosecutions, and only two were directed at individual chief engineers. Criminal fines to date have totaled $52,285,000.

10 Sep 2004

Editor’s Note

I was in New Orleans last month to give a presentation dubbed “Maritime and the Media” at the GICA annual convention. Stereotypical stale introduction jokes aside (evidently, not many had heard this one, as it actually produced some laughter), the presentation gave me unencumbered time to assess what we do here, in the broad perspective. Now many, including the guy who signs my check, might assume that this is an ongoing rather than isolated process. But like many of you reading this, the daily, weekly, monthly and yearly job of multi-tasking, infinite deadlines and continual troubleshooting despite the best laid plans often leaves pondering “the big picture” low on the list.

11 Oct 2004

Editor’s Note

Frankly, I ‘m tired. Having passed yet another summer and now embarked upon the path of Autumn 2004, my schedule is packed not only with work and the requisite travel, but the schedule of a fourth grader and the myriad of after school and weekend activities, not to mention the pile of paperwork from school and clubs. To tell the truth, I would rather evaluate the merits of a corporate consolidation than be forced to decipher the nuances of my son’s ‘school picture’ package. But my over tiredness has little real world consequences, the worst being a late afternoon nod-off in yet another meeting, or a missed ‘snooze’ alarm in the early Dawn, meaning I’m a half hour late to work. For mariners, being tired has a completely different meaning.

13 Dec 2004

VADM William F. Rea, III, USCG (ret) Dies

Sadly, I must report that Vice Admiral Bill Rea, USCG (ret) died of a heart attack on Saturday. He was a true sailor, a fine gentleman, and a dear friend. He will be sorely missed. – Dennis Bryant, HK Law

10 Jan 2005

Government Update: Cargo Security Strategy

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security recently released its draft White Paper on a National Cargo Security Strategy. The Department is seeking stakeholder feedback. The White Paper is a long-belated and somewhat half-hearted attempt to mend fences and appear to be moving forward, while expending little new capital. The paper runs on for nine pages, offering no new ideas and making few commitments. It has the appearance of an uneasy political compromise between feuding federal agencies. The one clear commitment is found on page eight, where it says the Department “will, as a short-term step, mandate the use of high security mechanical seals on all in-bound containers.” There is, as yet, no official government standard as to what constitutes a high security mechanical seal.

04 Mar 2005

U.S. Requires Nontank Vessel Response Plans

The U.S. Coast Guard recently issued interim guidance for the development and review of oil spill response plans for nontank vessels. Since 1993, tank vessels have carried oil spill response plans. A recent legislative change will soon mandate similar response plans for most other ships. The problem is that the legislation requires nontank vessels to have the response plans sooner than the Coast Guard can promulgate regulations in accordance with standard procedures. Thus, the agency is unofficially advising stakeholders on how to comply with the legislation. Stakeholders will ignore the unofficial advice at their peril. The legislation has real teeth.

19 Aug 2002

Court Rules on Liens and Breaches

A Lesson in admiralty law was recently provided by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit when it ruled that a maritime lien for breach of a charter party attaches when the vessel is placed at the charterer's disposal. vessel owner entered into a time charter and accordingly delivered the vessel. The vessel was then sold to a third party, subject to the time charter, and the new owner obtained a mortgage loan on the vessel. The bank providing the loan duly recorded its preferred ship mortgage. "Soon thereafter, the new owner breached the time charter and then defaulted on the mortgage. Both the bank and the charterer sought to recoup their losses by having the vessel sold, but the proceeds were not expected to cover both claims.

05 May 2003

Editor’s Note

Reactive by nature, the marine business is perpetually embarked upon the path of transformation, with new rules and regulations handed down from international, national and regional authorities as to how ships and boats should be equipped and operated. Tomorrow will be no different. Whether it is new legislation dictating the timing and form of reporting cargos ["I'm Looking Through You" by Dennis Bryant, page 18] or the way in which vessels are outfitted [AIS Update, page 46], marine companies are increasingly being stretched, forced to consume and digest a veritable smorgasbord of statutes just to stay in business. Next month in Oslo, the international maritime community gathers in Oslo for the bi-annual NorShipping 2003 Exhibition, one of the world’s leading marine events.