This section contains information on U.S. Coast Guard maritime
security requirements implementing the Maritime Transportation
Security Act of 2002 for grain handling and processing facilities
located on or adjacent to waters under the agency’s jurisdiction.
Summary
The U.S. Coast Guard on Oct. 22, 2003 issued final regulations
that require facilities that receive commercial vessels greater
than 100 gross register tons or vessels subject to the international
convention for Safety of Life at Sea on international voyages
– such as grain export facilities – to develop and
implement a facility security plan or a Coast Guard-approved alternative
security program meeting specific requirements by July 1, 2004.
Other types of facilities required to develop facility security
plans under the Coast Guard regulations are those handling certain
explosive or hazardous cargos (including ammonium nitrate fertilizer
or fertilizer mixtures), as well as animal fats or vegetable oils
located on or adjacent to U.S. waterways.
To assist the industry in complying with the Coast Guard facility
security requirements that apply to export grain elevators, the
North American Export Grain Association (NAEGA) developed an Alternative
Security Program that subsequently was approved by the Coast Guard.
NAEGA and NGFA member companies are eligible to participate by
becoming “subscribers” to the NAEGA Alternative Security
Program. The alternative security program provides a framework
for communication and coordination to identify threats and reduce
vulnerabilities to terrorist actions in and near export facilities
operated by NAEGA and NGFA member companies. It also delineates
specific actions to be taken by such facilities during various
declared maritime security levels.
This section also provides information on the U.S. Coast Guard's implementation of Transportation and Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) cards for employees requiring unescorted access to secure areas at ports and vessels, including persons at grain elevators operating at U.S. ports and Maritime Transportation Safety Act-regulated areas. Also provided
is access to the U.S. Coast Guard Maritime Security Homepage,
which contains guidance documents, forms, frequently asked questions,
training information and other U.S. Coast Guard security information
resources.
Access to More Information
Facility Security Plan Regulations: Click the
link below to access the U.S. Coast Guard’s requirements
that port facilities develop and implement a Facility Security
Plan or participate in an industry-sponsored Alternative Security
Program (such as the NAEGA ASP) that the Coast Guard Commandant
has determined provides an equivalent level of security. These
requirements also apply to facilities that may unload or load
barges with certain dangerous cargos, such as ammonia nitrate
fertilizer, or facilities that load or unload barges with animal
fats or vegetable oil. Facilities that unload or load barges with
grains, oilseeds or processed grain or oilseed-based products
are not required to develop a facility security plan but may be
affected by Area Maritime Security Plans implemented by local
U.S. Coast Guard officials.
Facility Security Plan Regulations PDF Format –
http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-m/mp/pdf/final33cfr105.pdf
NAEGA Alternative Security Program: The NAEGA
Alternative Security Program (ASP) is designed to comply with
the U.S. Coast Guard’s requirements for U.S. grain facilities
that export grains, oilseeds and processed bulk agricultural products
from U.S. ports, as well as those U.S. facilities that import
bulk agricultural commodities from foreign markets in foreign
or U.S.-flag vessels. The program has been reviewed and approved
by the U.S. Coast Guard and is available to all NAEGA and NGFA
members in good standing. To learn about the NAEGA ASP, contact
Gary C. Martin, NAEGA President and CEO, at 202-682-4030; or Tom
O’Connor, NGFA Director of Technical Services, at 202-289-0873.
A copy of the U.S. Coast Guard letter approving the NAEGA program
is available by clicking the following link:
Approval Letter for NAEGA Alternative Security Program (link to
information on how to participate in NAEGA ASP) - http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-m/mp/pdf/naega.pdf
Transportation and Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) Final Regulations: These regulations apply to port employees, longshoremen, mariners, truckers and other employees who require unescorted access to secure areas at ports and vessels, including such persons at grain elevators operating at U.S. ports and other Maritime Transportation Safety Act-regulated areas. A TWIC is a tamper-resistant “smart card” containing the worker's biometric (fingerprint template) information that allow for a positive link between the individual and the card itself. DHS's Transportation Security Administration and U.S. Coast Guard implemented TWIC under the authority of the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002, which required such identification cards for all personnel requiring unescorted access to secure areas of MTSA-regulated facilities and vessels and all mariners holding Coast Guard-issued credentials or qualification documents. In addition, the schedule for implementing TWIC was established by Congress in the SAFE Port Act of 2006.
“Secure areas” at a facility, port or vessel are classified as those areas over which the owner/operator or Captain of the Port has implemented security measures for access control in accordance with a U.S. Coast Guard-approved security plan. “Secure areas” do not include employee- or public-access areas. Employee-access areas are defined as spaces within the secure area that are open only to employees, and do not require TWIC cards. Meanwhile, public-access areas are defined as spaces within a facility that are open to all persons and provide pedestrian access through the facility from public thoroughfares to the vessel.
TWIC card enrollment is to be phased in, starting in Fall 2007, over a 15-month period, based upon such factors as the risk, volume, type of imported and exported cargo, volume of passenger vessel traffic and local population size. Scheduled to be first is the Port of Wilmington, Del., which participated in a prototype pilot program. DHS is to post the TWIC compliance dates for each Captain of the Port zone in the Federal Register . The U.S. Coast Guard will provide 90-days' prior notice concerning the compliance date at each zone. Affected facility owners and operators are responsible for notifying affected employees about the enrollment process and compliance dates. All credentialed U.S. merchant mariners are required to obtain a TWIC card by Sept. 25, 2008 .
DHS estimates that 750,000 persons eventually will be required to obtain TWIC cards, including Coast Guard-credentialed merchant mariners, facility employees, port facility employees, longshoremen, truck drivers and others requiring unescorted access to secure areas of the facility, port or vessel. Once the enforcement date occurs at a given Captain of the Port Sector, owners and operators will be required to visually inspect the TWIC card for each worker granted unescorted access to secure areas of a facility or vessel. The U.S. Coast Guard also will conduct checks using handheld TWIC card readers to conform the identity of TWIC card holders during regular inspections and spot checks. Importantly, owners and operators will not be required to purchase, install or maintain costly TWIC card readers until technology and logistical improvements occur; DHS is to issue a second rulemaking on TWIC card reader implementation at a later date.
The DHS-established fee for obtaining TWIC cards is $137.25 for affected employees requiring unescorted access to secure areas of affected facilities. For applicants who have completed a prior comparable threat assessment, the card fee is $105.25. The card is valid for five years. DHS expects later in 2007 to establish the fee for replacing lost or damaged TWIC cards; it initially projected a $36 fee but later proposed and requested public comment on a $60 fee for replacement/lost TWIC cards.
DHS says that the initial implementation of TWIC cards will be confined to maritime transportation facilities and ports, which include rail workers and truck drivers who require unescorted access to secure areas of MTSA-regulated facilities, as well as vessel personnel. But the agency indicates that once implementation in the maritime sector is complete, it will evaluate whether to expand the use of TWIC cards in other modes of transportation at non-MTSA-regulated port/waterway facilities.
Click the links below to access more information:
• Transportation and Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) Final Rule for Maritime Sector.
• Q&A on Transportation and Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) Final Rule and Implementation for Maritime Sector.
• Fees for Transportation and Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) Cards (March 20, 2007).
• Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002.
• Transportation and Worker Identification Creditial (TWIC) Implementation at U.S. Ports - Powerpoint Summary.
• U.S. Coast Guard Guidance for Implementation of Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) Program in the Maritime Sector (Navigation and Vessel Inspection Circular No. 03-07, July 2007).
General Maritime Security Regulations: This
section contains information on important definitions, Maritime
Security (MARSEC) levels, reporting security incidents, personal
identification credentials and other similar general U.S. Coast
Guard Maritime Security requirements for facilities, vessels and
structures located on or adjacent to waters under U.S. jurisdiction.
General
Maritime Security Regulations (PDF Format) - http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-m/mp/pdf/final33cfr101.pdf
Area Maritime Security: This section contains
information on Area Security Plans and Area Maritime Security
Committees that are to be developed by local Captains of the Port.
Grain and feed facilities located on or adjacent to inland waterways
that are not required to establish a Facility Security Plan may
still be covered by the Area Maritime Security Plan for their
applicable port.
Area
Maritime Security Regulations (PDF Format) - http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-m/mp/pdf/final33cfr103.pdf
Maritime Security Homepage: This section contains
regulations and policy guidance information, forms, Frequently
Asked Questions (FAQ/Best Practices), presentations, training
modules, and public affairs guidance.
Maritime Security Homepage - http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-m/mp/mtsa.shtml
