Thursday, April 24, 2008

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Peter Kovar 202-225-9400

The U.S. House of Representatives today approved legislation (H.R. 2830) that includes a series of fishing vessel safety improvements pushed by Congressman Barney Frank. The 2008 Coast Guard Reauthorization bill – which was passed 395 to 7 – creates a fishing safety training grant program; calls for new federally funded research on improving safety technology in the industry; updates the requirements relating to on-board safety drills and equipment, and establishes new safety standards for smaller vessels. The bill also mandates, at Frank’s request, that single hull oil barges traveling in Buzzards Bay use Massachusetts licensed pilots or federally licensed pilots with recent experience in the bay.

A number of the fishing safety provisions that were included in the bill as a result of Frank’s advocacy were based on ideas contained in fishing legislation he had proposed in 2006, or on recommendations made by fishermen and other safety experts during public meetings on safety in New Bedford. The pilot language is aimed at addressing a gap in the Buzzards Bay safety standards that was identified following the disastrous oil spill there in 2003. The Senate has not yet passed its version of the Coast Guard legislation.

"The passage of this bill by the House is a major step forward that addresses important unfinished Southeastern Massachusetts agenda items covering both safety in the fishing industry and preservation of Buzzards Bay," Frank said.

"South Coast residents understand the hazards faced by fishermen, and this bill won’t eliminate those risks,” Frank said. “But, it will give the area a better chance of avoiding repeats of the tragic loss of life we have seen in recent years when some of our boats went down in bad weather. In a few recent close calls, the fact that crewmembers had taken part in local safety training programs played a role in their survival, so I am especially pleased that the bill includes the provision I sponsored to provide funding to enable training to be offered on an ongoing basis. By combining federal financial support for safety training and safety research with some upgrades of safety standards, the bill helps ensure that both government and industry will be involved in finding solutions to the fishing safety challenges we face. "

“Anyone who saw, as I did, the terrible impact of the 2003 Buzzards Bay oil spill understands that we need to continue taking concrete steps to make a recurrence as unlikely as possible” Frank added. “The new pilot requirements address a key area where the existing regulations are insufficient. While single hull oil transport vessels are scheduled to be phased out over the coming years, until that process is complete Buzzards Bay will be more secure if the people operating oil barges in the bay are familiar with its waters.”

Following the Buzzards Bay oil spill, the Massachusetts State Legislature passed a new law that made a number of changes to the requirements for oil transport in the bay, including a state pilot mandate. That requirement was voided when the Coast Guard filed suit successfully against the portions of the new state law that it claimed infringed on federal authority to regulate navigation. After criticism by Frank and others who objected to the Coast Guard’s actions to override state law, the Coast Guard eventually issued its own regulations requiring some of the same safety regulations that had been in the Massachusetts law, but these regulations did not include the state pilot requirement.

Frank worked closely with the Coalition for Buzzards Bay to develop the provision included in the Coast Guard bill. It requires single hull oil transport barges to use either state pilots operating with a federal license or experienced federal pilots who have made at least one trip as a pilot in the bay within the preceding year or, if the vessel will be traveling at night, at least five round trips through the bay in darkness. Alaska’s Prince William Sound – the location of the Exxon Valdez oil spill – is currently the only waterway with specific federal pilotage requirements.

Among the fishing vessel safety provisions in the Coast Guard bill are the following:

Fishing Safety Training Grants Program. Based on a proposal originally in Frank’s proposed 2006 fishing legislation, this provision authorizes up to $3 million annually for training programs similar to those hosted by the City of New Bedford in recent years. The Coast Guard bill makes training mandatory for vessel operators, and also takes into account their years of experience as captains. It also requires vessel operators to take a refresher course every 5 years. Participation by crewmembers would be voluntary, and both operators and crewmembers would receive certificates of participation. In addition, the names of all those who participate in the training programs would be maintained in a publicly accessible database.

Fishing Safety Research Grant Program. At Frank’s request, the Coast Guard bill adds fishing safety research to the Coast Guard's annual research and development efforts. Under this provision, research topics eligible for funding would include vessel design, emergency and survival equipment, communications devices, de-icing and severe weather technology, and safety enhancements for Vessel Monitoring Systems (VMS). The potential expansion of VMS technology for safety purposes was brought up by a number of fishermen at New Bedford public meetings.

Inspections, Drills and Equipment. Similar to a provision in Frank's 2006 bill, the Coast Guard bill requires fishing boats to keep logs of the onboard safety drills required under existing law. In addition, all federally permitted vessels would be required to undergo a dockside inspection twice within a five year period (expansion of dockside inspections was raised in New Bedford public meetings). Also, the bill standardizes the safety equipment required of fishing boats operating in federal waters, though the Coast Guard would maintain its current power to exempt vessels from some of the requirements, based on where, when and how they fish.

Frank had proposed an array of safety improvements as part of fishing legislation he introduced in 2006 (H.R. 4940). Most of those proposals were not included despite the urging of Frank and other House Members, in the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Act reauthorization bill that Congress passed in December 2006. The decision to exclude the safety provisions from the final Magnuson bill was made by Republican committee leaders, on the grounds that Coast Guard matters lie within the jurisdiction of the Transportation Committee as opposed to the Resources Committee (which covers the Magnuson Act).

When the Magnuson bill passed in that form, Frank pledged to pursue safety improvements as part of separate legislation. In March 2007, he sponsored a public forum in New Bedford on fishing safety, and then testified before the Coast Guard Subcommittee at a safety hearing on April 25. At Frank's request, Deb Shrader of the New Bedford-based organization Shore Support also testified. Following that hearing, Frank has worked with Coast Guard Subcommittee Chairman Elijah Cummings (D-MD) and Transportation Committee Chairman James Oberstar (D-MN) to the develop safety provisions and the Buzzards Bay pilot language, which are included in the Coast Guard bill.

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