[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 22 (Friday, February 1, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 7334-7336]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-02209]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Coast Guard
33 CFR Part 105
[USCG-2012-0907]
Port Authority Access to Facility Vulnerability Assessments and
the Integration of Security Systems
AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.
ACTION: Notice and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: This notice requests comments from facility owners and
operators, State and local law enforcement agencies, port authorities,
relevant security industry participants, and all other interested
members of the public regarding how to best implement Section 822 of
the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010. In particular, this notice
discusses the Coast Guard's preliminary thoughts on how owners or
operators of certain facilities might make their Facility Vulnerability
Assessments available to certain law enforcement agencies and port
authorities, and integrate their facility security systems with
compatible
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systems operated or maintained by certain law enforcement agencies and
the Coast Guard.
DATES: Comments and related material must either be submitted to our
online docket via http://www.regulations.gov on or before May 2, 2013
or reach the Docket Management Facility by that date.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by docket number USCG-
2012-0907 using any one of the following methods:
(1) Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
(2) Fax: 202-493-2251.
(3) Mail: Docket Management Facility (M-30), U.S. Department of
Transportation, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New
Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001.
(4) Hand delivery: Same as mail address above, between 9 a.m. and 5
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone
number is 202-366-9329.
To avoid duplication, please use only one of these four methods.
See the ``Public Participation and Request for Comments'' portion of
the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below for instructions on
submitting comments.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions on this notice,
call or email Lieutenant Commander Jos[eacute] L. Ram[iacute]rez,
Office of Port and Facility Compliance, Cargo and Facility Division
(CG-FAC-2), U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters; telephone 202-372-1150,
email [email protected]. If you have questions on viewing or
submitting material to the docket, call Renee V. Wright, Program
Manager, Docket Operations, telephone 202-366-9826.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Public Participation and Request for Comments
We encourage you to submit comments and related material. All
comments received will be posted, without change, to http://www.regulations.gov and will include any personal information you have
provided.
Submitting comments: If you submit a comment, please include the
docket number for this notice (USCG-2012-0907) and provide a reason for
each suggestion or recommendation. You may submit your comments and
material online, or by fax, mail or hand delivery, but please use only
one of these means. We recommend that you include your name and a
mailing address, an email address, or a telephone number in the body of
your document so that we can contact you if we have questions regarding
your submission.
To submit your comment online, go to http://www.regulations.gov and
use ``USCG-2012-0907'' as your search term. Locate this notice in the
search results and click the ``Comment Now'' box to submit your
comment. If you submit your comments by mail or hand delivery, submit
them in an unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable
for copying and electronic filing. If you submit them by mail and would
like to know that they reached the Facility, please enclose a stamped,
self-addressed postcard or envelope. We will consider all comments and
material received during the comment period.
Viewing the comments: To view the comments, go to http://www.regulations.gov and use ``USCG-2012-0907'' as your search term.
Filter the results by checking the box for ``Public Submissions'' on
the left side of the page. If you do not have access to the Internet,
you may view the docket online by visiting the Docket Management
Facility in Room W12-140 on the ground floor of the Department of
Transportation West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington,
DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except
Federal holidays. We have an agreement with the Department of
Transportation to use the Docket Management Facility.
Privacy Act: Anyone can search the electronic form of comments
received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review a
Privacy Act, system of records notice regarding our public dockets in
the January 17, 2008, issue of the Federal Register (73 FR 3316).
Public meeting: After considering public comments, we may hold one
or more future public meetings to provide another forum for public
comment. We will announce the time and place of any future public
meetings by a later notice in the Federal Register.
Background and Purpose
Section 822 of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010 (Pub. L.
111-281, 124 Stat. 2905) (CGAA 2010) amended 46 U.S.C. 70102 by
imposing the following mandates: (1) the owner or operator of a
facility must make a current copy of the Facility Vulnerability
Assessment (FVA) available to the ``port authority with jurisdiction of
the facility'' and ``State or local law enforcement agencies;'' and (2)
the owner or operator of a facility must ``integrate, to the maximum
extent practical,'' the facility's security systems ``with compatible
systems operated or maintained by State, law enforcement agencies, and
the Coast Guard.'' Section 822 is intended to increase industry
stakeholder and government agency (local, State, and Federal)
collaboration efforts to identify, prevent, mitigate, and respond to
Transportation Security Incidents (TSIs) and other disasters. If the
Coast Guard undertakes a future rulemaking to implement Section 822, it
would apply to facilities regulated by the Coast Guard under the
Maritime Security Transportation Act of 2002 (MTSA).
Existing Coast Guard regulations include a number of provisions
that require facility owners and operators to ensure the timely
involvement of law enforcement and emergency responders in the event of
a TSI or other disaster. Each Facility Security Assessment (FSA) must
contain provisions for contingency planning, emergency preparedness and
response, and communications capabilities (33 CFR 105.305). Facility
Security Officers (FSOs) are required to notify law enforcement
personnel and other emergency responders, as soon as possible, to
permit their timely response to any TSI (33 CFR 105.205(c)(16)). Each
facility access point must provide a primary and backup means of
contacting police, security control, or an emergency operations center
by telephone, cellular phone, portable radio, or other equivalent means
(33 CFR 105.235(c) and (d)). State and local emergency responders are
not required to obtain or possess a Transportation Worker
Identification Credential (TWIC) in order to gain unescorted access to
secure areas of a facility during an emergency situation (33 CFR
101.514(d)).
While the Coast Guard believes that in most instances, the measures
detailed above are adequate to ensure the timely involvement of State
and local law enforcement and emergency responders, additional
regulations may be necessary to close potential gaps that might hinder
an appropriate emergency response to a TSI or other disaster.
Preliminary Alternatives Considered
We have considered a number of possible ways to implement the
requirements in Section 822. We describe these approaches below to
inform the public of our preliminary thoughts on implementing Section
822 and to solicit public comments to gain a better understanding of
the issues that concern affected parties, as well as
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current industry practices on facility interactions with port
authorities, State and local law enforcement agencies, and the Coast
Guard. We are also interested in any information and data about the
costs associated with these approaches as well as any potential
benefit. These comments may assist us in formulating policy as we
consider a future rulemaking to implement Section 822.
FVA Sharing Alternatives
Require each MTSA-regulated facility owner or operator to
make a copy of the current FVA available to the cognizant Coast Guard
Captain of the Port, port authority, and State and local law
enforcement agencies, upon request. The owner or operator would share
the FVA via electronically secured transfer. Do facilities store FVAs
electronically?
Are you able to save them as an encrypted or password-protected
file?
Require each MTSA-regulated facility owner or operator to
proactively provide a copy of the current FVA to the port authority and
State and local law enforcement agencies at a prescribed time interval
(as opposed to making copies of FVAs available to the port authorities
and law enforcement upon request). The owner or operator would share
the FVA via electronically secured transfer.
Are you able to encrypt or password-protect the FVA electronic copy
and/or deliver it on a password-protected CD, flash drive, or other
storage medium?
Require each MTSA-regulated facility owner or operator to
share the current FVA with the port authority and State and local law
enforcement agencies annually at the annual exercise required under 33
CFR 105.220 or at a newly required annual FVA sharing meeting.
Require each MTSA-regulated facility owner or operator to
share the current FVA with the port authority and State and local law
enforcement agencies during the regularly scheduled 5-year resubmission
process of the Facility Security Plan (FSP).
In addition to the requirement to share the current FVA,
require each MTSA-regulated facility owner or operator to make the
Security Measures Summary (CG-6025) available to the relevant
government authorities and law enforcement agencies for review at the
end of the required annual exercise or equivalent (33 CFR 105.220).
In addition to the requirement to share the current FVA,
require each MTSA-regulated facility owner or operator to update the
FSP to incorporate FVA-sharing measures.
Security System Integration Alternatives
Require each MTSA-regulated facility owner or operator to
have and demonstrate via annual exercises the ability to provide manual
alerts regarding a TSI to appropriate State and local law enforcement
agencies and the Coast Guard.
Is 15 minutes a reasonable estimate of the additional time needed
to comply with this requirement?
Require each MTSA-regulated facility owner or operator to
have and demonstrate via annual exercises the ability to provide
automated alerts regarding a TSI to appropriate State and local law
enforcement agencies and the Coast Guard.
Is 15 minutes a reasonable estimate of the additional time needed
to comply with this requirement?
Require each MTSA-regulated facility owner or operator to
make security data feeds regarding a TSI (e.g., alerts, video feeds,
alarms, etc.) available to appropriate State and local law enforcement
agencies and the Coast Guard.
Do appropriate levels of technology exist at both the facility and
receiving government agency to comply with this requirement, which
would consist of sharing telecommunications information such as
Internet addresses, phone numbers, passwords, and encryption codes?
Require each MTSA-regulated facility owner or operator to
incorporate a technological solution that integrates their electronic
surveillance and communications systems with compatible systems
operated or maintained by the appropriate State and local law
enforcement agencies and the Coast Guard. There is a range of possible
methods for integrating security systems, including Internet
connectivity, dedicated telephone lines, and other forms of security
system integration.
Information Requested
1. We request comments on the feasibility, costs, and benefits of
each of the preliminary alternatives described above. Please be as
specific as possible. For estimates of costs a break-out by specific
cost element would be preferable to a lump sum. For example, provide
separate estimates for the equipment, number of hours and type of
worker needed to install the equipment (i.e. master electrician, labor,
supervisor), number of hours and type of employee (i.e., trainer, mid-
level manager) to prepare and execute training, and on-going
maintenance costs. Cost estimates can be provided as ranges.
2. We request comments as to whether there are any data,
literature, or studies that demonstrate the feasibility, costs, and
benefits of each of the preliminary alternatives described above.
3. We request comments from MTSA-regulated facility owners and
operators regarding current industry practices with respect to security
system integration between the facility and State and local law
enforcement agencies, the Coast Guard and, emergency responders.
4. We request comments as to whether the requirement to integrate
facility security systems with those of State and local law enforcement
agencies, the Coast Guard, and emergency responders should be limited
to only those MTSA-regulated facilities that are identified in risk-
based and other applicable types of analyses. If so, please identify
the characteristics of those facilities.
5. Aside from the preliminary alternatives described above, please
provide any other alternatives on preferred ways to implement the
requirements in Section 822. For any such alternatives suggested,
please include information and data as to the feasibility, costs, and
benefits.
6. We request any additional comments from interested parties on
the subject matter of this notice.
This notice is issued under authority of 5 U.S.C. 552(a), 46 U.S.C.
70102(c) and 70124.
Dated: January 25, 2013.
P.F. Thomas,
Director, Inspections and Compliance, U.S. Coast Guard.
[FR Doc. 2013-02209 Filed 1-31-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9110-04-P