[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 212 (Thursday, October 31, 1996)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 56199-56211]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-27881]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Coast Guard
46 CFR Parts 10 and 12
[CGD 96-053]
User Fees for Marine Licensing, Certification of Registry and
Merchant Mariner Documentation
AGENCY: Coast Guard, DOT.
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ACTION: Notice of recalculation of program costs and reassessment of
fees; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard has completed a recalculation of the costs
associated with its marine licensing and merchant mariner documentation
program and has reassessed the user fees published in 46 CFR Parts 10
and 12. These actions have been taken pursuant to a court order issued
by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. This notice
announces the completion of, and seeks public comments on, the
recalculation and sets out a summary of the results.
DATES: Comments must be received not later than December 30, 1996.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to the Executive Secretary, Marine
Safety Council (G-LRA) [CGD 96-053], U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters,
2100 Second Street SW., Washington, DC 20593-0001 or may be delivered
to room 3406 at the same address between 9:30 a.m. and 2 p.m., Monday
through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone number is (202)
267-1477.
The Executive Secretary maintains the public docket for this
notice. Comments will become part of this docket and will be available
for inspection or copying at room 3406, U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters,
between 9:30 a.m. and 2 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal
holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
LCDR Matthew Glomb, Office of Claims and Litigation (G-LCL), telephone
(202) 267-1040.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Request for Comments
The Coast Guard encourages interested persons to review and comment
on the recalculation by submitting written data, views or arguments.
Persons submitting comments should include their names and addresses,
identify this notice (CGD 96-053), the specific part of the
recalculation to which each comment or question applies, and give the
reason for each comment. Please submit two copies of all comments and
attachments in an unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches,
suitable for copying and electronic filing. Persons wanting
acknowledgment of receipt of comments should enclose stamped self-
addressed postcards or envelopes.
Background Information
On November 5, 1990, Congress passed the Omnibus Budget
Reconciliation Act which amended 46 U.S.C. Sec. 2110 to require
establishment of user fees for certain services provided by the Coast
Guard. As a result, the Coast Guard issued a final rule entitled ``User
Fees for Marine Licensing, Certification of Registry and Merchant
Mariner Documentation'' on March 19, 1993 (58 FR 15228). This rule
established marine licensing and merchant mariner documentation user
fees in 46 Parts 10 and 12. The final rule became effective on April
19, 1993.
On April 15, 1993, Seafarers International Union of North America,
et al., brought suit against the Coast Guard and sought to, among other
things, enjoin it from collecting marine licensing and merchant mariner
documentation user fees. In ruling on the case, on November 23, 1994,
the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia affirmed the Coast
Guard's authority to establish and collect user fees and confirmed the
methodology by which the Coast Guard established its fees. However, the
Court ordered the Coast Guard to recalculate the costs associated with
its marine licensing and merchant mariner documentation program,
reassess the established fees, and subject the recalculations to public
notice and comment. The Court also ordered the Coast Guard to stop
charging for FBI criminal history checks.
The Coast Guard conducted a time-motion study of work activity at
Regional Examination Centers during the spring and summer of 1995. This
study was undertaken in order to update the data contained in the 1989
Workload Study used during the original calculation of the fees. The
study was the first step in the process of recalculating program costs.
Since 1995, the Coast Guard has updated all data used in the original
calculation of the marine licensing and merchant mariner documentation
user fees, including Regional Examination Center transaction data and
personnel and overhead costs. The Coast Guard updated its transaction
activity data, verified supporting documentation, and recalculated its
program costs. The data from the 1995 time-motion study was used during
the recalculation of both the overall and per activity cost of the
marine licensing and merchant mariner documentation program. The Coast
Guard then reassessed its published fees by comparing them to the
recalculated costs.
The recalculation of costs and the reassessment of user fees
ordered by the Court were completed on September 25, 1996. The Coast
Guard administratively reduced the amount to be collected for six
services where published fees exceeded recalculated costs. These fees
can only be permanently changed through the rulemaking process and the
Coast Guard will initiate a rulemaking after the close of this comment
period.
The published fees, recalculated costs, and the fee collection
amounts affected by the Coast Guard's interim administrative action are
summarized in Tables 1 and 2.
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This notice complies with the order of the Court that the
recalculation and reassessment be subject to notice and comment.
Dated: October 24, 1996.
J.C. Card,
Chief, Marine Safety and Environmental Protection.
[FR Doc. 96-27881 Filed 10-30-96; 8:45 am]
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