§3305 Scope and standards of inspection

Summary

Inspections must make sure a vessel is built for the job it will do, has working lifesaving and firefighting gear, has proper living space for crew and students and for passengers if allowed, has enough safe drinking water, is safe to operate, and follows marine safety rules. How much drinking water is enough depends on the vessel’s size and type, how many people are onboard, how long and where the trips go, and public health guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and the Public Health Service. If an inspector finds a life preserver, lifesaving device, or firehose that is broken beyond repair, the owner or captain must destroy it in front of the inspector. A civilian nautical school’s ship is inspected like a small passenger or a passenger vessel based on its tonnage. The Coast Guard must make sure its inspectors apply rules the same way to avoid unnecessary problems or costs. If two inspectors disagree about a vessel’s condition or how a rule applies, they must try to resolve it. If the disagreement involves vessel design or plans, the Coast Guard marine safety center must be included. If they cannot agree, the local inspector must ask the Commandant, through the district commander, for a final decision. The Commandant must give anyone affected the information needed to appeal and must handle appeals under parts 1–4 of 46 CFR as they were in effect when the Frank LoBiondo Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2018 became law. An “Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection” is a Coast Guard person the Commandant names to run an inspection area under the district commander.