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Title 46 — ShippingRelease 119-73not60

§3305 Scope and Standards of Inspection

Title 46 › Subtitle Subtitle II— Vessels and Seamen › Part B— Inspection and Regulation of Vessels › Chapter 33— INSPECTION GENERALLY › § 3305

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

Inspections must make sure a vessel is safe and fit for its job. Inspectors check that the ship’s structure is suitable, that it has working lifesaving and firefighting gear, that crew, instructors, students, and any allowed passengers have proper living space, that there is enough drinkable water, that the vessel can be operated safely for life and property, and that it follows marine safety laws. When deciding if there is enough potable water, the Secretary must look at the vessel’s size and type, how many people are on board, how long and where voyages go, and CDC and Public Health Service water guidelines. If an inspection finds a life preserver, lifesaving device, or firehose that cannot be fixed, the owner or master must destroy it in front of the inspector. Civilian nautical school vessels are inspected like small passenger or passenger ships based on tonnage. The Commandant of the Coast Guard must make sure Officers in Charge, Marine Inspection apply rules the same way to avoid disruption and extra cost. If two Officers disagree about a ship’s condition or rule interpretation, they must try to resolve it; if it’s about design or plan review, include the Coast Guard marine safety center. If they still disagree, the local Officer must ask the Commandant, through the district commander, for a final decision. The Commandant must give people the information needed to appeal and must handle appeals under parts 1–4 of Title 46, Code of Federal Regulations as they were on the date the Frank LoBiondo Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2018 took effect. Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection: a Coast Guard person named by the Commandant who runs an inspection zone and oversees these inspections under the district commander.

Full Legal Text

Title 46, §3305

Shipping — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)(1)The inspection process shall ensure that a vessel subject to inspection—
(A)is of a structure suitable for the service in which it is to be employed;
(B)is equipped with proper appliances for lifesaving, fire prevention, and firefighting;
(C)has suitable accommodations for the crew, sailing school instructors, and sailing school students, and for passengers on the vessel if authorized to carry passengers;
(D)has an adequate supply of potable water for drinking and washing by passengers and crew;
(E)is in a condition to be operated with safety to life and property; and
(F)complies with applicable marine safety laws and regulations.
(2)In determining the adequacy of the supply of potable water under paragraph (1)(D), the Secretary shall consider—
(A)the size and type of vessel;
(B)the number of passengers or crew on board;
(C)the duration and routing of voyages; and
(D)guidelines for potable water recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Public Health Service.
(b)If an inspection, or examination under section 3308 of this title, reveals that a life preserver, lifesaving device, or firehose is defective and incapable of being repaired, the owner or master shall destroy the life preserver, lifesaving device, or firehose in the presence of the official conducting the inspection or examination.
(c)A nautical school vessel operated by a civilian nautical school or by an educational institution under section 558 of title 40 shall be inspected like a small passenger vessel or a passenger vessel, depending on its tonnage.
(d)(1)The Commandant of the Coast Guard shall ensure that Officers in Charge, Marine Inspections consistently interpret regulations and standards under this subtitle and chapter 700 to avoid disruption and undue expense to industry.
(2)(A)Subject to subparagraph (B), in the event of a disagreement regarding the condition of a vessel or the interpretation of a regulation or standard referred to in subsection (a) between a local Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection conducting an inspection of the vessel and the Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection that issued the most recent certificate of inspection for the vessel, such Officers shall seek to resolve such disagreement.
(B)If a disagreement described in subparagraph (A) involves vessel design or plan review, the Coast Guard marine safety center shall be included in all efforts to resolve such disagreement.
(C)If a disagreement described in subparagraph (A) or (B) cannot be resolved, the local Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection shall submit to the Commandant of the Coast Guard, through the cognizant Coast Guard district commander, a request for a final agency determination of the matter in disagreement.
(3)The Commandant of the Coast Guard shall—
(A)provide to each person affected by a decision or action by an Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection or by the Coast Guard marine safety center all information necessary for such person to exercise any right to appeal such decision or action; and
(B)if such an appeal is filed, process such appeal under parts 1 through 4 of title 46, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date of enactment of the Frank LoBiondo Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2018.
(4)In this section, the term “Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection” means any person from the civilian or military branch of the Coast Guard who—
(A)is designated as such by the Commandant; and
(B)under the superintendence and direction of the cognizant Coast Guard district commander, is in charge of an inspection zone for the performance of duties with respect to the inspections under, and enforcement and administration of, subtitle II, chapter 700, and regulations under such laws.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Historical and Revision Notes

Revised sectionSource section (U.S. Code) 330546:369 46:390a 46:391 46:392 46:395 46:404–1 46:405 46:406 46:407 46:408 46:660a 46:881 section 3305 consolidates, at one place, the basic scope of coverage of the inspection process. It is to be noted that the time difference in enactment of various statutes has resulted in some anomalies. Thus, for example, R.S. 4417 (46 U.S.C. 391) which had originally set periods of inspection and vested authority in “local inspectors” was expanded over the years to provide the base for inspection of certain classes of vessels as well as setting out the periods and scope. The distillation of inspection objectives and standards in later laws and the transfer of all functions of separately created bureaus and functionaries to the Coast Guard permit this consolidation. There are those who have a desire to see the scope and standards of inspection be more specific in law similar to those presently applicable to boilers and boiler plating that predate 1871. The Committee believes this serves no useful purpose since the specifics are either antiquated or too limiting and have, in fact, been superceded by the statutorily authorized adoption of various industrial specifications, standards, and codes by the Coast Guard. These include the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), American National Standards Institute (ANSI), American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), American Welding Society (AWS), Underwriters Laboratories (UL), and many others. In addition, Coast Guard

Regulations

must also implement and conform to the numerous international maritime safety treaties to which the United States is signatory. The Committee expects that the regulatory flexibility being provided will not reduce the present vessel inspection requirements that have been historically developed. section 3305(a) establishes the statutory scope of the Coast Guard’s vessel inspection authority and duty. The inspection process shall ensure that a vessel is of suitable structure, equipment, and accommodations, is maintained in an operating condition consistent with safety of life and property, and complies with applicable marine safety laws and

Regulations

. Subsection (b) requires that defective life preservers and firehose be destroyed in the presence of the inspecting official, normally a qualified Coast Guard marine inspector. The Committee believes that if this equipment is defective for use on an inspected vessel, it should be destroyed so that it cannot be used on an uninspected or recreational vessel. Subsection (c) provides flexibility in the inspection of various sizes of nautical school vessels.

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The date of enactment of the Frank LoBiondo Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2018, referred to in subsec. (d)(3)(B), is the date of enactment of Pub. L. 115–282, which was approved Dec. 4, 2018.

Amendments

2021—Subsec. (d)(3)(B). Pub. L. 116–283 substituted “Frank LoBiondo Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2018” for “Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2017”. 2018—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 115–282 added subsec. (d). 2006—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 109–241 realigned margins. 2004—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 108–293, § 416(b), designated existing provisions as par. (1), redesignated former pars. (1) to (6) as subpars. (A) to (F), respectively, of par. (1), and added par. (2). Subsec. (a)(4) to (6). Pub. L. 108–293, § 416(a), added par. (4) and redesignated former pars. (4) and (5) as (5) and (6), respectively. 2002—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 107–217 substituted “section 558 of title 40” for “section 13 of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 1986”. 1986—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 99–640 inserted “or by an educational institution under section 13 of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 1986”. 1985—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 99–36 substituted “lifesaving” and “life preserver, lifesaving device, or firehose” for “life-saving” and “life preserver or firehose”, respectively.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Section effective Apr. 15, 1984, see section 2(g)(1) of Pub. L. 98–89, set out as a note under section 3101 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

46 U.S.C. § 3305

Title 46 — Shipping

Last Updated

Apr 5, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60