California Legislature Passes AB 1122. In the waning hours of the 2024 legislative session on August 30, the California Assembly passed AB 1122, an AWO-supported bill to provide relief from the recently amended Commercial Harbor Craft Rule, by a vote of 69-0.  The bill, which the State Senate previously passed by 39-1, now sits on Governor Newsom's desk awaiting his signature or veto by September 30.

 

AWO members can help push this important legislation over the finish line by sending a letter to Governor Newsom by September 10 urging him to sign the bill.  Any support letters should be emailed to Leg.Unit@gov.ca.gov.  If you would like draft text for your support letter, please contact Kyle Burleson or Peter Schrappen. Thank you to all members who have contributed to this monumental effort!

Correction: Coast Guard-AWO Annual Safety Report. In the previous issue of the AWO Letter, an article on the 2024 Coast Guard-AWO Safety Partnership Annual Safety Report incorrectly reported that five towing vessel crewmembers and five other individuals were killed in 2023 in four collisions involving towing vessels and recreational vessels. In fact, no towing vessel crewmembers were killed in these incidents. Rather, four towing vessel crewmembers died in incidents related to towing vessel operations in 2023, three of which were attributable to a fall into water and one of which was attributable to a cardiac event. We apologize for the error.

What AWO ASP Users Need to Do Now. What do AWO members that use the AWO Alternative Security Program (ASP) to meet the vessel security plan requirements of 33 CFR Part 104 need to do now that the Coast Guard has reapproved the ASP through August 16, 2029?  

For your convenience, two versions of the reapproved ASP are now available: one with all changes highlighted in yellow for review, and one without highlighted changes for printing. To obtain the passwords, please contact Liam Morcroft.

AWO Seeks Member Feedback on OSHA Heat Injury and Illness Prevention Proposal. AWO recently met with members of the Tankering and Barge Operations Subcommittee and Safety Leadership Advisory Panel to gather feedback on OSHA's proposed heat injury and illness prevention standard. During the meeting, members raised concerns about certain provisions within the proposed standard, including work site, break, acclimatization, and recordkeeping requirements. The proposal, which was released by OSHA in July, was finally published in the Federal Register on August 30, and comments are due by December 30, 2024. AWO is continuing to gather member input and will finalize comments to OSHA by October. If you have any questions about the proposed standard, or want to provide feedback, please contact Lillie Wightman.

AWO Addresses Coast Guard Inspections Division Chiefs at Annual Conference. On August 28, AWO Vice President - Regulatory Affairs Caitlyn Stewart spoke to an audience of Coast Guard officers from units around the country at the 2024 Chief, Inspections Division (CID) Conference in Washington, DC. She was featured on a panel on quality partnerships alongside CAPT Mark Neeland, Chief of the Office of Commercial Vessel Compliance at Coast Guard headquarters, and Eric Christiansen, Director of Regulatory Affairs and Risk Management at the Passenger Vesel Association. In her remarks, Caitlyn highlighted the Coast Guard-AWO Safety Partnership as a critical and successful forum for agency-industry cooperation at the national and regional levels, allowing AWO and the Coast Guard to promote our shared goals of enhancing waterways safety, security, and environmental stewardship. She also discussed the importance of CIDs communicating proactively with towing vessel and barge operators in their areas of responsibility and seeking front-end, real-world input as they develop policy, and encouraged them to be transparent in decision-making and share information about the adjudication of appeals with operators and other Coast Guard units to drive greater consistency and predictability.

Reminder: Upcoming FAC Meetings and NTSAC Pre-Meeting. Each spring and fall, the U.S. Coast Guard holds meetings of its federal advisory committees (or FACs) to gather public input and receive recommendations on its policies, regulations, and processes. These Congressionally authorized committees are a key way AWO engages with the Coast Guard and are critical for ensuring the Coast Guard's decision-making is informed by industry insights and real-world experience. To provide the Coast Guard the fullest range of feedback, join us at our virtual pre-meeting to prepare for N-TSAC on September 16 from 3-4 PM (Eastern) by contacting Liam Morcroft, and consider attending FAC meetings to add your voice to the discussion alongside AWO.

NMC Provides Tips for Contacting the Customer Service Center. The Coast Guard has recognized that contacting the NMC customer service center can be challenging and has issued a document with several tips and alternative communication options to assist mariners. In particular, the Merchant Mariner Application Status online tool is a key resource for determining the status of an application. During recent member meetings and roundtables, AWO members have voiced concerns with the NMC's customer service center, and AWO is working to better understand specific concerns and engage with the Coast Guard to identify solutions.

AWO PAC Corner

 

AWO PAC and Inside Elections. AWO PAC has partnered with Inside Elections for another special edition, featuring the latest on the presidential, Senate, House, and gubernatorial races.

AWO PAC is the connected political action committee for The American Waterways Operators and serves as the trade association's separate segregated fund. As a trade association, AWO is prohibited from using general treasury funds or membership dues to make federal contributions. AWO is one of the most effective advocacy associations in Washington, DC, and relies on voluntary personal contributions to fund AWO PAC.

 

AWO PAC supports federal candidates who are champions of the U.S. tugboat, towboat and barge industry and who are leaders on issues important to our industry. AWO PAC is dedicated to protecting AWO members' investments in the safest, most environmentally responsible and most economical mode of freight transportation and safeguarding the integrity of the Jones Act to protect the bottom lines of our members.

 

 AWO PAC may solicit contributions from individuals of a member company once the member representative gives AWO written prior approval.

AWO Attends USACE Barge Inspection Tour and CPMR Annual Meeting in Kansas City. On August 28, AWO attended the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Barge Inspection Tour hosted by the Corps' Kansas City District. This annual event provides attendees an opportunity to learn about navigation projects on the lower Missouri River. Attendees included Missouri River operators, Congressional staff, state and federal agencies, and other Missouri River stakeholders.

 

Following the Barge Inspection Tour, the Coalition to Protect the Missouri River (CPMR) held its annual meeting to hear Missouri River updates and discuss issues with Congressional staff and the Corps. Representative Sam Graves (R-MO), Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, addressed the meeting and committed to continuing his work to strengthen navigation reliability on the Missouri River. At the end of the CPMR meeting, AWO Director - Midcontinent Office Justin Lampert was elected as a CPMR Board Member.

AWO Recognizes G&H Towing Team with HERO Award. AWO Southern Region Vice President Jill Bessetti, recently attended the West Gulf Maritime Association's meeting in Houston to present the crew of G&H Towing's GEORGE M with the American Waterways Honor and Excellence in Rescue Operations (HERO) award for their rescue of four crew members from the MISS PEGGY during a tragic accident in the Houston Ship Channel. USCG Sector Houston-Galveston Commanding Officer Captain Keith Donohue also commemorated this rescue with a Coast Guard award.

AWO Hosts Safety Committees' Summer Meeting in Chicago. AWO was pleased to welcome more than 175 members and guests to Chicago for the Safety Committees' Summer Meeting. The event kicked off on August 14 with meetings of the Safety Leadership Advisory Panel and Tankering and Barge Operations Subcommittee. That evening, many attendees joined AWO's welcome reception and annual Outing at the Park, enjoying an MLB game at the White Sox stadium before getting down to business early the next day.

 

The educational sessions on August 15 began with a welcome message from AWO Chairman of the Board Kelly Teichman and AWO President & CEO Jennifer Carpenter, and continued with an address from MSU Chicago Commander Tim Tilghman, which was followed by a panel featuring MSU Chicago and the Chicago Harbor Safety Committee discussing managing safety in busy, multi-use waterways.

 

Next was an examination of the role of the Incident Command System (ICS) in managing the response and recovery of the recent Key Bridge and Pelican Island Bridge allisions, a case study discussing how an ICS was used to successfully recover a methanol barge stranded on the McAlpine Dam near Louisville, and the presentation of the American Waterways HERO Award, which recognized heroic acts by 60 mariners involved in 12 rescue events recorded since the February HERO Award ceremony in New Orleans. 

 

Following a lunch presentation by Sharon Lipinski on earning senior management buy-in for your safety program, the meeting continued with a presentation from the Oil Companies International Marine Forum, an update on the state of mariner well-being and mental health post-pandemic, a case study of a fall overboard event, and a panel discussing shipyard issues. 

 

Recordings of the presentations are available on the AWO Resources Page.

 

Thank you to all who attended! The Safety Committees look forward to welcoming members to the next meeting February 17-19 in Nashville, TN.  

Equipment Reports Due Soon! The AWO equipment reporting process for 2025 is now underway! You can submit equipment reports online by logging into your Membership Dashboard. We are asking all carriers to update their equipment lists by September 10. Please email Violet Daniels with any questions about this process.

Mark Your Calendars for the AWO Fall Convention! Join us next month for the AWO Fall Convention & Board of Directors Meeting, set for October 8-9 in Long Beach, CA. Learn more or register on the AWO website.  

 

Please reach out to Caitin Clark with any questions.