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As the Owner/Operator’s representative, the FSO must sort through the regulations and know the applicable parts that govern their facility.

TWIC – do you know if and how the upcoming TWIC Reader requirement applies to your facility?

Seafarer Access – as FSO, do you know if the Owner/Operator must facilitate Merchant Mariner access, and if so, when and how?

Does the Owner/Operator have responsibilities when a vessel calls on the facility with an elevated security (ISPS or MARSEC) level? What are the requirements associated with Declarations of Security?

It’s all in the regulations, supplementary guidance and advice documents. Need a Certified FSO Course or FSO Refresher? See Seebald.com for a location and date that works for you; or give Ed a call and arrange a private course tailored for you, your facility and personnel.

The Owner/Operator is referred to 31 times in 33 CFR 101; 106 times in 33 CFR 105; and 36 times in NVIC 03-03 (and we haven’t even mentioned the SAFE Port Act!) As the facility’s security point-person, the FSO should equate the regulatory requirements as their to-do list and responsibility to comply with all applicable laws, regulations, and agency policies.

33 CFR 101 explains notification requirements to NRC and the local COTP; to include changes in MARSEC level, suspicious activity, breaches of security, and TSIs. It details how the facility’s security organization must interact with government authorities in the performance of their duties.

33 CFR 105 requires the Owner/Operator to effectively establish the physical boundaries of the MTSA regulated area(s). There are also provisions for equivalency, waivers, and alternate security plans. As well as requirements for maintaining documents, to include those associated with explosive detection dog teams.

Is the FSO off the hook? After all, the regulations and guidance requires the Owner and/or Operator of a facility to act. However –

The FSO is the Owner/Operator’s official representative for security matters at the facility; how the FSO does their job is paramount to fulfilling the regulatory requirements and the Owner/Operator’s ‘promise to the people of the United States’ as contained in the FSP.

This month we’ll explore how the Owner/Operator (in reality, the FSO) brings MTSA to life on your facility. The FSO is on the hook!

MISLE is only available to authorized Coast Guard personnel via the Coast Guard intranet. However, the Coast Guard provides extracted information from MISLE to federal and state agencies to meet their mission requirements and some information on vessels, facilities, and organizations is provided to the

public. The public may access portions of the data contained on the MISLE system through the Port State Information eXchange (PSIX). The information found in PSIX represents a weekly snapshot of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) data on U.S. flag vessels, foreign vessels operating in U.S. waters, and Coast Guard contacts with those vessels. Information on unclosed cases, investigations, or cases pending further action is considered privileged information and is precluded from the PSIX system.

What about access to your facility’s MISLE information? It looks like there’s no elegant answer to that question other than requesting the information from your Coast Guard Inspector. Most facility operators are unaware of what specific information their Coast Guard Inspector can access about their facility. You can formally ask for a copy of your MISLE history via a Freedom of Information Act request. The easier way, though, is to cultivate a trusting relationship with your Inspector and demonstrate your need-to-know the information. Remember, it’s considered Sensitive Security Information, and subject to the protections in 49 CFR 1520.

The Coast Guard provides its facility inspectors with guidance on conducting a compliance inspection – it’s located in Appendix (B) to COMDTINST M16601.1 Each Facility Security Plan Review is assigned a MISLE number, and the Coast Guard’s inspection activities are documented in the MISLE database.

Your inspector’s pre-inspection activities include reviewing your FSA Report, Form CG-6025 and FSP, reviewing your records, deficiency history, and CG Activity History in MISLE. Just like when a police officer checks their database upon stopping a vehicle, your CG Inspectors refresh themselves (increasing their “situational awareness”) by looking at your facility’s history in MISLE.

Following your facility inspection, your Inspectors document their Post-inspection activities in MISLE. They complete a MISLE MTSA Compliance Exam activity case log, determine whether amendments to the FSP are required, and Initiate appropriate actions to ensure timely correction of deficiencies. This includes documenting Notices of Violations. The MISLE database also links to the Coast Guard Finance Center to track the enforcement activity (including case adjudication and penalty payments) until the case is closed.

The Marine Information for Safety and Law Enforcement (MISLE) is a database system managed and used by the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG). MISLE is used to store data on marine accidents, pollution incidents, search and rescue cases, law enforcement activities, and vessel and facility inspections. You can imagine the knowledge and history residing in MISLE. It’s been around since 2002, and is pre-dated by facility information that was held in the Marine Safety Information System.

Currently, MISLE contains information on over 650,000 U.S. and foreign flagged vessels, including nearly 80,000 Commercial Fishing Vessels, and over 3,400 MTSA regulated facilities. Coast Guard personnel use MISLE to schedule and record operational activities such as vessel boardings, facility inspections, marine casualty investigations, pollution response actions, law enforcement actions, and search and rescue operations. That’s a lot of data! In 2015 alone, the Coast Guard was responsible for conducting 2,432 FSP inspections, and 5,937 MTSA inspections. Each of those activities is captured by a MISLE entry. Good, bad, or ugly, the Coast Guard’s version of your facility’s history is described in the MISLE database.

Did you ever wonder how the Coast Guard manages to track activities and enforcement actions across thousands of regulated maritime activities? Does your Coast Guard Inspector seem to know more of your facility’s regulatory history than your own corporate recall? If those questions and more make you ponder the reach of your regulators’ data mining capabilities, join us this month as we explore the Marine Information for Safety and Law Enforcement (MISLE) database.

Seebald & Associates International works hard to deliver a thorough, high level Audit for our clients. Our Audits include:

– – A complete review of the Facility Security Plan;

– A tour, review and critique of the entire physical facility and physical security systems;

– Review and testing of the implementation of all security procedures and protocols;

– A review of all Records and Documents, cleaning and updating of records and documents, and implementation of the Seebald Records & Documents Kit;

– Security Awareness training as needed;

– The conduct of at least one security drill;

– – The conduct of an annual exercise;

– – A comprehensive Audit Report for the FSO (not to be shared with the USCG);

– – Preparation of minor amendments;

– – One year of telephone support;

– – One year of support through our Platinum Membership service.

When you’re looking for an expert to conduct your Annual Audit, consider the team at Seebald & Associates! We’re here to help ensure that your facility is secure and that you remain in compliance with 33 CFR105!

After doing hundreds of Audits, we see some frightening errors and problems. The problems run the gamut from physical security problems to not following processes and protocols. On the physical security side, some of the typical issues include: damaged fences, overgrown vegetation adjacent to fences, and fence areas used as a junkyard. We also find open gates, damaged or missing signage, and lights that are out.

In the protocols and procedures area, we see a lack of TWIC checks, a lack of random screening, and a general lack of understanding of FSP security protocols. We also find a lack of proper maintenance of records and documents.

All of these items are fairly obvious and should be observed in routine reviews conducted by the FSO. They are easily corrected and should be repaired, corrected and maintained on a regular basis.

The answer to the question, “What constitutes an expert?” is fairly simple. You want a person who thoroughly understands 33 CFR 105, is well-versed in all facility security-related issues, and is not part of your facility’s security organization. Our general guidance is that, “If you know more than your auditor, you need a new auditor.” The auditor should be your “critical best friend” who will tell you the good, the bad and the ugly regarding your security. The guy next door is probably not your best pick! And if you’ve had the same person serving as your auditor for several years, then it’s time to bring in a fresh set of eyes.

The Audit is a critically important tool to test your FSP and your people, and to keep your facility safe and secure. The Audit is more than just another regulatory requirement! Your Audit must include a thorough review of your Facility Security Plan (FSP). Additionally, it must include a complete site review of your physical security and security systems, and a test of your security screening and monitoring protocols. At the conclusion of the Audit, you should receive a report of all findings and discrepancies. Remember, Coast Guard Compliance Inspectors conduct inspections, not audits!!!