b'LEGISLATIVE LEGISLATIVE REPORTIllegal Passenger Vessel OperationsRICHARD PATCH // LEGISLATIVE DIRECTORW henPVAgoestoCapitolpromotingtheirsafety.TheU.S.withthemincursaconsiderablefi-Hill or talks with the U.S.CoastGuardinspectsandcertifiesnancial expense.CoastGuard,oneofthecommercialpassengervesselsand issues that is always top of mind is theconducts regular inspections to verifyUnfortunately,therearemanyun-scourge of dangerous, illegal passen- thatvesselsareincompliance.Thescrupulousvesseloperatorsthat ger vessel operators. These unlawfulCoastGuardisalsoresponsibleforflauntthesafetyrequirementsand operators put passengers, the marineissuing Merchant Mariner Credentialsoperate illegally.environment, and other waterway us- (licenses) to qualified mariners oper-ers at risk for the sake of profit. ating commercial passenger vessels. Illegal passenger operations pose signif-icant safety risks to their passengers. A IntheU.S.,commercialpassengerPVAmemberswelcometheserulescaptain may fail to qualify for a Coast vessels have an enviable safety record.and oversight, and appreciate the fo- Guard-issuedmasterscredential, Congress has enacted numerous lawscus on safety, even though complyingthereby not knowing navigational rules of the road.Crew members may not undergo man overboard or firefighting training.Basic safety equipment may be absent. In short, an illegal passenger vessel operator puts passengers at risk onvesselsthatmaynotbedesigned forpassengerservice,withuntrained crews, all in an effort to avoid required regulation and to maximize profit.Illegalcharteroperatorspreyonthe generalpublicbyadvertisingboat charters and sightseeing trips via on-line boat sharing websites and at ma-rinas. The unsuspecting public falsely believes that an operator is legitimate, qualified, and regulated if they are of-fering a service for a fee, but sadly too manyillegalpassengeroperatorsare willing to put lives at risk by taking on passengers without proper equip-Turnkey Solutions for Passenger Vessels ment, training, and licensing.Vessel Design & EngineeringConstruction ManagementFederal law authorizes hefty civil fines Interior Design SolutionsVessel Conversion & Refitsfor violations of commercial passenger vesselsafetylaws.TheCoastGuard To learn more, visitcan order an operator to cease illegal crowley.com/engineeringoperations by issuing a Captain of the FOGHORN 32'