AMO Currents - TWIC compliance date set for Great Lakes zones

AMO Currents - Posted: July 9, 2008

TWIC compliance date set for Great Lakes zones

The U.S. Coast Guard and Transportation Security Administration have announced that Oct. 31, 2008, is the Transportation Worker Identification Credential program compliance date for owners and operators of maritime and port facilities within the following Coast Guard Captain of the Port Zones: Buffalo, N.Y.; Duluth, Minn.; Detroit, Mich.; Sault Ste. Marie and Lake Michigan.

Previously, the Coast Guard and TSA set a TWIC compliance date of Oct. 15, 2008, for the Captain of the Port Zones of Boston, Northern New England and Southeastern New England.

The Coast Guard plans to announce those additional ports scheduled for the compliance phase of the TWIC program in coming weeks. Compliance will be phased in by Captain of the Port Zones between Oct. 15, 2008, and April 15, 2009, after which all ports must be in compliance and all U.S. mariners must be in possession of a TWIC.

More information about the TWIC program and compliance dates by Captain of the Port Zones is available online at http://homeport.uscg.mil/twic.

In a notice previously published in the Federal Register, the Department of Homeland Security clarified that, until April 15, 2009, U.S. mariners holding a Coast Guard license, merchant mariner document, certificate of registry or STCW endorsement "may continue to use their mariner credentials, along with a photo ID, to gain unescorted access to facilities and vessels."

U.S. mariners who have not already done so are urged to apply for the TWIC as soon as possible, and to pre-enroll online to speed up the process as much as possible.