(a) No manned ship subject to this part may operate unless it carries on board a shipboard oil pollution emergency plan approved by the Coast Guard. An unmanned ship subject to this regulation must carry the notification list required in § 151.26(b)(3) on board in the documentation container; remaining sections of the plan must be maintained on file at the home office. For new ships, plans must be submitted at least 90 days before the ship intends to begin operations.

(b) An owner or operator of a ship to which this part applies shall prepare and submit one English language copy of the shipboard oil pollution emergency plan to Commandant (CG-CVC-1), Attn: Domestic Vessels Division, U.S. Coast Guard Stop 7501, 2703 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20593-7501.

(c) An owner or operator with multiple ships to which this part applies may submit one plan for each type of ship with a separate ship-specific appendix for each vessel covered by the plan.

(d) Combined shipboard oil pollution emergency plans and response plans meeting the requirements of subparts D and E of part 155 of this chapter must be prepared according to § 155.1030(j) of this chapter.

(e) If the Coast Guard determines that the plan meets the requirements of this section, the Coast Guard will issue an approval letter. The approval period for a plan expires 5 years after the approval date.

(f) If the Coast Guard determines that the plan does not meet the requirements, the Coast Guard will notify the owner or operator of the plan's deficiency. The owner or operator must then resubmit a copy of the revised plan or the corrected portions of the plan, within the time period specified in the written notice provided by the Coast Guard.

(g) Plans, including revisions, should be submitted electronically by using the Vessel Response Plan Electronic Submission Tool available at https://homeport.uscg.mil/vrpexpress.

(h) If plans are submitted in paper format, owners or operators should use CG Form “Application for Approval/Revision of Vessel Pollution Response Plans” (CG-6083) located at: http://www.uscg.mil/forms/CG/CG_6083.pdf in lieu of a cover letter to make initial application for plan submission and revision.