(a) A vessel owner or operator who disagrees with a deficiency determination may submit a petition for reconsideration to the Commandant (CG-5RI), Attn: Director of Incident Management and Preparedness Policy, U.S. Coast Guard Stop 7516, 2703 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20593-7516 or [email protected] within the time period required for compliance or within 7 days from the date of receipt of the Coast Guard notice of a deficiency determination, whichever is less. After considering all relevant material presented, the Coast Guard will notify the vessel owner or operator of the final decision.
(1) Unless the vessel owner or operator petitions for reconsideration of the Coast Guard's decision, the vessel's owner or operator must correct the vessel response plan (VRP) deficiencies within the period specified in the Coast Guard's initial determination.
(2) If the vessel owner or operator petitions the Coast Guard for reconsideration, the effective date of the Coast Guard notice of deficiency determination may be delayed pending a decision by the Coast Guard. Petitions to the Coast Guard must be submitted in writing, via the Coast Guard official who issued the requirement to amend the VRP, within 5 days of receipt of the notice.
(b) Within 21 days of notification that a VRP is not approved, the vessel owner or operator may appeal that determination to the Director of Incident Management and Preparedness Policy (CG-5RI). This appeal must be submitted in writing to Commandant (CG-5RI), Attn: Director of Incident Management and Preparedness Policy, U.S. Coast Guard Stop 7516, 2703 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20593-7516.
[USCG-2008-1070, 78 FR 60124, Sept. 30, 2013, as amended by USCG-2014-0410, 79 FR 38437, July 7, 2014; USCG-2016-0498, 82 FR 35083, July 28, 2017]