The Department of State will conduct a meeting, open to the public, led by the Coast Guard. The primary purpose of the meeting is to prepare for the 7th Session of the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Sub-Committee on Ship Systems and Equipment, to be held at the IMO headquarters in London, United Kingdom in March.

Public meeting details:

Date: Monday, February 24, 2020
Time: 10:00 a.m.
Location: Douglas A. Munro Coast Guard Headquarters Building at St. Elizabeth’s, 2703 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE, Washington D.C. 20593

Members of the public may register to attend this meeting up to the seating capacity of the room. To facilitate the building security process, and to request reasonable accommodation, those who plan to attend should contact the meeting coordinator, Lt. Brock Hashimoto by February 20, 2019:

Email: Brock.J.Hashimoto@uscg.mil
Phone: (202) 372-1426

Requests made after February 20 might not be accommodated. Two valid, government-issued photo IDs must be presented to gain entrance to the Coast Guard Headquarters building.

Topics to be covered include:

• Adoption of the Agenda
• Decisions of other IMO bodies
• New requirements for ventilation of survival craft
• Consequential work related to the new Code for ships operating in polar waters
• Revision of SOLAS chapter III and the LSA Code
• Review SOLAS chapter II-2 and associated codes to minimize the incidence and consequences of fires on ro-ro spaces and special category spaces of new and existing ro-ro passenger ships
• Amendments to MSC.1/Circ.1315
• Amendments to chapter 9 of the FSS Code for fault isolation requirements for cargo ships and passenger ship cabin balconies fitted with individually identifiable fire detector systems
• Requirements for onboard lifting appliances and anchor handling winches
• Safety objectives and functional requirements of the Guidelines on alternative design and arrangements for SOLAS chapters II-1 and III
• Development of guidelines for cold ironing of ships and consideration of amendments to SOLAS chapters II-1 and II-2
• Amendments to paragraph 4.4.7.6.17 of the LSA Code concerning single fall and hook systems with on-load release capability
• Revision of the Standardized Life-Saving Appliance Evaluation and Test Report Forms (MSC/Circ.980 and addenda)
• Revision of the Code of safety for diving systems (resolution A.831(19)) and the Guidelines and specifications for hyperbaric evacuation systems (resolution A.692(17))
• Amendments to SOLAS chapter III, LSA Code and resolution MSC.81(70) to remove the applicability of the requirements to launch free-fall lifeboats with the ship making headway at speeds up to 5 knots in calm water
• Unified interpretation of provisions of IMO safety, security and environment-related conventions
• Revision of the Guidelines for the maintenance and inspections of fixed carbon dioxide fire-extinguishing systems (MSC.1/Circ.1318)
• Biennial status report and provisional agenda for SSE 8
• Election of Chair and Vice-Chair for 2021
• Any other business

View the Federal Register Notice for a list of topics and instructions on registering.

This blog is not a replacement or substitute for the formal posting of regulations and updates or existing processes for receiving formal feedback of the same. Links provided on this blog will direct the reader to official source documents, such as the Federal Register, Homeport and the Code of Federal Regulations. These documents remain the official source for regulatory information published by the Coast Guard.