On 20 July 2020 the United States Coast Guard received approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) adopting revisions to the Ballast Water Management Reporting Form (OMB number 1625-0069, expiration date 31 July 2023). This Reporting Form replaces all previous and expired versions.

The new Ballast Water Management Reporting Form has two important changes from the most recently expired Reporting Form:

1. The yes/no question “Alternative BW management conducted, per instructions from COTP” has been removed.
2. All vessels are now required to report the date of their last dry dock, information that is critical to the Coast Guard for determining a vessel’s compliance date as specified in 33 CFR 151.1512 & 151.2035.

With approval of the Ballast Water Management Reporting Form, the National Ballast Information Clearinghouse (NBIC) will no longer accept expired Reporting Form versions. To fully comply with all Coast Guard Ballast Water reporting requirements, all vessels must use the new Ballast Water Management Reporting Form, since expired versions lack required information.

The new Ballast Water Management Reporting Form (OMB number 1625-0069, expiration date 31 July 2023) can be accessed through the NBIC website.

For report-related questions, contact the National Ballast Information Clearinghouse (NBIC) at nbic@ballastreport.org.  For Ballast Water Management program questions, contact the USCG Environmental Standards Division at environmental_standards@uscg.mil

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 publications, such as the Federal Register, Homeport and the Code of Federal Regulations. These publications remain the official source for regulatory information published by the Coast Guard.