46 USC 12101 Definitions

Page 203
§ 11507. Surrender of offending officers

When an officer of a vessel of the United
States (except the master) has violated section
2191 of title 18, and the master has actual knowledge of the offense or if complaint is made within 3 days after reaching port, the master shall
surrender the offending officer to the proper authorities. If the master fails to use diligence to
comply with this section and the offender escapes, the owner, the master, and the vessel are
liable for damages to the individual unlawfully
punished.
(Pub. L. 98–89, Aug. 26, 1983, 97 Stat. 584.)
HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES
Revised section
11507 ............................................

Source section (U.S. Code)
46:712

Section 11507 requires a master of a vessel of the
United States to surrender to the proper authorities
any officer who has violated section 2191 of title 18
(which provides a penalty for cruelty to seamen by officers), and penalizes the master for noncompliance.

PART H—IDENTIFICATION OF VESSELS
CHAPTER 121—DOCUMENTATION OF
VESSELS
SUBCHAPTER I—GENERAL
Sec.

12101.
12102.
12103.
12104.
12105.
12106.
12107.
12108.

Definitions.
Vessels requiring documentation.
General eligibility requirements.
Applications for documentation.
Issuance of documentation.
Surrender of title and number.
Wrecked vessels.
Authority to extend duration of vessel certificates.

SUBCHAPTER II—ENDORSEMENTS AND SPECIAL
DOCUMENTATION
12111.
12112.
12113.
12114.
12115.
12116.
12117.
12118.
12119.
12120.
12121.

Registry endorsement.
Coastwise endorsement.
Fishery endorsement.
Recreational endorsement.
Temporary endorsement for vessels procured
outside the United States.
Limited endorsements for Guam, American
Samoa, and Northern Mariana Islands.
Oil spill response vessels.
Owners engaged primarily in manufacturing
or mineral industry.
Owners engaged primarily in leasing or financing transactions.
Liquified gas tankers.
Small passenger vessels and uninspected passenger vessels.
SUBCHAPTER III—MISCELLANEOUS

12131.
12132.
12133.

12138.
12139.
12140.

Command of documented vessels.
Loss of coastwise trade privileges.
Duty to carry certificate on vessel and allow
examination.
Evidentiary uses of documentation.
Invalidation of certificates of documentation.
Surrender of certificates of documentation.
Recording of vessels built in the United
States.
List of documented vessels.
Reports.
Investigations by Secretary.

12151.

Penalties.

12134.
12135.
12136.
12137.

§ 12101

TITLE 46—SHIPPING

SUBCHAPTER IV—PENALTIES

Sec.

12152.

Denial or revocation of endorsement for nonpayment of civil penalty.
Editorial Notes
CODIFICATION

This chapter was originally enacted by Pub. L. 98–89,
Aug. 26, 1983, 97 Stat. 584, and amended by Pub. L.
98–364, July 17, 1984, 98 Stat. 440; Pub. L. 98–454, Oct. 5,
1984, 98 Stat. 1732; Pub. L. 99–36, May 15, 1985, 99 Stat.
67; Pub. L. 99–307, May 19, 1986, 100 Stat. 444; Pub. L.
99–509, Oct. 21, 1986, 100 Stat. 1874; Pub. L. 99–570, Oct.
27, 1986, 100 Stat. 3207; Pub. L. 100–239, Jan. 11, 1988, 101
Stat. 1778; Pub. L. 100–710, Nov. 23, 1988, 102 Stat. 4735;
Pub. L. 101–225, Dec. 12, 1989, 103 Stat. 1908; Pub. L.
101–380, Aug. 18, 1990, 104 Stat. 484; Pub. L. 101–595, Nov.
16, 1990, 104 Stat. 2979; Pub. L. 102–388, Oct. 6, 1992, 106
Stat. 1520; Pub. L. 102–587, Nov. 4, 1992, 106 Stat. 5039;
Pub. L. 104–208, Sept. 30, 1996, 110 Stat. 3009; Pub. L.
104–324, Oct. 19, 1996, 110 Stat. 3901; Pub. L. 105–277, Oct.
21, 1998, 112 Stat. 2681; Pub. L. 105–383, Nov. 13, 1998, 112
Stat. 3411; Pub. L. 106–31, May 21, 1999, 113 Stat. 57; Pub.
L. 107–20, July 24, 2001, 115 Stat. 155; Pub. L. 107–206,
Aug. 2, 2002, 116 Stat. 820; Pub. L. 107–295, Nov. 25, 2002,
116 Stat. 2064; Pub. L. 108–136, Nov. 24, 2003, 117 Stat.
1392; Pub. L. 108–293, Aug. 9, 2004, 118 Stat. 1028; Pub. L.
109–241, July 11, 2006, 120 Stat. 516. This chapter is
shown here, however, as having been enacted by Pub. L.
109–304, § 5, Oct. 6, 2006, 120 Stat. 1491, without reference
to those intervening amendments because of the general amendment of this chapter by Pub. L. 109–304.
AMENDMENTS
2021—Pub. L. 116–283, div. G, title LVXXXIII
[LXXXIII], § 8320(b), Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 4701, which directed amendment of ‘‘the analysis for subchapter I of
chapter 121’’ of this title by adding at the end item
12108 ‘‘Authority to extend duration of vessel certificates’’, was executed by adding item 12108 after item
12107 in this analysis to reflect the probable intent of
Congress.
2012—Pub. L. 112–213, title III, § 308(b), Dec. 20, 2012,
126 Stat. 1566, added item 12140.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
TRANSPARENCY
Pub. L. 115–282, title V, § 516(a), Dec. 4, 2018, 132 Stat.
4279, provided that: ‘‘The Commandant of the Coast
Guard shall publish any letter of determination issued
by the Coast Guard National Vessel Documentation
Center after the date of the enactment of this Act [Dec.
4, 2018] on the National Vessel Documentation Center
website not later than 30 days after the date of issuance
of such letter of determination.’’

SUBCHAPTER I—GENERAL
§ 12101. Definitions
(a) REBUILT IN THE UNITED STATES.—In this
chapter, a vessel is deemed to have been rebuilt
in the United States only if the entire rebuilding, including the construction of any major
component of the hull or superstructure, was
done in the United States.
(b) RELATED TERMS IN OTHER LAWS.—When the
following terms are used in a law, regulation,
document, ruling, or other official act referring
to the documentation of a vessel, the following
definitions apply:
(1) REGISTRY ENDORSEMENT.—The terms
‘‘certificate of registry’’, ‘‘register’’, and ‘‘registry’’ mean a certificate of documentation
with a registry endorsement issued under this
chapter.

§ 12102

TITLE 46—SHIPPING

(2) COASTWISE ENDORSEMENT.—The terms ‘‘license’’, ‘‘enrollment and license’’, ‘‘license for
the coastwise (or coasting) trade’’, and ‘‘enrollment and license for the coastwise (or
coasting) trade’’ mean a certificate of documentation with a coastwise endorsement
issued under this chapter.
(3) YACHT.—The term ‘‘yacht’’ means a recreational vessel even if not documented.

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Secretary finds, after publishing a notice in
the Federal Register, that a suitable vessel of
the United States is not available that could
perform those services.
(2) PROHIBITION.—Vessels operating under a
waiver issued under this subsection may not
engage in any coastwise transportation.

(Pub. L. 109–304, § 5, Oct. 6, 2006, 120 Stat. 1491.)

(Pub. L. 109–304, § 5, Oct. 6, 2006, 120 Stat. 1492;
Pub. L. 111–281, title IX, § 901(c)(1), Oct. 15, 2010,
124 Stat. 3008.)

HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES

HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES

Revised
Section
12101(a) ......

12101(b) ......

Source (U.S. Code)
46:12101(a)(2).
46 App.:883 (2d proviso related to
meaning of ‘‘rebuilt’’).

Source (Statutes at Large)

Revised
Section
12102(a) ......

June 5, 1920, ch. 250, § 27 (2d
proviso related to meaning of ‘‘rebuilt’’), 41 Stat.
999; July 2, 1935, ch. 355, 49
Stat. 442; July 14, 1956, ch.
600, § 1, 70 Stat. 544; Pub.
L. 86–583, § 1, July 5, 1960,
74 Stat. 321; Pub. L.
100–239, § 6(c)(1), Jan. 11,
1988, 101 Stat. 1782.

46:12101(b).

In subsection (a), the words ‘‘its territories’’ and ‘‘or
its possessions’’ are omitted because of the definition of
‘‘United States’’ in chapter 1 of the revised title. The
words ‘‘(not including trust territories)’’ are omitted
because the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands has
terminated. See 48 U.S.C. 1681 note prec.
Editorial Notes
PRIOR PROVISIONS
A prior section 12101, Pub. L. 98–89, Aug. 26, 1983, 97
Stat. 585; Pub. L. 98–364, title IV, § 402(16), July 17, 1984,
98 Stat. 450; Pub. L. 99–36, § 1(a)(7)(B), May 15, 1985, 99
Stat. 67; Pub. L. 100–239, § 3(2), (3), Jan. 11, 1988, 101 Stat.
1778; Pub. L. 101–225, title III, § 301(a)(1), Dec. 12, 1989,
103 Stat. 1920; Pub. L. 104–324, title XI, § 1115(b)(2), Oct.
19, 1996, 110 Stat. 3972, originally derived from section
65w of former Title 46, Shipping, related to definitions
and related terms in other laws, prior to the general
amendment of this chapter by Pub. L. 109–304. See this
section and section 108 of this title.

§ 12102. Vessels requiring documentation
(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided, a vessel may engage in a trade only if the
vessel has been issued a certificate of documentation with an endorsement for that trade
under this chapter.
(b) VESSELS LESS THAN 5 NET TONS.—A vessel
of less than 5 net tons may engage in a trade
without being documented if the vessel otherwise satisfies the requirements to engage in the
particular trade.
(c) BARGES.—A barge qualified to engage in
the coastwise trade may engage in the coastwise
trade, without being documented, on rivers, harbors, lakes (except the Great Lakes), canals, and
inland waters.
(d) AQUACULTURE WAIVER.—
(1) PERMITTING OF NONQUALIFIED VESSELS TO
PERFORM CERTAIN AQUACULTURE SUPPORT OPERATIONS.—Notwithstanding section 12113 and
any other law, the Secretary of Transportation may issue a waiver allowing a documented vessel with a registry endorsement or
a foreign flag vessel to be used in operations
that treat aquaculture fish for or protect
aquaculture fish from disease, parasitic infestation, or other threats to their health if the

12102(b) ......
12102(c) ......

Source (U.S. Code)

Source (Statutes at Large)

46:12106(b).
46:12108(b).
46:12110(a).
46:12102(a) (related
to tonnage).
46:12110(b).

Editorial Notes
PRIOR PROVISIONS
A prior section 12102, Pub. L. 98–89, Aug. 26, 1983, 97
Stat. 585; Pub. L. 99–509, title V, § 5102(b)(6), Oct. 21,
1986, 100 Stat. 1927; Pub. L. 100–239, § 7(a), Jan. 11, 1988,
101 Stat. 1782; Pub. L. 100–710, title I, § 104(a)(4), (5), Nov.
23, 1988, 102 Stat. 4750; Pub. L. 101–225, title III,
§ 301(a)(2), Dec. 12, 1989, 103 Stat. 1920; Pub. L. 104–324,
title XI, § 1136(a), Oct. 19, 1996, 110 Stat. 3986; Pub. L.
105–277, div. C, title II, § 202(a), Oct. 21, 1998, 112 Stat.
2681–617; Pub. L. 105–383, title IV, §§ 401(a)(1), 421, Nov.
13, 1998, 112 Stat. 3424, 3439; Pub. L. 107–20, title II,
§ 2202(a), July 24, 2001, 115 Stat. 168; Pub. L. 107–206, title
I, § 1103, Aug. 2, 2002, 116 Stat. 884; Pub. L. 108–136, div.
C, title XXXV, § 3534(b)(1), Nov. 24, 2003, 117 Stat. 1818,
originally derived from section 65b of former Title 46,
Shipping, related to vessels eligible for documentation,
prior to the general amendment of this chapter by Pub.
L. 109–304. See this section and sections 12103, 12111, and
12113 of this title.
AMENDMENTS
2010—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 111–281 added subsec. (d).
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
REGULATIONS
Pub. L. 111–281, title IX, § 901(c)(2), Oct. 15, 2010, 124
Stat. 3008, provided that: ‘‘The Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall, in
accordance with section 553 of title 5, United States
Code, and after public notice and comment, promulgate
regulations necessary and appropriate to implement
this subsection [amending this section]. The Secretary
may grant interim permits pending the issuance of
such regulations upon receipt of applications containing the required information.’’

§ 12103. General eligibility requirements
(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided, a certificate of documentation for a vessel may be issued under this chapter only if the
vessel is—
(1) wholly owned by one or more individuals
or entities described in subsection (b);
(2) at least 5 net tons as measured under part
J of this subtitle; and
(3) not documented under the laws of a foreign country.
(b) ELIGIBLE OWNERS.—For purposes of subsection (a)(1), the following are eligible owners:
(1) An individual who is a citizen of the
United States.