USCG FSP Drills and Exercises - 33 CFR 105 – 2024 is Almost Over!
John K. Carroll III
Associate Managing Director at Witt O'Brien's, LLC, Part of the Ambipar Group
(This article was written without AI tools, i.e., ChatGPT.)
As I noted in last week’s article, Have you experienced a spill in 2024? Do you fall under OPA90? December 31st is around the corner, PREP!, 2024 is winding down fast, and with holidays and personnel vacations, there is not much time to complete major required regulatory program action items. This article will focus on another critical set of drills and exercises companies must deal with, but are commonly overlooked.
If you are a marine facility regulated by the United States Coast Guard (USCG) and subject to 33 CFR 105.105, you must develop and maintain a Facility Security Plan (FSP). This means that your facility is subject to 33 CFR parts 126 (waterfront facilities handling packaged and bulk-solid dangerous cargo and to vessels), 127 (marine transfers facilities handling Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) or Liquefied Hazardous Gas (LHG), or 154 (facilities that are capable of transferring oil or hazardous materials, in bulk, to or from a vessel). As with every rule, there are caveats, but today’s article will provide a clear, high-level summary.
Under 33 CFR 105, as with every USCG rule, there are requirements for facility design criteria and plan development, training, exercises and drills, and specific compliance. Exercises and drills are one area that are often overlooked as they are much smaller in scale than some of the other USCG requirements.
There is a slight difference between an exercise and a drill. Drills are done quarterly and are meant to test one or more elements of your FSP. Exercises are done annually, but not exceeding 18 months between exercises, and test the overall facility’s security program under the rule.
Here is what the rule says:
(a) General.
(1) Drills and exercises must test the proficiency of facility personnel in assigned security duties at all MARSEC Levels and the effective implementation of the Facility Security Plan (FSP). They must enable the Facility Security Officer (FSO) to identify any related security deficiencies that need to be addressed.
(2) A drill or exercise required by this section may be satisfied with the implementation of security measures required by the FSP as the result of an increase in the MARSEC Level, provided the facility reports attainment to the cognizant COTP.
(b) Drills.
(1) The FSO must ensure that at least one security drill is conducted every 3 months. Security drills may be held in conjunction with non-security drills, where appropriate.
(2) Drills must test individual elements of the FSP, including response to security threats and incidents. Drills should take into account the types of operations of the facility, facility personnel changes, the type of vessel the facility is serving, and other relevant circumstances. Examples of drills include unauthorized entry to a restricted area, response to alarms, and notification of law enforcement authorities.
(3) If a vessel is moored at the facility on the date the facility has planned to conduct any drills, the facility cannot require the vessel or vessel personnel to be a part of or participate in the facility's scheduled drill.
(c) Exercises.
(1) Exercises must be conducted at least once each calendar year, with no more than 18 months between exercises.
(2) Exercises may be:
(i) Full scale or live;
(ii) Tabletop simulation or seminar;
(iii) Combined with other appropriate exercises; or
(iv) A combination of the elements in paragraphs (c)(2)(i) through (iii) of this section.
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(3) Exercises may be facility-specific or part of a cooperative exercise program with applicable facility and vessel security plans or comprehensive port exercises.
(4) Each exercise must test communication and notification procedures, and elements of coordination, resource availability, and response.
(5) Exercises are a full test of the security program and must include substantial and active participation of FSOs, and may include government authorities and vessels visiting the facility. Requests for participation of Company and Vessel Security Officers in joint exercises should consider the security and work implications for the vessel.
One key element this article will not discuss in detail is the requirement for each facility subject to this rule to have a trained FSO. A significant component of the compliance for drills and exercises is the involvement of your FSO. To learn more about what an FSO is, click here.
These rules are not difficult, but like everything else in the regulatory world, they must be documented properly, and some initial forethought must be taken to ensure they meet the rule's intent and provide practical practice to essential personnel for their assigned duties. For record-keeping, you should note the date of the current drill/exercise and the date of the last one. You must also include a description of the event, a list of participants, and any best practices or lessons learned that may improve the FSP, (aka Hot Wash).
The bottom line is that if your facility is required to maintain an FSP, in addition to maintaining a plan and the physical compliance requirements, you must have an active drill and exercise program to test facility readiness and provide training to personnel.
If you are not sure how to develop your drill and exercise program, Witt O’Brien’s subject matter experts, who are former USCG, can assist.
Useful tools:
To learn more about Witt O’Brien’s security service offerings, click here.
For a complete listing of archived articles and compliance insights, click here. Past articles cover training requirements, clarification of additional unclear elements within the above rules, and more.
We are here to help solve your compliance questions and challenges. If you need compliance assistance or have questions, please email John K. Carroll III (jcarroll@wittobriens.com), Associate Managing Director – Compliance Services, or call +1 954-625-9373.
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