47 C.F.R. § 80.933 General small passenger vessel exemptions.
Title 47 - Telecommunication
(a) Subject U.S. vessels less than 50 gross tons which are navigated not more than 300 meters (1,000 feet) from the nearest land at mean low tide are exempt from the provisions of title III, part III of the Communications Act. (b) All U.S. passenger vessels of less than 100 gross tons, not subject to the radio provisions of the Safety Convention, are exempt from the radiotelegraph provisions of Part II of Title III of the Communications Act, provided that the vessels are equipped with a radiotelephone installation fully complying with subpart S of this part. (c) U.S. passenger vessels of less than 100 gross tons operated on domestic or international voyages are exempt from the radiotelegraph requirements of Part II of Title III of the Communications Act and the MF radiotelephone requirements of this subpart until one year after the Coast Guard notifies the Commission that shore-based Sea Area A1 coverage is established, if the following criteria are fully met: (1) The ship is equipped with a VHF radiotelephone installation meeting the requirements of this subpart; (2) While navigating more than three nautical miles from the nearest land, the ship is equipped with: (i) A Category 1, 406.0–406.1 MHz EPIRB meeting the requirements of §80.1061; (ii) A NAVTEX receiver meeting the requirements of §80.1101(c)(1); and (iii) Three two-way VHF radiotelephone apparatus and two radar transponders meeting the requirements of §80.1095. (3) The ship remains within communications range of U.S. Coast Guard or public coast stations operating in the band 156–162 MHz; (4) The routes of the voyage are never more than 20 nautical miles from the nearest land or, alternatively, not more than 200 nautical miles between two consecutive ports, and are limited to the following domestic and international voyages: (i) In waters contiguous to Hawaii, the Bahama Islands and the islands in the Caribbean Sea, including the Greater Antilles, Lesser Antilles, and the coastal waters of Venezuela between the Mouth of the Orinoco River and the Gulf of Venezuela; (ii) In waters contiguous to the coast of Southern California from Point Conception south to Cape San Lucas, Mexico; the islands of San Miguel, Santa Rosa, Santa Cruz, Anacopa, San Nicolas, Santa Barbara, Santa Catalina, and San Clemente are considered to be within these waters; and, (iii) In waters of the Pacific Northwest between Tacoma, Washington and the waters of British Columbia, Canada, as far north as Queen Charlotte Strait, never in the open sea. (d) Prior to February 1, 1999, U.S. passenger vessels of less than 100 gross tons are exempt from the radiotelegraph requirements of Part II of Title III of the Communications Act, as well as Regulations 7 to 11 of Chapter IV of the Safety Convention, if the following criteria are fully met: (1) The ship is equipped in accordance with paragraphs (c)(1) and (c)(2) of this section; (2) The ship is equipped with a MF radiotelephone installation meeting the requirements of this subpart; (3) The routes of the voyage are never more than 20 nautical miles from the nearest land or, alternatively, not more than 100 nautical miles between two consecutive ports, and are limited to international voyages between Florida and the Bahama Islands. (e) These exemptions may be terminated at any time without hearing, if in the Commission's discretion, the need for such action arises. [51 FR 31213, Sept. 2, 1986, as amended at 58 FR 44954, Aug. 25, 1993; 60 FR 58245, Nov. 27, 1995; 68 FR 46974, Aug. 7, 2003]
Title 47: Telecommunication
PART 80—STATIONS IN THE MARITIME SERVICES
Subpart S—Compulsory Radiotelephone Installations for Small Passenger Boats
§ 80.933 General small passenger vessel exemptions.
