Sec. 273. Report on condition of aids to navigation
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Not later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commandant shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report on the condition of dayboards and the placement of buoys on the Missouri River, the Coast Guard Northeast District, and the Coast Guard Northwest District. The report under paragraph
(1)shall include— a list of the most recent date on which each dayboard and buoy was serviced by the Coast Guard; an overview of the plan of the Coast Guard to systematically service each dayboard and buoy on the Missouri River; an overview of the plan of the Coast Guard to systematically service each buoy located in the Coast Guard Northeast District; an overview of the plan of the Coast Guard to systematically service each buoy located in the Coast Guard Northwest District; and assigned points of contact. Beginning on the date of enactment of this Act, the Commandant may not remove the aids to navigation covered in subsection (a), unless there is an imminent threat to life or safety, until a period of 180 days has elapsed following the date on which the Commandant submits the report required under subsection (a). The Commandant shall conduct a study on the extent to which physical aids to navigation, including buoys and dayboards, are relied upon by maritime users in the Missouri River, Coast Guard Northeast District, and Coast Guard Northwest District. In the study conducted under paragraph (1), the Commandant shall include the following: An analysis of the extent to which physical aids to navigation serve as primary navigational references for operators of vessels that lack electronic or satellite-based systems, including small commercial vessels, recreational boats, sailboats, and skiffs. An assessment of the role physical aids to navigation play in supporting safe vessel operation during outages, disruptions, or inaccuracies in electronic or satellite-based navigation systems. An assessment of mariner perspectives on the availability, visibility, and reliability of physical aids to navigation, based on input from recreational boaters, commercial fishermen, pilot associations, port authorities, and other relevant waterway users. A summary of reported incidents or near-miss events from the past five years in which the presence or absence of physical aids to navigation played a contributory role in navigational outcomes, including collisions, groundings, or deviations from intended routes. Recommendations for enhancing navigational safety for mariners who rely exclusively on, or supplement electronic systems with, traditional visual aids to navigation. A cost–benefit analysis of the continued maintenance of physical aids to navigation, and the projected consequences of their removal, including— an estimate of the potential increase in maritime accidents, search and rescue operations, environmental incidents, and Coast Guard response missions that could result from the reduction or removal of physical aids to navigation; a comparison of the anticipated costs associated with such increased Coast Guard response operations to the ongoing costs of maintaining and servicing buoys and dayboards, particularly in high-traffic areas or locations with limited access to electronic navigation systems; an assessment of the role physical aids to navigation play in preventing incidents involving vessels with limited or no reliance on GPS or electronic systems; and an assessment of the indirect costs and operational impacts associated with the removal of physical aids to navigation, including increased risk of vessel groundings, prolonged Coast Guard response times, and diminished mariner trust in navigational infrastructure. Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commandant shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate the results of the study conducted under paragraph (1).