Further Delay to the TWIC Reader Rule
Below is the excerpt from the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs outlining the Coast Guard’s intentions with a further delay for the TWIC reader rule to May 8, 2026.
On August 23, 2016, the Coast Guard issued a final rule, requiring owners and operators of certain vessels and facilities regulated by the Coast Guard to conduct electronic inspections of Transportation Worker Identification Credentials (TWICs) as an access control measure (81 FR 57651). On March 9, 2020, Coast Guard published a final rule, delaying the effective date of the 2016 TWIC reader rule for three categories of facilities (85 FR 13493). This rulemaking would further delay portions of the August 2016 final rule. The Coast Guard would delay the effective date for the three categories of facilities by at least an additional 3 years (until May 8, 2026) or later depending on the outcome of the Homeland Security Operational Analysis Center (HSOAC) study and consideration of public comments. The study is estimated to be completed no earlier than June 2022.
The three facility categories that would be delayed are:
- Facilities that handle certain dangerous cargoes in bulk, but do not transfer those cargoes to or from a vessel
- Facilities that handle certain dangerous cargoes in bulk, and do transfer those cargoes to or from a vessel
- Facilities that receive vessels carrying certain dangerous cargoes in bulk, but do not, during that vessel to facility interface, transfer those bulk cargoes to or from said vessels
You can read the entire rule intentions at: View Rule (reginfo.gov)