As of 19 September, the US Coast Guard has withdrawn the proposed rule entitled “Outer Continental Shelf Activities” published back in December 1999, claiming the passage of time, advances in technology, and changes in industry practices that have rendered the proposed rule obsolete.
The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking proposed revisions to Coast Guard’s Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) regulations that pertain to workplace safety and health on vessels and facilities engaged in the exploration for, or development or production of, minerals on the OCS.
USCG initiated this rulemaking in response to the various advances that had changed the nature of the offshore industry since the last major revision of OCS regulations in 1982.
As detailed in the proposed regulatory text, this rulemaking would have reassessed all current OCS regulations in light of past experiences and new improvements in order to help make the OCS a safer work environment. The Coast Guard received comments from the public regarding the proposed rulemaking.
In the nearly 20 years since the Coast Guard published the NPRM and the comment period closed, the offshore industry has continued to grow and evolve. Due to the passage of time, advances in technology, and changes in industry practice, much of what was proposed in the NPRM is now obsolete and no longer applicable to the modern OCS work environment. Consequently, the NPRM is no longer suitable as a basis for further rulemaking action.
