Crossroads: A Tale of Two Coast Guards

In January of 1983, I was not quite three years out of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy and was living in Houston, Texas. I had a Second Mate’s license at the time. I can’t remember why I decided to go down to the Houston REC, but a Coast Guard licensing official stopped to talk with me about my file. “What are you doing later this afternoon?” he asked. I told him that I was headed out for the evening with a couple of my friends, omitting the part about the much-anticipated cervezas. “Hang around,” he continued. “You can sit for the 1600 ton Master’s license.” I shifted in my seat uncomfortably at this point and responded, “I’m not prepared for that exam.” To which he replied, “Sure, you are. Look -- you won’t regret this; it’ll take less than two hours, you’ve already finished the bulk of the testing and you’ve got the sea time.” I hemmed and hawed for a bit, but finally agreed to stay and take the test. I left several hours later with both the Second Mate’s license and the 1600 ton Master’s license.

Just seven years later, in 1989, I was still living and working in Houston. I’d been ashore for about four years, but like most mariners, I was reluctant to let my hard-earned credentials expire. But, as it came time to renew my ticket, I was in for the shock of my life when I visited the U.S. Coast Guard REC on the Gulf Freeway. I was told that not only had my license expired, it had been expired for so long that I was now outside of the “grace” window, as well. I would have to take the entire exam again, they said. It seemed that the unlimited Chief Mate’s license that I had sat for in 1984 was considered only an endorsement to the lower tonnage Master’s ticket. Hence, the expiration of that license was dependent on the 1600 ton Master portion. It was, I am now told, not an uncommon mistake.

I contemplated the work involved with re-sitting for a Chief Mate’s and 1,600 ton Master’s licenses and decided to let it go. Now married and in settled into a shoreside routine, I had no plans to return to sea. But, upon learning of my predicament, my marine consulting employer advised me that my employment was predicated on maintaining a valid marine license. Faced with impending unemployment, I made plans to retake the entire examination again. And so in 1990, I found myself reading the Coast Guard’s Navigation Rules and other incredibly interesting texts on long flights to and from places like Venezuela and Puerto Rico; before and after cargo surveys, ship vettings and other delightful tasks.

The dining room became my chart table, where I would practice plotting and my wife would occasionally pass through and give me dirty looks. “Don’t ever let this happen again,” she would deadpan. Nevertheless, the big day did come (three months later) and I commenced the examination period with vigor (and four days of scheduled unpaid leave from work). Things seemed to be going well enough and on the last day, I arrived for the final exam; the second of two navigation sections. The two scores are combined and averaged and if the applicant scores 90%, then a passing score is given. I had passed everything up until that point, but when I returned from lunch to take the final exam, the Coastie looked up at me and said with some satisfaction, “You got two wrong this morning. You’ll have to be perfect this afternoon.” I said nothing, took the proffered examination package and headed for my seat. Over my shoulder, he got in one last dig. “Nobody’s ever been perfect on this module.”

As it turned out, I did get them all correct in the afternoon session. Much later, when I was brusquely given my documents, it occurred to me that things had certainly changed at the Houston REC; and in a relatively short period of time. At one exam, I was guided by someone who seemed to have genuine interest in helping me advance my career, while at another, the licensing personnel appeared to be taking exquisite pleasure in my discomfort and additionally seemed hopeful that I would not pass. And this was pre-9/11.

The second event as described above may very well have been an isolated incident, but I doubt it, especially given the volume of especially explicit mail received in the wake of my online editorial opposing the separation of some Coast Guard duties into another government entity. We published a good deal of those responses online. Others, less diplomatic and more colorful were omitted, but nonetheless helped to form the basis of a disturbing trend: the Coast Guard was no longer in the business of helping to facilitate safe commerce, and in some cases, seemed to be going out of its way to make it more difficult.

I took a lot of heat from mariners and industry alike for that editorial. That doesn’t mean that I think it is a good idea to separate the Coast Guard from duties that have long been domiciled under its domain. On the contrary. Instead, I wonder who would perform these duties -- marine inspection and the documentation of merchant seaman, in particular -- if they were transferred elsewhere, at what price and where those additional funds would come from. Price should not be the primary variable when it comes to safety, but no one seems to be willing to step up and pay more for better service, either. I also question the wisdom of transferring the personnel who currently perform these duties to another department of the federal government. Changing uniforms will also accomplish little. This sort of reorganization, typically a knee-jerk reaction to a suddenly burgeoning problem, rarely works. The acronym “DHS” comes to mind right now, quite frankly.

The road back for the Coast Guard to a point where it is providing efficient, competent -- and yes, courteous -- service to the maritime community that it serves will be a long one. That effort is well underway. The U.S. Coast Guard’s Captain David Stalfort now leads the massive effort to centralize most aspects of mariner documentation at a new location in Martinsburg, West Virginia. That task should be completed by the end of 2008. At that point, virtually all Coast Guard decisions on mariner qualifications, medical issues and the production of all documents will be housed in West Virginia. Local REC’s will become “storefront” help kiosks of a sort, but ultimately, the face of Coast Guard documentation service will have changed forever. The success of that process may very well be the lynchpin upon which legislators will make their decision as to the future makeup of the Coast Guard, and its ultimate mission mix.

In October, I once again renewed my license and MMD for continuity. Before that happened, I had my file transferred from Houston to Charleston, South Carolina, the closest REC to my current residence. It seems that you have to show up in person these days. Something about homeland security, I guess. Timing my renewal with a trade conference in Charleston, I initiated the entire process on September 24. By October 25, I had my MMD and printed license, and probably would have had it within ten days had I not forgotten the passport photos which I had to mail in after returning home. Service was excellent; it was polite and it was extremely efficient. The new Coast Guard NMC will have to work very hard, in my opinion, to trump this REC’s performance.

The Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure conducted an oversight hearing on the Coast Guard’s Marine Safety Program on August 2. The Coast Guard got an earful that day from various industry groups on the failings of today’s Marine Safety Program. We were additionally reminded that Marine Safety, as it applies to the Coast Guard’s domain, involves a lot more than just handing out a few licenses. Fair enough.

Although our savvy readers continually remind me that a “continuity renewal” involves far less pain than most documentation transactions, it is my opinion that the Coast Guard and its Commandant, ADM Thad Allen, are trying very hard to rectify the problem. They should be given every opportunity to do so before a final decision is made on this matter. It is, apparently, a good time to beat up on the Coast Guard. While we’re at it, let’s try to not throw out the baby with the bath water. -- MarEx

Joseph Keefe is the Managing Editor of The Maritime Executive. He can be reached with comments, questions and input at [email protected]. In the next print edition of The Maritime Executive, coming out in November, Keefe examines the new NMC structure in West Virginia. That article is entitled, “Earning Back the Trust: One Mariner at a Time.” Don’t miss it.