Federal regulation and control over merchant mariner licensing has a long history. It began over 171 years ago with the enactment of the Steamboat Act of 1852, which established the Steamboat Inspection Service and required merchant marine officers on steam powered vessels carrying passengers to be licensed by them.
In 1936, the Steamboat Inspection Service was renamed The Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation, and a few years later its power over merchant mariner licensing increased with the passage of the Motorboat Act of 1940. That mandated that any mariner in charge of a motor-propelled vessel less than 65 feet carrying passengers had to be licensed by the Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation.
In 1946, the Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation was abolished, and all of its licensing functions were granted permanently to the U.S. Coast Guard. As a result, for the first time in U.S. maritime history one federal agency had the power to decide what documents mariners had to hold to work on different American-flag vessels, and what they needed to do to obtain them.
Due to the ever-increasing amount of training, professional classes, and paperwork required of merchant mariners, in 1982 the Coast Guard established 17 Regional Exam Centers throughout the U.S.
To renew and upgrade a document or license a mariner was permitted to go in person to an Exam Center of their choice, which for me was in Seattle, and submit an application along with proof of any needed classes, seatime, and a passport. If those working at the REC found that everything was in order and the necessary requirements had been met, you could walk out with your new document or license in hand the same day.
In 1997 the Coast Guard created the National Maritime Center in Virginia, which mandates which professional qualifications were needed for every license or credential, but it was still possible to go into one of the 17 Regional Centers and, after dealing with the evaluators there, come out with an upgrade or renewal as before.
The personnel working at the Exam Centers and the National Center were civilian employees of the Coast Guard, who had been vetted and hired because of their expertise and knowledge of U.S. maritime documentation. Most had prior merchant marine, Navy, or Coast Guard experience and were well versed in the ever-expanding and increasingly complex amount of paperwork and forms needed.
My longtime friend Norleen Schumer at the Seattle Exam Center was in that category, and with over 20-plus years of experience in the maritime industry, impressed me with how much she knew about upgrading or renewing my licenses.
In 2008, the Coast Guard decided to change the system that had been working quickly and efficiently for decades, by eliminating a Regional Center’s capacity to decide on upgrades and renewals. Only the National Center was then authorized to approve or reject a mariner’s request for new documents, licenses, and credentials.
No longer able to communicate face-to-face with those who decided whether a license or credential could be issued or not, mariners often waited weeks or even months for the ‘back-and-forth’ of their paperwork with the NMC to be completed — which many times resulted in lost work opportunities.
Around ten years after the time it restricted the Regional Centers from making decisions on document upgrades and renewals, the current head of the National Maritime Center, Coast Guard Capt. Bradley Clare, admits that there is a huge backlog in processing applications.
His answer to our longstanding frustration is that we contact the “Customer Service Center” by phoning
1-888-IASKNMC (1-888-427-5662), or emailing IASKNMC@USCG.mil to ask questions about how to fill out the multitude of different forms, or check on the status of our credentials.
Unfortunately, instead of experienced and vetted professionals “waiting to help you with all your credentialing needs,” corporate employees of Insight Technology Solutions, LLC are the ones on the other end of the line.
Insight Technology Solutions, LLC, a company based in Martinsburg, Va., has a multi-million dollar contract with the Coast Guard to oversee the National Maritime Center’s customer service function. Its personnel are not government employees, haven’t been vetted by the Service, and are not required to have any maritime experience.
In fact, a recent ad placed by the company emphasizes that they, in fact, do not need any maritime experience, only the ability to engage in “active listening,” have good verbal skills, and be able to use a computer. Obviously, the days when a National Maritime Center rep had a solid understanding of the maritime industry are gone.
Now, also thanks to Captain Clare, corporate employees with no knowledge of the maritime industry aren’t just answering your phone call or email, but are deciding whether you qualify for your merchant mariner credential or have to start the process all over again.
In 2022, a different company called RiverTech, based in Herndon, Va., was awarded a three-year $7.6 million contract to “support the NMC during the entire credentialing process for nearly 100,000 U.S. merchant mariners each year.”
Since then, RiverTech has not only received and reviewed applications, evaluated sea time and other needed documentation, but has also approved or rejected the issuance of medical certificates and merchant mariner credentials. Therefore, these functions are now done by employees who are not required to have any maritime experience, and only possess a high school education and basic computer skills.
Especially considering RiverTech’s current contract is only good for two more years, I wonder how much incentive the company’s workers have matched-up with the National Maritime Center evaluators who planned to do this work for their entire careers, and were motivated to learn all they could about helping mariners navigate the ever more confusing process of maritime credentialing.
There are more than 100 licenses and ratings, in addition to the countless endorsements and certifications that merchant mariners can hold with each having its own expiration date and a specific set of classes, training, testing, citizenship status, type of experience, and amount of sea time to obtain.
Without longtime experienced professionals like Norleen Schumer to guide us through the rabbit hole of CFR requirements, I predict that these non-maritime contract employees are going to make a shambles of renewing and upgrading our documents, thus leaving our livelihoods and careers hanging in the balance for months or even years.
Till next time, I wish you all smooth sailin.’ •
Capt. Kelly Sweeney holds the license of master (oceans, any gross tons) and has held amaster of towing vessels (oceans) license as well. He has sailed on more than 40 commercial vessels and lives on an island near Seattle. He can be contacted by email at captsweeney@outlook.com