§527. Safety of vessels of the Armed Forces

(a) The Secretary may control the anchorage and movement of any vessel in the navigable waters of the United States to ensure the safety or security of any vessel of the Armed Forces in those waters.

(b) If the Secretary does not exercise the authority in subsection (a) of this section and immediate action is required, the senior officer present in command may control the anchorage or movement of any vessel in the navigable waters of the United States to ensure the safety and security of any vessel of the Armed Forces under the officer's command.

(c) If a person violates, or a vessel is operated in violation of, this section or a regulation or order issued under this section, the person or vessel is subject to the enforcement provisions in section 13 ¹ of the Ports and Waterways Safety Act (33 U.S.C. 1232).

(d) As used in this section "navigable waters of the United States" includes all waters of the territorial sea of the United States as described in Presidential Proclamation No. 5928 of December 27, 1988.

(e) For purposes of this title, the term "vessel of the Armed Forces" means-

(1) any vessel owned or operated by the Department of Defense or the Coast Guard, other than a time- or voyage-chartered vessel; and

(2) any vessel owned and operated by the Department of Transportation that is designated by the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating as a vessel equivalent to a vessel described in paragraph (1).

(Aug. 4, 1949, ch. 393, 63 Stat. 503 , §91; Pub. L. 99–640, §10(a)(4), Nov. 10, 1986, 100 Stat. 3549 ; Pub. L. 109–241, title II, §201, July 11, 2006, 120 Stat. 519 ; renumbered §527 and amended Pub. L. 115–282, title I, §105(b), title III, §318(a), Dec. 4, 2018, 132 Stat. 4200 , 4251.)

Historical and Revision Notes

Based on title 14, U.S.C., 1946 ed., §48a (Nov. 15, 1941, ch. 471, §1, 55 Stat. 763 ).

Changes were made in phraseology. 81st Congress, House Report No. 557.

Editorial Notes

References in Text

Section 13 of the Ports and Waterways Safety Act, referred to in subsec. (c), was repealed by Pub. L. 115–282, title IV, §402(e), Dec. 4, 2018, 132 Stat. 4264 . See Transitional and Savings Provisions note preceding section 101 of Title 46, Shipping, and section 70036 of Title 46.

Presidential Proclamation No. 5928, referred to in subsec. (d), is set out under section 1331 of Title 43, Public Lands.

Amendments

2018-Pub. L. 115–282, §318(a)(1), substituted "vessels of the Armed Forces" for "naval vessels" in section catchline.

Pub. L. 115–282, §105(b), renumbered section 91 of this title as this section.

Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 115–282, §318(a)(2), substituted "vessel of the Armed Forces" for "United States naval vessel".

Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 115–282, §318(a)(3), substituted "senior officer present in command" for "senior naval officer present in command" and "vessel of the Armed Forces" for "United States naval vessel".

Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 115–282, §318(a)(4), added subsec. (e).

2006-Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 109–241 added subsec. (d).

1986-Pub. L. 99–640 amended section generally. Prior to amendment, section read as follows: "The captain of the port, Coast Guard district commander, or other officer of the Coast Guard designated by the Commandant thereof, or the Governor of the Panama Canal in the case of the territory and waters of the Canal Zone, shall so control the anchorage and movement of any vessel, foreign or domestic, in the territorial waters of the United States, as to insure the safety or security of such United States naval vessels as may be present in his jurisdiction. In territorial waters of the United States where immediate action is required, or where representatives of the Coast Guard are not present, or not present in sufficient force to exercise effective control of shipping as provided herein, the senior naval officer present in command of any naval force may control the anchorage or movement of any vessel, foreign or domestic, to the extent deemed necessary to insure the safety and security of his command."

¹ See References in Text note below.