Mariner Exam Modernization Act
Summary
What This Bill Does
The Mariner Exam Modernization Act amends title 46 section 7510, which governs review of merchant mariner credential examinations. It changes the existing exam review to a working group, extends the group formation period from 90 days to 180 days, and updates references to the new Act. It broadens the review from new questions to questions, content, and relevancy of the Merchant Mariner Credentialing Examination. The working group must include at least two individuals who took and passed the exam in the five years before the group is commissioned. The Coast Guard Commandant must conduct the review within 270 days and consider industry standards, practices, and technology; relevance of exam topics; redundancy between the credentialing exam and Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping competencies; and other listed factors. A report is required after completion.
Who Benefits and How
Merchant mariners seeking credentials benefit if the examination becomes more relevant to current industry standards and less redundant with STCW competencies. Recent mariner exam passers benefit because at least two people who passed the exam in the prior five years must be included in the working group. Maritime employers benefit if credentialing exams better reflect current practices and technology. Maritime training academies benefit from clearer signals about exam content and competency redundancy. The Coast Guard credentialing administration benefits from structured review findings that can guide examination updates.
Who Bears the Burden and How
The Coast Guard credentialing administration must form the working group, broaden the review, and produce the report. The Commandant must evaluate exam relevance, redundancy, and industry standards within the new 270-day deadline. Working-group members must spend time reviewing exam questions and content. Maritime training institutions must adjust curricula if the review leads to updated examination content. Credentialing policy staff must update guidance and examination materials after the review.
Key Provisions
- Establishes an examination working group instead of the prior exam-review structure.
- Extends working-group formation from 90 days to 180 days.
- Requires at least two recent exam passers to serve in the working group.
- Expands review to exam questions, content, relevancy, industry standards, technology, and STCW redundancy.
- Requires the Commandant to complete the review within 270 days and provide a report.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Modernizes Coast Guard merchant mariner credential examinations by extending the working-group timeline, adding recent exam passers to the review group, broadening review to question content and relevance, requiring review of industry standards and STCW redundancy, accelerating the review deadline to 270 days, and requiring a public report after completion.
Key Policy Areas
Maritime, Transportation, Workforce Licensing
Primary Purpose
Modernizes Coast Guard merchant mariner credential examinations by extending the working-group timeline, adding recent exam passers to the review group, broadening review to question content and relevance, requiring review of industry standards and STCW redundancy, accelerating the review deadline to 270 days, and requiring a public report after completion.
Policy Domains
House resolution provisions
Identified Gains
- Merchant mariners seeking credentials
- Recent mariner exam passers
- Maritime employers
- Maritime training academies
- Coast Guard credentialing administration
Identified Costs
- Coast Guard credentialing administration
- Commandant of the Coast Guard
- Working-group members
- Maritime training institutions
- Credentialing policy staff
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
ReportedOrdered to be Reported (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: …
Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held
Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Discharged
Referred to the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation.
Mr. Carbajal (for himself and Mr. Ezell) introduced the following …
Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
Introduced in House
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Maritime employers, Merchant mariners seeking credentials, Recent mariner exam passers
Coast Guard credentialing administration, Commandant of the Coast Guard
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "commandant"
- → Commandant of the Coast Guard
- "coast_guard"
- → Coast Guard
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology