BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 907 Page 1 Date of Hearing: May 18, 2011 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Felipe Fuentes, Chair AB 907 (Ma) - As Amended: April 14, 2011 Policy Committee: TransportationVote:11-0 Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: No Reimbursable: No SUMMARY This bill authorizes a port agent to review the initial report of a suspected ladder or hoist safety standard violation. The bill requires the port agent, if he or she concludes that the ladder or hoist presents a potential danger to future users, to report the suspected safety standard violation to organizations of pilots in expected next ports of call and authorizes the port agent to similarly report to any national or international organization concerned with pilot ladder or pilot hoist safety. The bill also deletes obsolete reference to inland pilots and pilotage rate increases. FISCAL EFFECT Negligible state costs, if any. COMMENTS 1)Rationale . The author notes that the United States Coast Guard (USCG) has no legal obligation to inform the next port of a reported safety issue and intends this bill to protect pilots that will receive vessels following a ladder or hoist accident. 2)Background. Bar pilots and inland pilots are responsible for steering an arriving vessel through the Golden Gate Bridge of San Francisco Bay, the bay waters, and adjoining navigable waters, which include San Pablo Bay, Monterey Bay, Suisun Bay, the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers, and its tributaries. When a vessel approaches the "SF" buoy 12 miles west of the Golden Gate Bridge, a bar pilot boards the ship and takes navigational control, guiding the ship to berth. Bar pilots often climb from their transport boat onto the vessel during choppy currents using a pilot ladder and hoist. Sometimes, AB 907 Page 2 the equipment is not in good repair. Current law requires the executive director of the Board of Pilot Commissioners or a commission investigator to inspect pilot ladders and hoists for compliance with the relevant safety standards of the USCG and the International Maritime Organization. If, in the preliminary report, the equipment is found to be in violation, or likely violation, of safety standards, the executive director must immediately alert the USCG. A written report must be submitted to the incident review committee of the Board, which must remain confidential until it is reported to the Board. The committee must then report its findings and recommendations to the Board. 3)Support. This bill is supported by the San Francisco Bar Pilots Association. 4)There is no registered opposition to this bill. Analysis Prepared by : Jay Dickenson / APPR. / (916) 319-2081