OMSA Urges Revocation of 95 USCG Mandates in Support of Administration’s Deregulatory Agenda

The letter requests the elimination of the type-approval regulatory system that forces manufacturers into costly, duplicate certification processes and limits vessel operators’ access to cutting-edge equipment 

September 12, 2025

New Orleans, LA — As the federal government intensifies efforts to reduce burdensome maritime regulations, the Offshore Marine Service Association (OMSA) is calling on the Administration to eliminate all 95 U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) "type-approval" requirements for equipment installed on U.S.-flagged vessels.

“Type-approvals impose heavy costs, stifle competition, and create needless barriers for American mariners and vessel owners,” said OMSA President Aaron Smith. “Eliminating them would streamline equipment procurement without compromising safety, environmental protection, or property.”

USCG’s type-approval rules require pre-installation approval of certain equipment, even when that equipment already meets rigorous international standards, such as those set by the International Standards Organization (ISO). This duplicative process delays deployment of advanced technologies, limits equipment options, and strains both industry and Coast Guard resources.

Two engines. Same specs. Same lifesaving capability. One approved, one denied, not because of performance, but because of paperwork and a required USCG factory inspection.

One stark example is with inflatable liferafts, where the USCG’s 11,000-word rule repeats the ISO requirements that the rafts already meet, adding only expensive and time-consuming requirements for the factories and companies that make the rafts. OMSA urges the Coast Guard to cut the extra steps and adhere to accepted international standards.

“With all these rules, USCG inspectors are being diverted from critical safety work to duplicate tasks already handled by global standards bodies,” says Smith. 

Type-approvals have been noted to cause artificial shortages of maritime equipment. In Louisiana, there are currently no USCG-approved rescue-boat engines available, despite the state being one of the nation’s primary offshore hubs. After an approved engine model was discontinued in 2020, Louisiana vessel owners were required to source engines from distant suppliers, driving up costs and causing unnecessary delays.

In cases where no internationally recognized standards exist, OMSA recommends that the USCG shift from prescriptive sourcing rules to performance-based standards, allowing vessel owners to demonstrate compliance through evidence.

“This is about making smart, efficient decisions that support American jobs and industry,” says Smith. “Streamlining the system will save time, reduce costs, and keep our fleet competitive.”

Read the full letter submitted to Admiral W. R. Arguin, Assistant Commandant for Prevention Policy (CG-5P), citing four concrete examples and a bulleted list of additional problematic USCG type-approval regulations.

OMSA Affirms Commitment to Offshore Workforce Fairness, Supports Short Pause on AOWFA for Ongoing Negotiations

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Offshore Marine Service Association (OMSA) today announced it is engaging in a strategic hold on the immediate advancement of the American Offshore Worker Fairness Act (AOWFA) to allow space for ongoing high-level negotiations with industry partners to move forward productively.

OMSA members have engaged in these negotiations in good faith, with a continued focus on creating a fair, competitive, and secure offshore energy industry. Recent discussions have resulted in meaningful breakthroughs and OMSA believes continued progress would benefit from a negotiated pause on AOWFA. In response, OMSA is doing just that.

“As a solution-oriented organization, OMSA is stepping back from active advocacy on AOWFA in order to give these negotiations the room to succeed,” said Aaron Smith, President of OMSA. “This decision reflects our commitment to progress, not posturing, and to working constructively with all parties to achieve a lasting, effective outcome for American mariners, American companies, and American-made energy.”

OMSA remains steadfast in its belief that U.S. energy projects should support U.S. jobs, and that strong enforcement of American labor standards offshore is critical to national security and economic strength. The Association will continue working to ensure that any final resolution aligns with those values.

“This is a win for Speaker Johnson, Leader Scalise, Chairman Graves, Chairman Ezell, and Congressman Garamendi. It’s also a win for dialogue, and a sign of maturity in the policy process,” said Smith. “We are encouraged by the continued engagement from policymakers and industry partners, and we will stay at the table, ready to advance real, lasting solutions for the American offshore workforce.”

About the negotiations, Congressman John Garamendi (D-CA), said, “For years, the oil industry has refused to negotiate this provision, even though it had overwhelming support from this committee. I understand that this has finally changed, and good-faith negotiations are now underway to establish a vessel preference for American-flagged ships. To give room for these negotiations, I support temporarily removing this provision. Let me be clear: this is a temporary removal. I look forward to working with the Chairman and Ranking Member to include language in the final conference package that will prioritize the reinvigoration of the U.S. maritime industry.”

Coast Guard Eases PAM Burdens on U.S. Offshore Industry Following OMSA Advocacy

Foreign vessels continue to get by with continued exemption, creating unfair advantage

June 9, 2025

NEW ORLEANS - The Offshore Marine Service Association (OMSA) celebrates that the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) has updated its Portable Accommodation Module (PAM) policy, delivering a win for American offshore operators and addressing concerns raised by OMSA. The revised policy reduces unnecessary regulations that would harm the competitiveness of the U.S. maritime industry.

“The Coast Guard’s revised policy shows it recognizes what OMSA and the industry have long said: the previous PAM guidance imposed significant costs and delays without delivering meaningful safety benefits,” said Aaron Smith, President of OMSA.

The updated guidance follows OMSA recommendations to introduce a new category, called PAM-IM, for low-risk industrial modules like laboratories, workshops, wireline unites, mud logger rooms, ROV control rooms, dive control rooms, or any other similar space. These modules no longer require Coast Guard plan approval or inspection in most cases, aligning U.S. practice more closely with global standards and easing the burden on American mariners and operators. Higher-risk modules, such as sleeping quarters or medical spaces, will continue to receive greater oversight.

Since 2016, OMSA has called for reform of the PAM policy, citing excessive costs, operational delays, and a competitive disadvantage for U.S. vessels. In its most recent letter to Rear Admiral Wayne Arguin, OMSA emphasized the burden the policy placed on U.S. operators and Coast Guard resources.

“This update gives U.S. vessels more flexibility to operate efficiently without compromising safety,” said Smith. “That’s good for our industry and good for the country.”

However, OMSA noted that the changes do not go far enough. The updated policy still applies only to U.S.-flagged vessels, meaning foreign-flagged vessels operating in U.S. waters remain exempt from these requirements, creating an unfair advantage for foreign competitors.

“Foreign vessels continue to get a pass while U.S. operators face costly delays,” said Smith. “That’s not fair and it’s not sustainable. American mariners deserve a level playing field.”

OMSA will continue to advocate for risk-based standards that apply equally to all vessels operating in U.S. waters and support a competitive, secure, and resilient U.S. maritime industry.

OMSA Applauds Trump Administration
for Lifting Stop Work Order on Empire Wind Project

Decision Brings Vital Certainty and Predictability to U.S. Maritime Industry

NEW ORLEANS - The Offshore Marine Service Association (OMSA) today commended the Trump Administration’s decision to lift the stop-work order on the Empire Wind project, a $5 billion offshore wind development off the coast of New York. This action by the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) allows construction activities to resume after a month-long pause and restores needed stability to the U.S. offshore energy sector.

“The American maritime industry must have certainty, predictability, and fairness to invest with confidence in the vessels, technology, and talent needed to support U.S. offshore energy,” said Aaron Smith, President of OMSA. “By allowing the Empire Wind project to move forward, the Trump Administration is providing a stable policy environment that encourages bold investment in American energy.”

Just this week, we saw how this system can work effectively with the launch of the ECO LIBERTY, an American-built, American-crewed, state-of-the-art vessel built specifically for the Empire Wind in Louisiana and Mississippi shipyards. But this issue is bigger than one vessel. The same Gulf of America shipyards and suppliers that built the ECO LIBERTY also build for and supply our national and homeland security apparatus. When these Americans can hone their skills building for the offshore wind industry, our security will reap the dividends.

We hope to see the restarting of Empire Wind as a transformational step that replicates the success of the ECO LIBERTY in other areas of the wind industry that are not only economically important but are also vital to our national security.

OMSA stands ready to work with industry leaders and policymakers to expand this model across the country, supporting American energy production, creating American jobs, and strengthening American security.

NEW ORLEANS, LA – The Offshore Marine Service Association (OMSA) views President Trump’s Presidential Memorandum to pause offshore wind development projects as a critical opportunity to reassess the industry’s direction. While offshore wind offers tremendous potential for economic growth and job creation in the U.S., OMSA agrees that over-reliance on foreign renewable energy companies, foreign vessels, and foreign mariners to build American offshore wind farms undermines these benefits and is deeply problematic.

“The offshore oil industry was born in South Louisiana, with OMSA members serving as the critical link between energy production and America, and for over 70-years, our vessels and crews have supported offshore oil development, driving economic growth and providing good-paying jobs to hard-working Americans,” said Aaron Smith, President of OMSA. “When the offshore wind industry emerged, we welcomed it as a new opportunity to expand the use of our U.S.-built, crewed, and owned vessels, leveraging the same expertise and resources we’ve honed in the oil and gas industry.”

Despite its promise, the offshore wind industry today is falling short of its potential to drive American job growth. Smith continues, “We continue to believe that offshore wind can be an incredible economic driver, creating thousands of good-paying American jobs—yet many

high-quality jobs are being outsourced to foreign mariners on vessels built overseas, in countries like China, while American vessels and workers are overlooked.”

This trend not only weakens the economic impact of offshore wind projects but also hinders the long-term development of a self-reliant, American-driven renewable energy industry.

“We view this pause in offshore wind development as a critical moment to reset the industry’s priorities,” said Smith. “By addressing these systemic issues, we have an opportunity to ensure that offshore wind is delivering on its promise by creating jobs for American mariners, supporting U.S. shipyards, and reinvesting in the American economy.”

OMSA stands ready to work alongside policymakers and industry leaders to build a stronger, fairer and more sustainable offshore wind industry that truly puts America first.

January 8, 2025

New Orleans, LA – The Offshore Marine Service Association (OMSA) is proud to announce that Rear Admiral Richard V. Timme, U.S. Coast Guard (Ret.), has joined OMSA as a Senior Advisor. This appointment underscores OMSA’s longstanding commitment to working collaboratively with the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and other regulatory agencies to develop practical, common-sense solutions that enhance the safety and security of the U.S. maritime industry.

“I’m excited to join the OMSA team and continue more than three decades of service to the maritime community,” said Admiral Timme. “OMSA members are a crucial part of our U.S. marine transportation system, which forms the backbone of our economic and national security. I look forward to being a part of a team dedicated to giving voice to the men and women of the U.S. marine industry.”

Admiral Timme brings over three decades of expertise in maritime safety and security, regulatory policy, and operational leadership. His distinguished career includes key roles such as Commander of the Eighth Coast Guard District, where he oversaw operations spanning 26 states and critical waterways, including the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, and Assistant Commandant for Prevention Policy, where he directed programs in waterways management, mariner credentialing, and vessel inspections. Admiral Timme also served as the Coast Guard’s Budget Director, advising on a $12 billion budget and guiding national security policy.

“We are thrilled to welcome Admiral Timme to the OMSA team,” said Aaron Smith, President of OMSA. “As we enter a new year, OMSA remains steadfast in its mission to address challenges with innovative solutions. Admiral Timme’s extensive expertise and leadership, combined with OMSA’s deep-rooted engagement with the regulatory sector, will strengthen our advocacy for the safety and prosperity of the American maritime industry.”

For over 50 years, OMSA has been the leading voice for the offshore marine industry, advocating for policies that enhance the safety, security, and economic vitality of American mariners and their employers. By fostering collaboration between industry stakeholders and regulatory agencies, OMSA works to address challenges, promote innovation, and ensure a thriving future for the U.S. offshore services sector. 

“Admiral Timme’s career exemplifies dedication to the maritime community and his insights will strengthen OMSA’s mission of ensuring that the offshore service industry remains a cornerstone of our national and economic security,” said Ashton Laborde, OMSA Board Chairman and President of Laborde Marine. “We are honored to have him on board and look forward to the innovative contributions he will bring to our association.”

OMSA’s legacy of regulatory advocacy and innovative problem-solving reflects the organization’s dedication to fostering a robust and sustainable future for the offshore sector. Admiral Timme’s addition amplifies OMSA’s ability to champion the interests of American maritime workers while advancing the critical role they play in national and economic security.