The Coast Guard administers the U.S. port state control program for  foreign-flagged cruise vessels that enter U.S. waters or a U.S. port, to   The Coast  enforce maritime safety and security in the United States.Guard exercises this enforcement through port state control activities,  which include initial, annual, and periodic examinations of foreign flag  cruise vessels. The accident resulted in 32 deaths, including  2 U.S. citizens. However, as of December 2013, the  Coast Guard and MARAD were in the process of developing and  publicizing new regulations before moving forward with the  implementation of the remaining provisions related to items such as new  technology and training certifications required or authorized by the  CVSSA. Guidance was provided in the following 11 areas: (1) rail  heights; (2) peepholes in passenger stateroom doors, (3) security latches  and time-sensitive keys for stateroom doors, (4) safety information  provided to passengers, (5) medical licensing and proper equipment to  perform sexual assault exams, (6) patient access to information and  communications in the event of sexual assault, (7) confidentiality of  sexual assault examination and support information, (8) crew access to  passenger staterooms, (9) logbook and reporting requirements for  CVSSA crimes, (10) availability of crime data on the Coast Guard’s  website and the link on cruise lines’ webpages to the Coast Guard’s  website, and (11) training standards and curricula—which resulted in  the development of the required course on crime scene preservation. Officials from all five of the cruise lines we spoke with, as well as CLIA,  told us that there were minor issues with implementing these 11 CVSSA  requirements and that most of the safety and security measures required  by the law were already in place when the CVSSA was enacted, in July  2010. While the Coast Guard is drafting its NPRM to address these three  outstanding CVSSA provisions, in July 2013, legislation was introduced  that would amend the video recording requirements of the CVSSA,  among other items. MARAD CVSSA Provision

For the fourth CVSSA provision, MARAD issued a notice of proposed  new policy in the Federal Register in May 2013 for certifying providers of  the CVSSA training course on crime prevention, detection, evidence   While the CVSSA did not mandate that  preservation, and reporting.MARAD develop a training provider certification—the language of the  CVSSA states that MARAD “may” develop a certification—MARAD  officials stated that they were intent on pursuing certification because  there were requests from both the Coast Guard and CLIA to provide  clarity on the certification portion of the CVSSA. The CVSSA then requires the Coast Guard to publish on its  website a statistical compilation of all allegations of CVSSA crimes  reported to the FBI that are no longer under FBI investigation. When an alleged crime occurs aboard a cruise vessel, according to cruise  line officials, the security officer onboard the vessel typically receives  notification of the alleged crime. For example, the crime data currently  reported are limited in that (1) allegations for which investigations are not  opened are not reported, (2) the data reported are not timely, and (3) the  data reported are not put into context that would provide the public with  the magnitude of crime on vessels, as discussed below. An official from a cruise victim advocacy group we interviewed stated  that without complete data on the crimes that have occurred on cruise  vessels, the public may not have the necessary information to make  informed decisions about cruise travel. In addition  to using rates to compare the prevalence of cruise vessel crime with  the prevalence of land-based crime, presenting cruise crime data in a  rate-based format may also be useful in comparing crime statistics  among cruise lines. According to CLIA, in  August 2013, six cruise lines—which account for over 90 percent of the  North American cruise passengers—began to voluntarily report on their  respective websites the number of alleged CVSSA crimes that had been  reported onboard their cruise vessels. As of November 2013, however, the  cruise lines’ voluntary reporting had just begun and the CVSSA bills  remained in committee, and thus we cannot assess whether, or to what  extent, these efforts may address the data limitations. The Cruise Industry Made Changes after the Costa Concordia Accident and Potential International Regulations Remain under Consideration

The cruise industry responded to the Costa Concordia accident by  reviewing safety practices and implementing changes across the industry  and potential international regulatory actions are under consideration at  the IMO. The Coast Guard began witnessing passenger musters in  February 2012, soon after the Costa Concordia accident, and has participated in a mass rescue exercise involving a cruise vessel. The Cruise Industry Adopted Safety-Related Policies Identified following the Costa Concordia Accident

In response to the Costa Concordia accident, CLIA initiated an  operational safety review and member cruise lines adopted 10 safety- related policies. The resulting 10 policies relate to various safety enhancements,  such as improvements to passenger musters, vessel passage planning,  and life jacket stowage. Representatives from all five cruise lines we spoke with said they have  included, or plan to include, the safety-related changes they have made  as a result of their internal reviews into their SMSs. International Safety Measures Are Under Consideration and the Coast Guard Has Taken Some Initial Actions

			IMO Adopted Muster Regulation and Is Considering Other Potential Measures

IMO’s Maritime Safety Committee (MSC)—a key IMO committee charged  with addressing all matters related to the safety of shipping—has adopted  one regulation, issued 18 interim safety recommendations, and is  considering additional safety-related measures that it may take following  the Costa Concordia accident. Specifically, MSC adopted a regulation in  June 2013 to be effective on January 1, 2015, which requires that newly  embarked passengers muster prior to or immediately upon departure,  instead of within 24 hours, as stated in current regulations. Appendix II: Provisions in the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act

This appendix provides summary information on the provisions of the  Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act, including time frames for  implementation.
Why GAO Did This Study

In 2011, almost 11 million passengers took a cruise from a U.S. port. Media reports about passenger personal safety while aboard cruise vessels--including those related to the January 2012 grounding of the cruise vessel Costa Concordia off the coast of Italy, which resulted in 32 deaths--combined with the increasing number of passengers taking cruises has raised questions about passenger safety and security. With the enactment of the CVSSA in 2010, cruise vessels that visit U.S. ports were required to meet certain security and safety requirements, such as having rail heights of at least 42 inches and reporting allegations of certain crimes to the FBI. GAO was asked to review cruise vessel safety as well as security issues--related to keeping passengers safe from crime.
GAO reviewed (1) the extent to which the cruise vessel industry and federal agencies have implemented the CVSSA, and (2) any actions taken following the Costa Concordia accident to enhance the safety of cruise vessels visiting U.S. ports.
GAO reviewed the CVSSA and related agency and industry documents, and interviewed officials from the Coast Guard, FBI, CLIA, five cruise lines which accounted for over 80 percent of North American cruise vessel passengers in 2012, and two crime victim advocacy groups. The cruise lines were selected based on several factors including their volume of North American passengers. Crime victim advocacy groups were selected based on their knowledge about cruise ship crime issues. GAO is not making any recommendations in this report.

What GAO Found

The cruise industry and federal agencies have implemented 11 of 15 Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act (CVSSA) provisions, but implementation of 4 provisions requires the development of regulations and policy, and is underway. Officials from all five cruise lines GAO met with said most required measures were in place when the CVSSA was enacted. According to U.S. Coast Guard officials, a notice of proposed rulemaking is in development to address 3 of the 4 remaining provisions. The 3 provisions relate to technologies to (1) detect a person going overboard, (2) maintain a video surveillance system to assist in documenting crimes on the vessel, and (3) transmit communications and warnings from the ship to anyone in surrounding waters. A policy linked to the fourth provision on the certification of trainers who provide the CVSSA course on crime scene preservation to cruise line personnel, is, as of December 2013, undergoing review at the Department of Transportation. With respect to CVSSA crime-reporting requirements, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Coast Guard have implemented these provisions as required. Accordingly, the agencies publish on a website information on reported crimes that are no longer under investigation. However, GAO identified some limitations in the usefulness of the publicly reported data. Specifically, (1) allegations for which investigations are not opened are never published; (2) the data are not timely--due to the length of the criminal justice process--and thus, crime data may be posted months or years after the alleged crime occurred and (3) the data reported are not put into context, such as a city's crime rate, to provide the public with the information needed to compare rates and make decisions. However, some cruise lines are making efforts to improve reported crime data. In August 2013, several cruise lines began voluntarily disclosing alleged crime data on their websites. Also, in July 2013, legislation was introduced to amend the CVSSA that would revise and expand crime-reporting requirements, among other items. As of November 2013, however, these actions were either new or pending. Thus, GAO could not assess whether, or to what extent, the voluntary reporting or potential legislation might provide more useful data than current requirements.
Following the Costa Concordia accident, the cruise industry, an international maritime organization, and the Coast Guard took actions to improve passenger safety. The Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA)--which represents over 98 percent of cruise lines in the United States--identified 10 safety-related policies in 2012 that were adopted by all member cruise lines by July 2013. These policies include improvements to vessel passage planning and life jacket stowage, among other things. The International Maritime Organization (IMO)--a United Nations agency responsible for maritime matters--has also adopted a regulation, effective January 2015, requiring passengers to participate in a safety and evacuation exercise (muster drill) prior to or immediately upon departure--rather than within 24 hours of departure. CLIA member cruise lines adopted a similar muster policy weeks after the Costa Concordia accident. The Coast Guard is monitoring IMO's consideration of additional regulations. The agency has also started witnessing predeparture muster drills and has reported no major concerns. In addition, the Coast Guard has worked with the cruise industry for several years to plan and hold disaster exercises, including one in April 2013 to practice a mass rescue from a cruise vessel.