(May 28, 1928; 45 Stat. 710; 46 U. S. C. 382a.) A board of local inspectors, Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation consisting of a local inspector of hulls and a local inspector of boilers, is hereby created at the port of Hoquiam, Washington. Such inspector of hulls and inspector of boilers shall each be entitled, in addition to his authorized pay and traveling allowances, to his actual and reasonable expenses for transportation of instruments, which shall be certified and sworn to under such instructions as shall be given by the Secretary of Commerce. (June 30, 1932, May 27, 1936.)

(Apr. 5, 1938; 52 Stat. 200; 46 U. S. C. 382a-1.) A board of inspectors, Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation, consisting of a local inspector of hulls and a local inspector of boilers, be, and is hereby, created at the port of Port Arthur, Texas. Such inspector of hulls and inspector of boilers shall each be entitled, in addition to his authorized pay and traveling expenses, to his actual and reasonable expenses for transportion of instruments which shall be certified and sworn to under such instructions as shall be given by the Secretary of Commerce.

(April 30, 1940; 54 Stat. 169; 46 U. S. C. 382c.) The Secretary of Commerce is authorized, as the exigencies of the service may require, to rearrange from time to time, by consolidation or otherwise, the location of the several boards of local inspectors and to discontinue boards of local inspectors by abolishing the same or establishing cthers in their stead: Provided, That the whole number of boards of local inspectors shall at no time be made to exceed those established and authorized on the date of the enactment of this Act, except as the same may thereafter be provided by law: Provided further, That the Secretary of Commerce shall, at the beginning of each regular session, submit to Congress a statement of all acts, if any, done under the provisions of this Act and the reasons therefor.

QUALIFICATIONS OF LOCAL INSPECTORS

6

(Sec. 4415—46 U. S. C. 384.) The inspector of hulls shall be a person of good character and suitable qualifications and attainments to perform the services required of an inspector of hulls, who from his practical knowledge of shipbuilding and navigation and the uses of steam in navigation is fully competent to make a reliable estimate of the strength, seaworthiness, and other qualities of the hulls of vessels and their equipment deemed essential to safety of life in their navigation; and the inspector of boilers shall be a person of good character and suitable qualifications and attainments to perform the services required of an inspector of boilers, who from his knowledge and experience of the duties of an engineer employed in navigating vessels by steam, and also of the construction and use of boilers, and machinery and appurtenances therewith connected, is able to form a reliable opinion of the strength, form, workmanship, and suitableness of boilers and machinery to be employed, without hazard to life from imperfection in the material, workmanship, or arrangement of any

4 See Introduction for certain changes in administration.

Abolished Nov. 30, 1940, by Secretary of Commerce, pursuant to authority of Act of Apr. 30, 1940.

Merchant Marine Inspection Offices were established in Miami, Fla., and St. Ignace, Mich., Dec. 1, 1940, by order of the Secretary of Commerce and reaffirmed by the Commandant, U. S. Coast Guard. The Merchant Marine Inspection Office at Grand Haven, Mich., was transferred to Ludington, Mich., Nov. 2, 1942, by order of the Commandant, U. S. Coast Guard.

part of such apparatus for steaming. The inspector of hulls and the inspector of boilers designated by the Secretary of Commerce shall, from the date of designation, constitute a board of local inspectors. (Feb. 27, 1877, sec. 1; Mar. 3, 1905, sec. 1; Mar. 4, 1913, sec. 1.)

PERSONS INELIGIBLE AS INSPECTORS

(R. S. 4416–46 U. S. C. 385.) No person interested, either directly or indirectly, in any patented article required to be used on any steamer by this title, or who is a member of any association of owners, masters, engineers, or pilots of steamboats, or who is, directly or indirectly, pecuniarily interested in any steam vessel, or who has not the qualifications and acquirements prescribed by this title, or who is intemperate in his habits, shall be eligible to hold the office of either supervising, local, or assistant inspector, or to discharge the duties thereof; and if any such person shall attempt to exercise the functions of the office of either inspector he shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of five hundred dollars, and shall be dismissed from office. (Mar. 3, 1905, sec. 2.)

(R. S. 4457–46 U. S. C. 414.) The local inspectors shall keep a record of certificates of inspection of vessels, their boilers, engines, and machinery, and of all their acts in their examination and inspection of steamers, whether of approval or disapproval; and when a certificate of approval is recorded, the original shall be delivered to the collector or other chief officer of the customs of the district. They shall also keep a like record of all licenses granted to masters, mates, pilots, and engineers, and of all refusals of the same, of all suspensions and revocations of license, of all refusals, suspensions, or revocations of which they shall receive notices from other districts; and shall report to the supervising inspector of their respective districts, in writing, their decisions in cases of refusal of licenses, or of the suspension or revocation thereof, and all testimony received by them in such proceedings. They shall also report promptly to such supervising inspector all violations of the steamboat laws that come to their knowledge. They shall also keep an accurate account of every steamer boarded by them during the year; and of all their official acts and doings, which, in the form of a report, they shall communicate to the supervising inspector of the district, at such times as the board of supervising inspectors, by their established rules, shall direct. (Oct. 9, 1940.)

(R. S. 4455-46 U. S. C. 437.) The inspectors of one district shall not modify or annul the doings of the inspectors of another district in regard to repairs, unless there is a change in the state of things, demanding more repairs than were thought necessary when the order was made. Nor shall the inspectors of one district license a person coming from another district, if such person has been rejected for unfitness or want of qualifications.

(R. S. 4456—46 U. S. C. 438.) The local board of inspectors, when so requested in writing by any master or owner, shall, under the

4 See Introduction for certain changes in administration.

Submitted at end of fiscal year (see 46 C. F. R. 64.12, 83.11, 101.11, 120.11).

direction of the supervising inspector, inspect steamers in other collection districts where no such board is established; and if a certificate of approval is not granted, no other inspection shall be made by the same or any other board until the objections made by such local board, and unreversed by the supervising inspector of the district, are removed. Nothing in this section shall impair the right of the inspectors to permit such vessel to go to another port for repairs, if in their opinion it can be done with safety.

Assistant Inspectors: Clerks.*

(R. S. 4414-46 U. S. C. 382.) The Secretary of Commerce may appoint, in districts or ports where the volume of work requires them, assistant inspectors, at a salary, for the port of New York, of $2,500 a year each; for the port of New Orleans, Louisiana; the districts of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Baltimore, Maryland; the ports of Boston, Massachusetts; Providence, Rhode Island; and the district of San Francisco, California, at $2,350 per year each, and for all other districts and ports at a salary of $2,100 a year each; and he may appoint a clerk to any such board at a compensation not exceeding $1,500 a year to each person so appointed. Every inspector provided for in this or the preceding sections of this title shall be paid his actual necessary traveling expenses while traveling on official business assigned him by competent authority, together with his actual and reasonable expenses for transportation of instruments, which shall be certified and sworn to under such instructions as shall be given by the Secretary of Commerce.

Assistant inspectors, appointed as provided by law, shall perform such duties of actual inspection as may be assigned to them under the direction, supervision, and control of the local inspectors.

(R. S. 4414—46 U. S. C. 382.) The Secretary of Commerce may from time to time detail said assistant inspectors of one port or district for service in any other port or district, as the needs of the Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation may, in his discretion, require, and the actual necessary traveling expenses of assistant inspectors so detailed, while traveling on official business assigned them by competent authority, shall, subject to such limitations as the said Secretary may in his discretion prescribe, be paid in the same manner as provided in this section for inspectors.

ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATES BY INSPECTORS

(May 9, 1938; 52 Stat. 343; 46 U. S. C. 391b.) In the administration of section 13 of the Act of March 4, 1915, as amended (46 U. S. C.672), the Act of June 23, 1936 (46 U. S. C. 391a), and section 4551 of the Revised Statutes of the United States, as amended (46 U. S. C. 643), any inspector of hulls, any inspector of boilers, and any assistant inspector designated for that purpose by a board of local inspectors may issue certificates of service, certificates of efficiency, tankermen's

4 See Introduction for certain changes in administration. See 46 C. F. R. 63.7, 79.7, 97.7, 116.7.

certificates, continuous discharge books, and certificates of identification.

Stationery and Equipment.

(R. S. 4460—46 U. S. C. 415.) The Secretary of Commerce shall procure for the several supervising inspectors and local boards of inspectors such instruments, stationery, printing, and other things necessary for the use of their respective offices as may be required therefor. (Mar. 4, 1913.)

Authority to Promulgate Regulations.1

(R. S. 4462-46 U. S. C. 416.) The Secretary of Commerce shall make such regulations as may be necessary to secure the proper execution of this Title." (46 U. S. C. 170, 214, 215, 222, 224, 224a, 226, 228234, 239, 240, 361, 362, 364, 369, 371-374a, 375-382, 382b, 384, 385, 391, 391a, 392, 393, 399, 400, 402-419, 435-440, 451-453, 460-463, 464, 467, 470-481, 482, and 489-498; 5 U. S. C. 597a-1.) (Mar. 4, 1913.) (June 10, 1918, sec. 4; 40 Stat. 603; 46 U. S. C. 434.) The Secretary of Commerce shall make such regulations as may be necessary to secure a proper enforcement of the provisions of sections 1 to 3 of this Act (46 U.S. C. 431–433).

Overtime Compensation.

(May 27, 1936, sec. 6; 49 Stat. 1385; 46 U. S. C. 382b.) The Secretary of Commerce shall fix a reasonable rate of extra compensation for overtime services of local inspectors of steam vessels and their assistants, United States shipping commissioners and their deputies and assistants, and customs officers and employees, who may be required to remain on duty between the hours of 5 o'clock postmeridian and 8 o'clock antemeridian or on Sundays or holidays to perform services in connection with the inspection of vessels or their equipment, supplying or signing on or discharging crews of vessels on the basis of one-half day's additional pay for each two hours or fraction thereof of at least one hour that the overtime extends beyond 5 o'clock postmeridian (but not to exceed two and one-half days' pay for the full period from 5 o'clock postmeridian to 8 o'clock antemeridian) and two additional days' pay for Sunday or holiday duty. The said extra compensation for overtime services shall be paid by the master, owner, or agent of such vessel to the local United States collector of customs or his representative who shall deposit such collection into the Treasury of the United States to an appropriately designated receipt account. The amount of the receipts so covered during the fiscal year 1936 is hereby authorized to be appropriated and made available for payment of extra compensation for overtime services to the several employees entitled thereto according to rates fixed therefor by the Secretary of Commerce. Provided, That effective July 1, 1936, and thereafter, the amounts of such collections received by the said collector of customs or his representative shall be covered into the Treasury as miscellaneous receipts; and the payments of such extra compensation to the several employees entitled thereto shall

4 See Introduction for certain changes in administration.

9 The Secretary of Commerce was not authorized to amend, modify, or repeal existing regulations, or to adopt new regulations for the enforcement of the provisions of R. S. Title 52, without prior action thereon by the board of supervising inspectors. (1903) 25 Op. Atty. Gen. 67.

be made from the annual appropriations for salaries and expenses of the Bureau: Provided further, That to the extent that the annual appropriations, which are hereby authorized to be made from the general fund of the Treasury are insufficient, there are hereby authorized to be appropriated from the general fund of the Treasury such additional amounts as may be necessary, to the extent that the amounts of such receipts are in excess of the amounts appropriated: Provided further, That such extra compensation shall be paid if such officers or employees have been ordered to report for duty and have so reported, whether the actual inspection of the vessel or her equipment, or the supplying, or signing on, or discharging crews takes place or not: And provided further, That in those ports where customary working hours are other than those hereinabove mentioned, the local inspectors of steam vessels, or United States shipping commissioners, or collectors of customs, as the case may be, are vested with authority to regulate the hours of such employees so as to agree with prevailing working hours in said ports, but nothing contained in this proviso shall be construed in any manner to alter the length of a working day for the local inspectors, their assistants, the United States shipping commissioners and their deputies and assistants, or customs officers and employees, or the overtime pay herein fixed. (May 11, 1938.)

Offenses Relating to Official Duties.

PENALTIES FOR FALSE CERTIFICATION AND ACCEPTANCE OF GRATUITIES

(R. S. 4425-46 U. S. C. 403.) Every inspector who willfully certifies falsely touching any steam vessel, as to her hull, accommodations, boilers, engines, machinery, or their appurtenances, or any of her equipments, or any matter or thing contained in any certificates signed and sworn to by him, shall be punished by fine of not more than $500, or imprisonment for not more than six months, or both.

(R. S. 5482-18 U. S. C. 196.) Every inspector of steamboats who, upon any pretense, receives any fee or reward for his services, except what is allowed to him by law, shall forfeit his office, and be fined not more than $500, or imprisoned not more than six months, or both. (Mar. 4, 1909, sec. 107.)

PENALTY FOR DIVULGING INFORMATION RECEIVED

(R. S. 4448—46 U. S. C. 234.) No inspector or supervising inspector receiving information from a licensed officer who is employed on any vessel as to defects in such vessel, or her equipments, boilers, or machinery, or that any provision of this title is being violated, shall impart the name of such licensed officer, or the source of his information, to any person other than his superiors in the Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation. Any inspector or supervising inspector violating this provision shall be subject to dismissal from the service. (Mar. 3, 1915, sec. 1; June 30, 1932, sec. 501, May 27, 1936, sec. 1.) Penalties Under Laws Relating to Vessels; Mitigation.

(R. S. 5294; 18 U. S. C. 642.) The Secretary of Commerce may, upon application therefor, remit or mitigate any fine, penalty, or forfeiture provided for in laws relating to vessels or discontinue any