COAST GUARD ENFORCEMENT AT SEA 
The Secretary of Transportation notes with appreciation 
NACOA’s interest in and support for the U.S. Coast Guard, 
and concurs that new responsibilities levied upon it should 
receive concomitant resources to carry them out but as in all 
matters, priorities must be established in the face of finite 
funding. 
The Secretary of Transportation feels that NACOA’s com- 
ments are mainly oriented to enforcement by the Coast Guard 
of laws relating to pollution, and do not discuss its many other 
activities such as search and rescue, aids to navigation, port 
safety, icebreaking and merchant marine safety, to name a few. 
He also would like to clarify that while many agencies are 
involved in pollution discharge investigations, only the Coast 
Guard is empowered to conduct enforcement proceedings. 
He particularly would, like to call attention to the commit- 
tee’s statement that “An almost universal concern among the 
officers responsible for enforcing the environmental legislation 
is that the laws are too rigid and do not allow for the applica- 
tion of ‘common sense’ judgment as to whether or not a penalty 
shall be assessed for each and every violation, no matter what 
the circumstances.” While this may express the feelings of a 
number of Coast Guard personnel, it is not a reflection of Coast 
Guard policy. Further, NACOA’s comment that “There is no 
provision for the issuance of warnings in case of minor and 
accidental violations where there is no negligence involved” 
implies a recommended change of law requiring proof of 
negligence, in which case the cure would be an order of magni- 
tude worse than the ailment. 
RESEARCH WITHIN THE NAVY 
NACOA’s recognition that the Navy-sponsored basic ocean- 
ographic research program has proven over the years to be 
invaluable to the Navy and the Nation emphasizes the commit- 
tee’s concern that this valuable service cannot be maintained 
under a continuing level-funded budget. The Secretary of the 
Navy will continue to evaluate this program in accordance with 
the priorities of the Navy. 
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