Connecticut Maritime Association has decided to move its annual meeting and exposition to Houston for the coming year. In the last few years attendance has shrunk and I suppose leadership thinks that Houston has more potential to draw interest from the maritime community. This leaves me to wonder what the “Maritime Community” actually is.Connecticut Maritime Association had an interesting origin.
As there is currently a shortage of mariners, the U.S. Coast Guard has considered the barrier to mariner career progression presented by Title 46 CFR 11.211(d), Service on Articulated Tug Barges (ATB) and Integrated Tug Barges (ITB). This regulation limits the crediting of sea service based on the aggregate tonnage of the ATB or ITB to a two-for-one basis up to only 50% of the required service.