OCSNCOE Unit Emblem (silhouettes of a self-elevating MODU, an OSV and an offshore wind turbine over a silhouette of the United States with the U.S. Coast Guard mark (i.e., racing stripe) in the background).Outer Continental Shelf National Center of Expertise (OCSNCOE)

JACK ST. MALO during offshore construction with attending OSV and Floatel VICTORY. C-ENFORCER underway with water cannons flowing. SEVAN LOUISIANA underway when initially entering the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Platform GINA off the California coast. Block Island windfarm with attending CTV. SPARTAN 151 dockside in Seward, AK.

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District Eight (D8) OCS Inspections

The D8 OCS inspections staff is charged with managing all inspections-related functions in the Gulf of Mexico that fall within the borders of the Coast Guard's Eighth District. The D8 OCS inspections mission is managed by the D8 OCS Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection (OCMI) and his staff that work out of the District Eight office in New Orleans, LA.

Five coastal units within the Eight District have personnel assigned that are 'tagged' for OCS inspections. Note that these personnel may also fill other inspections-related duties for their parent commands.

The makeup of the D8 OCS inspections is summarized in the following table. See the OCS Org Chart for currently assigned personnel.

Office Billeted Personnel
District 8 OCS (D8(do))

Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection (OCMI): CAPT

Deputy OCMI: CDR

Operations Officer: LTJG

Chief, Inspections Division (CID): Civilian (CIV)

Investigations Coordinator: CIV

Area Maritime Security Coordinator (AMSC): CIV

Sector New Orleans

OCS Coordinator: LCDR

Two CIV Marine Inspectors (MIs)

Five Active Duty (AD) MIs

One Investigating Officer (IO)

MSU Port Arthur One AD MI
MSU Texas City Two AD MIs
Sector Mobile One AD MI

D8 OCS Inspections History

After much consideration and in an effort to centralize points of contacts and interaction with industry and to promote consistency with inspections-related activities, the U.S. Coast Guard created the District Eight OCS OCMI. With the creation of this position, supporting staff positions were created at the District office and billets were reallocated among the six coastal units that had historically conducted the OCS inspections mission for the Coast Guard on the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. The core group of OCS inspectors were relocated to Sector New Orleans and conduct the majority of OCS inspections. The D8 OCS OCMI was added as 33 CFR 3.40-5 on April 15, 2015 via Federal Register Notice 80 FR 20162. See the discussion at 80 FR 20159 for additional information related to the creation of the D8 OCS OCMI zone.

Prior to the creation of the consolidated D8 OCS OCMI zone, OCS inspections were conducted by inspectors at six coastal Coast Guard offices located in Mobile, AL, New Orleans, LA, Morgan City, LA, Port Arthur, TX, Galveston/Texas City, TX and Corpus Christi, TX, with the majority of the workload handled by the inspectors assigned to the Morgan City office. With the consolidation, inspector billets were shifted from Morgan City to New Orleans (where much of the OCS work had occurred in the early stages of the program). In 2021, the Corpus Christ billet was moved to Texas City.


33 CFR 3.40-5 Eighth District Outer Continental Shelf Marine Inspection Zone.

(a) A separate marine inspection zone, with an office located in New Orleans, Louisiana, performs the OCMI functions defined in 33 CFR 1.01-20 for all MODUs and fixed and floating OCS facilities, as those terms are defined in 33 CFR 140.10, engaged in OCS activities wherever located in the Eighth Coast Guard District.

(b) Notwithstanding the OCMI inspection authority held by Eighth Coast Guard District Sector Commanders and Marine Safety Unit Commanders in §3.01-1(d), the Chief, Outer Continental Shelf Division at the Eighth Coast Guard District, shall serve as the Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection, for this Marine Inspection Zone and shall be known as the Eighth District Outer Continental Shelf Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection. The District Commander resolves any conflict between the functions of this marine inspection zone and any geographically based marine inspection zones described in 33 CFR 3.40-10, 3.40-15, 3.40-28, 3.40-35, 3.40-40, 3.40-60, or 3.40.65.

[USCG-2013-0491, 80 FR 20162, Apr. 15, 2015]


D8 OCS Contact Information

Click on the member's name to send an email.

D8 OCS OCMI:
CAPT Matthew Denning, (504) 671-2150

Deputy D8 OCS OCMI:
LCDR David Newcomb, (504) 671-2106

Operations Officer:
LTJG Joel Chapman, (504) 671-2157

OCS Chief of Inspections:
Mr. Edward Lacy, (504) 671-2151

OCS Investigations:
Mr. Charles Arnold, (504) 671-2267

Area Maritime Security Coordinator:
Mr. Steven Wilkes, (504) 671-2044


Homepage:
Eighth District Outer Continental Shelf (uscg.mil)

Scheduling:
To schedule an inspection, complete an Application for Inspection and email to OCSScheduling@uscg.mil.

Emergency Evacuation Plans (EEPs):
To submit EEP’s and EEP updates for review and approval, please email Emergency-Evacuation-Plans@uscg.mil.

Letters of Determination (LODs):
To obtain a Letter of Determination, please submit requests to OCSLOD@uscg.mil.

Marine Casualty Reporting:
Written reports of casualties and/or CG-2692 forms shall be emailed to OCSCorrespondence@uscg.mil.

General correspondence:
Send emails to OCSCorrespondence@uscg.mil.


D8 OCS OCMI Marine Safety Information Bulletins (MSIBs)

MSIBs issued by the District Eight Outer Continental Shelf Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection (OCMI) are listed in the table below, ordered from newest to oldest (by MSIB number). Click on the MSIB number to open the document (opens in a new window).

MSIB Number Date Issued Subject
2020s
23-01 31May2023 Hurricane Season Reporting Requirements
22-02 31May2022 Hurricane Season Reporting Requirements
22-01 05Apr2022 Reporting Requirements and Mooring Arrangements for MODUs and Vessels Completing OCS Activities Intending to Cold Stack
21-03 13Aug2021 Reporting Requirements and Mooring Arrangements for MODUs and Vessels Completing OCS Activities Intending to Cold Stack
21-02 21May2021 Hurricane Season Reporting Requirements
21-01 13Jan2021 Incident Involving a Fast Rescue Craft
20-03, CH-1 31Jul2020 Extension of Third Party Surveys
20-03 21Apr2020 Extension of Third Party Surveys
20-02 02Apr2020 Novel Coronovirus Reporting Update
20-01 17Mar2020 Novel Coronovirus
2010s
19-04 24Jul2019 Lifeboat Operations on Manned Facilities
19-02 28Jan2019 Lifesaving Appliance Data Plates
19-01 28Jan2019 Marine Casualty Reporting
18-03 08May2018 Procedures for Reporting Unsafe Working Conditions
17-02 28Sep2017 Labeling for Lifesaving Equipment on Floating OCS Facilities and Manned Platforms
17-01 05Sep2017 Coast Guard OCS Routine Correspondence and Points of Contact