46 U.S.C. § 7512 — Requirements of electronic merchant mariner credentialing system

(a) Definition. “Merchant mariner credential” means a merchant mariner license, certificate, or document that the Secretary may issue under this title. (b) Required considerations. When implementing an electronic credentialing system, the Secretary must, as far as practicable, consider allowing: (1) electronic submission of credential-application materials and course-approval requests, including sea service records, qualifications, course certificates, safety and suitability documents, and medical records; (2) direct, secure electronic submission of (A) employers’ sea-service verification, (B) training providers’ course certificates, and (C) needed documents from other stakeholders; and (3) electronic processing and evaluation for credentials and course approvals, including remote evaluation by the Secretary. (c) Data access. The Secretary must ensure that the Maritime Administration and other authorized Federal agencies can access anonymized, aggregated data, including: (1) total sea service for people with valid credentials; (2) the number of credentialed mariners for each rating, filterable by endorsements; (3) age, gender, and region or address; (4) estimated Coast Guard processing times for applications, medical certificates, and course approvals; (5) approved training providers and, for each, classes taken by credentialed or applying individuals; and (6) when applicable, the uniformed-service branch and duty status of applicants. (d) Privacy. The Secretary must collect the subsection (b) information in a way that protects the privacy rights of the people it concerns.