State Codes and Statutes
Statutes > Connecticut > Title15 > Chap263 > Sec15-13Sec. 15-13. Pilots; qualifications; license fee; bond; suspension or revocation of license; inactive status; limited licenses; regulations. (a) The Commissioner of Transportation shall license as many residents of this state and any other state as said commissioner deems necessary and finds qualified to act as pilots for one year in any of the ports and waters of this state including the Connecticut waters of Long Island Sound. A license shall be denied to any person holding a license or authority under the laws of any other state which does not issue a license or authority to pilots licensed by the Connecticut Department of Transportation. Except as hereinafter provided, no person shall be so licensed unless he possesses a federal masters license and has procured a federal first class pilot's license of unlimited tonnage issued by the United States Coast Guard covering the sections of the waters of this state for which application is being made to said commissioner. Each applicant for a license to act as a pilot for any port or waterway of the state including the Connecticut waters of Long Island Sound shall document that he has made the following passages on ocean-going vessels of not less than four thousand gross tons, through the port or waterway for which application is being made during the thirty-six months immediately preceding his application: (1) Twelve round trips on American vessels under enrollment as pilot of record, on which the applicant is not a crew member; or (2) twenty-four round trips as observing pilot on foreign or registered vessels during which the applicant does the piloting work under the supervision and authority of a pilot licensed by this state, provided the applicant possesses a first class pilot's license issued by the United States Coast Guard for the port or waterway; or (3) any combination of the above requirements for trips, substituting two observer trips for each trip as pilot of record.
(b) Each pilot shall, upon the granting of his license, pay a fee of thirty dollars to said commissioner and shall give a bond of one thousand dollars to the State Treasurer and his successors in office, with surety, to the acceptance of the commissioner, conditioned for the faithful performance of his duties as a pilot, upon which bond suit may be brought in the name of said Treasurer for the benefit of any person who may suffer loss or damage, by reason of the ignorance, neglect or misconduct of such pilot in the discharge of his duties. The commissioner shall increase such fee by fifty per cent July 1, 1985, by an additional fifty per cent effective July 1, 1989, by an additional twenty-five per cent effective July 1, 1991, and by an additional twenty-five per cent effective July 1, 1993.
(c) Each license shall expire on the last day of December following its issuance and may be renewed upon application and payment of the fee required by subsection (b) of this section, renewal of the bond required under subsection (b) of this section and proof of current federal licensure as required in subsection (a) of this section.
(d) The Commissioner of Transportation shall keep a record of each license and, if requested, shall furnish a certificate of such license.
(e) Said commissioner may suspend or revoke any pilot's license for (1) incompetence, (2) neglect of duty, (3) misconduct or (4) using a vessel owned or operated by a person who has not obtained a certificate of compliance under the provisions of section 15-15e for the purpose of embarking or disembarking another vessel in open and unprotected waters. Any person aggrieved by the action of said commissioner under the provisions of this subsection may appeal therefrom in accordance with the provisions of section 4-183.
(f) Any pilot who has been away from duty for a period of not less than six months, or who has not completed a passage through any port or waterway for which he is licensed during such period, shall be placed on inactive status. Said pilot shall complete at least one round trip over the port or waterway for which he is licensed before resuming his duties as a pilot. The refresher passages shall be made in the company of an active pilot licensed by the state. Said pilot, before resuming his pilotage duties, shall submit to the commissioner a list of completed refresher passages, including the name, gross tons and draft of each vessel involved, a description and date of each passage and the name of the attending pilot.
(g) The commissioner may issue limited licenses pursuant to this section. Such licenses may be limited according to a pilot's qualifications for operating a vessel, which shall include, but not be limited to, the type, size, gross tonnage or draft of a vessel.
(h) The commissioner shall adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, to carry out the purposes of this section.
(1949 Rev., S. 4757; 1955, S. 2380d; 1967, P.A. 258; 1969, P.A. 815, S. 1; 1971, P.A. 797, S. 1; 872, S. 370; 1972, P.A. 48, S. 1; P.A. 73-405, S. 1; P.A. 76-436, S. 350, 681; P.A. 77-337, S. 2; 77-603, S. 30, 125; P.A. 85-413, S. 5, 8; P.A. 87-147; P.A. 90-274, S. 1; P.A. 92-178, S. 2, 3; P.A. 93-307, S. 33, 34; P.A. 94-188, S. 18, 30; P.A. 97-304, S. 19; P.A. 05-288, S. 63.)
History: 1967 act raised license fee in Subsec. (c) from $15 to $30; 1969 act transferred duties of court and/or judge to boating commission, deleted provision re payment of entry fee in Subsec. (a) and added Subsec. (e) re suspension or revocation of license; 1971 acts amended Subsec. (a) to make licenses valid for one year rather than three years, to add reference to ports and to delete provision re notice of intention to apply for license and filing of qualifications, amended Subsec. (b) to include references to "port", "pilot" and "undock", inserted new Subsec. (d) re expiration and renewal of licenses and relettered former Subsecs. (d) and (e) as (e) and (f) and substituted commissioner of environmental protection for boating commission; 1972 act deleted Subsec. (b) re qualifications and relettered remaining subsecs. accordingly; P.A. 73-405 replaced commissioner of environmental protection with commissioner of transportation; P.A. 76-436 replaced court of common pleas with superior court and added reference to judicial districts in Subsec. (e), effective July 1, 1978; P.A. 77-337 substituted "shall" for "may" and included residents of other states in Subsec. (a) and added provision re license to operate canal boat, barge or tug boat; P.A. 77-603 replaced previous appeal provision in Subsec. (e) with requirement that appeals to be made in accordance with Sec. 4-183; P.A. 85-413 inserted fee increases effective on and after July 1, 1985; P.A. 87-147 specifically required an applicant for a pilot's license to procure a federal first class pilot's license of unlimited tonnage issued by the United States Coast Guard, required documentation of a minimum number of passages and added Subsec. (f), providing for inactive status; P.A. 90-274 added provision in Subsec. (a) requiring pilots to possess a federal masters license and clarified that the waters of the state include the waters of Long Island Sound, increased amount of bond in Subsec. (b) from $500 to $1,000, added provision in Subsec. (f) that an inactive pilot must complete refresher passages, and added new Subsec. (g) allowing the commissioner to issue limited pilot licenses and a new Subsec. (h) requiring the commissioner to adopt regulations; P.A. 92-178 amended Subsec. (a) re reciprocity with other states concerning the issuance of pilot's licenses, effective October 1, 1993; P.A. 93-307 changed effective date of Sec. 2 of P.A. 92-78 from October 1, 1993, to October 1, 1994, effective June 29, 1993; P.A. 94-188 changed effective date of Sec. 2 of P.A. 92-178 from October 1, 1994, to October 1, 1995; P.A. 97-304 amended Subsec. (e) to add Subdiv. designators before the grounds for suspension or revocation of license and added new ground in Subdiv. (4) for using a vessel owned or operated by a person who has not obtained a certificate of compliance under provisions of Sec. 15-15e for purpose of embarking or disembarking another vessel in open and unprotected waters; P.A. 05-288 made technical changes in Subsec. (c), effective July 13, 2005.
