The U.S. Coast Guard is reopening public comments on proposed changes to Aids to Navigation in the Northeast from now until Nov. 15, 2025.
The Coast Guard is strongly requesting that mariners provide feedback by November 15, 2025. When providing feedback, include the size and type of your vessel, how you use the buoys to navigate, and the distance at which you start looking for and using them.
Responses are only accepted by email at D01-SMB-DPWPublicComments@uscg.mil.
"The U.S. Coast Guard Northeast District's spring/summer Coastal Buoy Modernization Proposal (CBMP) received nearly 3,000 public comments enabling the Coast Guard to assess and adjust Proposed changes. We are extremely appreciative of the maritime public’s significant engagement. Detailed, specific input is a critical part of the Coast Guard’s determination steps to manage the Northeast’s 5,600 federal buoys and beacons. Physical aids to navigation will always remain a key part of the nation’s Marine Transportation System.
Thanks to the comprehensive public feedback, the course of action changed for more than half of the original CBMP buoys: 121 aids were removed from proposed discontinuation, 71 aids remain proposed for discontinuation with supporting changes to nearby buoys (relocations, lighting, sound signal additions and/or AIS virtual AtoNs), and 162 buoys remain proposed for discontinuation without additional proposed changes. The CBMP’s main objectives remain to ensure long-term buoy system sustainability at the most navigationally critical locations for mariners while better understanding how navigation practices are changing through tools like GPS location, radar, AIS, electronic charts, and navigation apps. The CBMP Update seeks to balance the use of physical aids with other navigation tools.
Interested mariners are strongly encouraged to comment on this in writing, either personally or through their organization. All comments will be carefully considered and requested prior to the Comment Period end date: November 15, 2025. To best align feedback to the Proposal Update data needs, please include: the formal aid name (with LLNR), your vessel type (recreational or commercial), and how you use the specific signal to locate good water in relation to hazards, shifting shoals, strong currents, narrow passages/entrances or reduced visibility, along with any additional nearby buoy signal changes you recommend. Refer to Project No. 01-25-015 and submit directly in the body of the email (in lieu of .pdf/excel attachments) to maximize analysis effectiveness (D01-SMB-DPWPublicComments@uscg.mil).
For all Proposal details and other navigation safety information, view through the Coast Guard’s Local Notice to Mariners interactive tool at: Maritime Safety Information Products."