46 U.S.C. § 3105: Electronic charts

A self-propelled commercial vessel of at least 65 feet in overall length. A vessel carrying more than a number of passengers for hire determined by the Secretary. A towing vessel of more than 26 feet in overall length and 600 horsepower. Any other vessel for which the Secretary decides that electronic charts are necessary for the safe navigation of the vessel. exempt a vessel from paragraph (1), if the Secretary finds that electronic charts are not necessary for the safe navigation of the vessel on the waters on which the vessel operates; waive the application of paragraph (1) with respect to operation of vessels on navigable waters of the United States specified by the Secretary, if the Secretary finds that electronic charts are not needed for safe navigation on those waters; and permit vessels described in subparagraphs (A) through (D) of paragraph (1) that operate solely landward of the baseline from which the territorial sea of the United States is measured to utilize software-based, platform-independent electronic chart systems that the Secretary determines are capable of displaying electronic navigational charts with necessary scale and detail to ensure safe navigation for the intended voyage. innocent passage through the territorial sea of the United States; or transit through the navigable waters of the United States that form a part of an international strait.