Mariner Exam Modernization Act

This Act may be cited as the Mariner Exam Modernization Act.
Section 7510 of title 46, United States Code, is amended—
in subsection (c)—
in the subsection heading by striking Exam review and inserting Working group;
in paragraph (1)—
by striking 90 days and inserting 180 days;
by striking Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2016 and insert Mariner Exam Modernization Act;
by striking new questions for inclusion in and inserting questions, content, and relevancy of;
by redesignating subparagraphs (E), (F), and (G) as subparagraphs (F), (G), and (H), respectively; and
by inserting after subparagraph (D) the following:
at least 2 individuals that have taken and passed the examination in the 5 years before the commissioning of the working group;
in paragraph (4)—
in the paragraph heading by striking Baseline review and inserting Review;
in subparagraph (A)—
by striking Within 1 year and inserting Not later than 270 days;
by striking Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2016 and inserting Mariner Exam Modernization Act;
by striking Secretary and inserting Commandant;
by redesignating clauses (i), (ii), (iii), and (iv) as clauses (ii), (iii), (iv), and (vii), respectively;
in clause (iv), as so redesignated, by striking ; and and inserting a semicolon;
by inserting before clause (ii) the following:
industry standards, practices, and technology to be considered in the Merchant Mariner Credentialing Examination;
by inserting after clause (iv) the following:
the relevancy of examination topics and contents;
any redundancy of core competencies between the Merchant Mariner Credentialing Examination and Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchingkeeping competencies; and
by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting the following:
Upon completion of the review under this paragraph, a report shall be provided to the Commandant which shall include findings of the review with recommendations for updates to the Merchant Marine Credentialling Examination.
by striking paragraphs (3), (5), and (8);
by redesignating paragraphs (4) and (9) as paragraphs (5) and (8), respectively; and
by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
The Commandant shall convene the working group annually or at the creation of new examination questions, whichever occurs sooner.
The Commandant shall allow any member of the working group to participate remotely if the member of the working group does not have the means to participate in person.
The Commandant may not use questions developed for use in the Merchant Mariner Credentialing Examination until such questions are reviewed and approved by the working group.
by redsignating subsection (d) as subsection (e); and
by inserting after subsection (c) the following:
Not later than 270 days after the completion of the review under paragraph (4) of subsection (c), the Commandant shall develop a plan to update and modernize the Merchant Mariner Credentialing Examination and implement the recommendations developed by the review under such paragraph.
The plan developed under paragraph (1) shall include—
the elimination or updating of outdated topics, contents, core competencies, or questions covered by the Merchant Mariner Credentialing Examination;
the modernization of testing procedures consistent with contemporary procedures for standardized testing administration and evaluation; and
the development of methods to collect examination data on pass and fail rates for questions and the overall examination for future analysis and comparison uses.
In developing the plan under paragraph (1), the Commandant shall develop such plan in consultation with the working group and individuals with expertise in modern best practices for relevant standardized testing.
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the Mariner Exam Modernization Act, the Coast Guard shall provide to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a briefing on the review and plan developed under this subsection.