WASHINGTON, D.C. – Weeks after he led a bipartisan group of New England Senators in urging the United States Coast Guard (USCG) to delay its plans to remove navigational buoys in the Gulf of Maine and Atlantic Ocean, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME) received confirmation that the USCG will accept their recommendation. In a letter addressed to the Senators, USCG Director of Marine Transportation Systems, Michael D. Emerson, agreed with the Senators and outlined the Coast Guard’s plan to modify and extend the stakeholder engagement process to better understand the impacts of the proposal.

The USCG launched the Coastal Buoy Modernization Initiative in April 2025, a component of its broader Short-Range Aids-to-Navigation Modernization effort. This initiative proposed the discontinuation of 351 coastal buoys across New England (Maine accounts for the largest share at 145 buoys). At the same time, an additional 2,349 buoys and beacons are under review for future removal as part of the Harbor Buoy Modernization Initiative and the Shallow Water Level of Service Study (SWLOSS), scheduled for phased implementation from 2026 through 2029. In total, some 2700 buoys are up for consideration for removal along the New England coast.

“I appreciate your concern that the Coast Guard slow down the effort to ensure that the needs of communities and mariners in your states are understood. Accordingly, the Coast Guard will modify and extend the process. The Northeast District will review first round comments, assess feedback., and re-advertise with any changes to the current proposal. This notice will include changes to aids in the vicinity of proposed discontinuations (such as relocations, lighting, or increased nominal range); which will provide users a more complete change picture,” Emerson wrote in response to the Senators.

The Coast Guard’s response is in line with the Senators’ prior request in June:

“We urge the agency to slow down this effort to ensure that the agency understands the needs of the communities and mariners in our states. Therefore, we urge you to extend the public comment period and increase public and Congressional engagement as outlined in this letter,” the Senators wrote in their initial letter.

As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), Senator King has been a steadfast supporter of the Coast Guard and Navy as well as economic and recreational usages of Maine’s waterways.

King recently secured key provisions in the FY 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to support the maritime forces and ensure that America’s military can continue providing best in class services to protect the ‘territory of the brave.’ In 2023, he was honored with the Congressional Sea Services Award by the Navy League Capital Council and accepted it on behalf of the men and women of the sea services. Additionally, as an engaged leader on maritime matters, Senator King has previously secured legislation that bolstered USCG and marine transport cybersecurity, healthcare for sentinels, and increase pay and housing allowances for Maine Coasties. He also successfully negotiated provisions enacted into law that supported Maine lobsterman and Maine Windjammers.

Additionally, as a member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, Senator King has been a longtime advocate for Maine’s outdoor resources. Last year, Senator King helped secure critical funding for the American Lobster Research Program—an organization that supports projects to address critical knowledge gaps about American lobster and its fishery in a dynamic and changing environment. Senator King also helped pass the Thomas R. Carper Water Resources Development Act, legislation that provides approval for the restoration of a Maine fishway to allow fish such as herring, alewives, and the endangered Atlantic salmon to migrate upstream.

The full text of the letter led by Senator King can be found here.

Mariners, and professional and recreational boaters, are highly encouraged to provide constructive feedback to the Coast Guard about the proposed changes. Information can be found here.

###