Maritime law enforcement and border control are the oldest of the
Coast Guard’s numerous responsibilities. They date back to our
founding as the Revenue
Marine in 1790. The First
Congress established the
Revenue Marine specifically
to patrol our coasts
and seaports to frustrate
smuggling and enforce the
customs laws of the fledgling
Republic. Over two
centuries later, that early
challenge has evolved into
a global obligation for
the maritime security of
our nation. Our maritime
law enforcement and border control duties require the interdiction
of ships at sea. This core capability provides the foundation upon
which today’s broader and more complex maritime security mission
set has been built.
As the Nation’s primary maritime law enforcement service, the
Coast Guard enforces, or assists in enforcing, federal laws and treaties
on waters under U.S. jurisdiction, and other international agreements
on the high seas. We possess
the civil authority to board any
vessel subject to U.S. jurisdiction.
Once aboard, we can inspect, search,
inquire, and arrest. We wield this
broad police power with prudence
and restraint primarily to suppress
violations of our drug, immigration,
and fisheries laws, as well as
to secure our nation from terrorist
The Coast Guard is the designated
lead agency for maritime drug
interdiction under the National Drug Control Strategy and the co-lead
agency for air interdiction operations
with U.S. Customs and Border Protection. As such, the Coast
Guard defends America’s seaward frontier against a torrent of
illegal drugs. For more than three decades, our cutters and aircraft
have forward deployed off South America and in the drug transit
zone. They have intercepted thousands of tons of cocaine, marijuana,
and other illegal
drugs that otherwise would have found their
way to America’s streets.
Coast Guard undocumented migrant interdiction operations are law
enforcement missions with an important humanitarian dimension.
Migrants often take great risks and endure significant hardships in
their attempts to flee their countries and enter the United States. In
many cases, migrant vessels
interdicted at sea are overloaded
basic safety equipment, and
are operated by inexperienced
mariners. Many of the
undocumented migrant cases
we handle actually begin as
search and rescue incidents.
Once again, this illustrates
the interweaving of our roles
and missions. Between 1982
and 2007, we interdicted over
225,000 migrants mostly
from Cuba, the Dominican
Republic, and Haiti.
Throughout our history, the Coast Guard has served with the U.S.
Navy to defend our nation. This began with the Quasi-War with
France in 1798, and continued through the Civil War, the World
Wars, Vietnam, the Persian Gulf War, and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Today, as a critical component of the U.S. National Fleet, we
maintain a high state of readiness to operate as a specialized service
alongside the Navy and Marine Corps. The close relationship
among our services has evolved over two centuries of cooperation.
This enduring relationship is captured in the May 2008 agreement
between the Secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security.
The agreement formalizes the use of Coast Guard competencies
and resources in support of the National Military Strategy and other
national-level defense and security strategies. It lists the following
Coast Guard national defense capabilities:
- Maritime interception and interdiction;
- Military environmental response;
- Port operations, security, and defense;
- Theater security cooperation;
- Coastal sea control;
- Rotary wing air intercept;
- Combating terrorism; and
- Maritime Operational Threat Response support
These support the unified combatant commanders and require the
Coast Guard to execute essential military operations in peacetime,
crisis, and war.
Our domestic civil law enforcement
and port security expertise are uniquely
valuable today as combatant commanders
work to build foreign nation
capacity for security and governance.
In recent years, combatant commanders
have requested Coast Guard forces
to conduct at-sea interception and antipiracy
operations, foreign liaison, and
other supporting warfare tasks in all
The Coast Guard has been responsible
for the security of the ports and waterways of the United States during times
of war since the enactment of the Espionage
Act of 1917. After World War II,
the Magnuson Act of 1950 assigned
the Coast Guard an ongoing mission to
safeguard U.S. ports, harbors, vessels,
and waterfront facilities from accidents,
sabotage, or other subversive acts.
Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, these authorities
took on grave new importance. This includes denying terrorists
the use of the U.S. maritime domain and the U.S. MTS to mount
attacks on our territory, population,
or critical infrastructure.
Our authorities were further strengthened with the passage of the
Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002. This designated
Coast Guard Captains of the Port as the Federal Maritime Security
Coordinators. The Coast Guard thus became the lead agency for
coordinating all maritime security
planning and operations in our
ports and waterways. These activities encompass all efforts to prevent
or respond to attacks.
Maritime security is a continuing theme running throughout our
proud history of service to America. It requires a breadth of experience
and skills—seamanship, diplomacy, legal expertise, and
combat readiness. We have honed these skills for more than two
centuries. No other federal agency offers this combination of law
enforcement and military capabilities, together with the legal
authorities to carry them out.