33 CFR § 161.6 - Preemption.

---
identifier: "/us/cfr/t33/s161.6"
source: "ecfr"
legal_status: "authoritative_unofficial"
title: "33 CFR § 161.6 - Preemption."
title_number: 33
title_name: "Navigation and Navigable Waters"
section_number: "161.6"
section_name: "Preemption."
chapter_name: "COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY"
subchapter_number: "P"
subchapter_name: "PORTS AND WATERWAYS SAFETY"
part_number: "161"
part_name: "VESSEL TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT"
positive_law: false
currency: "2026-04-05"
last_updated: "2026-04-05"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
authority: "46 U.S.C. 70001, 70002, 70003, 70034, 70114, 70119; Pub. L. 107-295, 116 Stat. 2064; DHS Delegation No. 00170.1, Revision No. 01.3."
regulatory_source: "CGD 90-020, 59 FR 36324, July 15, 1994, unless otherwise noted."
cfr_part: "161"
---


# 161.6 Preemption.

The regulations in this part have preemptive impact over State laws or regulations on the same subject matter. The Coast Guard has determined, after considering the factors developed by the Supreme Court in *U.S.* v. *Locke,* 529 U.S. 89 (2000), that by enacting 46 U.S.C. Chapter 700 'Ports and Waterways Safety', Congress intended that Coast Guard regulations preempt State laws or regulations regarding vessel traffic services in United States ports and waterways.

[USCG-1998-4399, 75 FR 66314, Oct. 28, 2010, as amended by USCG-2020-0304, 85 FR 58280, Sept. 18, 2020]