StacksVerified U.S. regulatory reference

47 CFR §80.91

Verified against eCFR.gov as of June 20, 2026View official text on eCFR.gov ↗
  1. (a)All stations in the maritime mobile service and the maritime mobile-satellite service shall be capable of offering four levels of priority in the following order:
    1. (1)Distress calls, distress messages, and distress traffic.
    2. (2)Urgency communications.
    3. (3)Safety communications.
    4. (4)Other communications.
  2. (b)In a fully automated system, where it is impracticable to offer all four levels of priority, category 1 shall receive priority until such time as intergovernmental agreements remove exemptions granted for such systems from offering the complete order of priority.