This was posted on Scuttlebutt and I have shamelessly purloined it:

IS AN EPIRB REQUIREMENT ON THE HORIZON?
By Darrell Nicholson, Practical Sailor
Should boaters who travel more than three miles offshore in the U.S. or
Great Lakes be required to carry an EPIRB, a personal locator beacon, some
other form of emergency locator beacon? That is the question that West
Marine Vice President Chuck Hawley, vice-chairman of a task force set up by
the National Boating Safety Advisory Council, asked recently in the West
Marine newsletter. According to Hawley, the U.S. Coast Guard is
contemplating such a carriage requirement, and the task force, along with
other representatives of the search and rescue community, marine equipment
manufacturers, and boating groups, are working to come up with their own
recommendations.

Currently, boating safety laws in Australia require recreational boaters
who travel more than two miles offshore to carry 406 MHz EPIRBs. While the
Coast Guard has proposed tighter carriage requirements for U.S.
recreational boaters in the past, these have generally been opposed by
boating advocate groups like BoatUS. According to a recent article in Power
and Motoryacht, BoatUS is taking no position on mandatory emergency
beacons, awaiting the Coast Guard's cost-benefit analysis. According to the
article, the Washington, D.C., consulting firm BayFirst Solutions has drawn
up a cost-to-benefit analysis for the Coast Guard that makes a strong case
for mandatory beacons.

But what "emergency locator beacons" to use? The Coast Guard has poured
about $1 billion into its new Rescue 21 distress-calling network aimed at
providing direction-finding and filling gaps in coverage for DSC VHF
distress calls. Could not a DSC distress call qualify as a "emergency
locator beacon"? What about the current trend toward satellite emergency
notification devices (SENDs), such as the SPOT locator, Cerberus, or the
DeLorme InReach? The versatility of these newer devices have already led
some to question the value of EPIRBs for the majority of boaters. Should a
SPOT locator qualify as an "emergency locator beacon?" -- Read on:
http://www.practical-sailor.com/blog/-10879-1.html