Captain Kate Higgins-Bloom took command of U.S. Coast Guard Sector Delaware Bay in June 2023, where she leads 815 active duty, reserve, and civilian personnel: 2,100 Coast Guard Auxiliary volunteers, and 17 Coast Guard field units across three states. Sector Delaware Bay is responsible for all Coast Guard missions – ranging from search and rescue to securing a marine transportation system that contributes over $90 billion annually to the regional economy – across much of Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and all of Delaware out to 200 miles offshore.
Kate’s previous staff assignments included Chief of the Office of Emergency Management and Disaster Response, where she set service wide policy and doctrine for Coast Guard emergency management and incident response. Prior to assuming leadership of CG-OEM, she was a member of the Coast Guard’s Office of Emerging Policy (CG-DCO-X). At DCO-X she led the Service’s strategic foresight program, Project Evergreen, and spearheaded the creation of enterprise strategies such as the 2019 Coast Guard Arctic Strategic Outlook and the 2020 tri-service maritime strategy “Advantage at Sea.” Other staff tours include Executive Fellow at the Brookings Institution and White House Fellow in the Executive Office of the President.
Kate has held a variety of operational leadership roles afloat and ashore. She led the Sector Hampton Roads Command Center to coordinate over 1200 “all hazards” maritime responses by 35 different government agencies, saving 713 lives and safeguarding more than $95 billion in commerce. Afloat, she commanded USCGC BARANOF (WPB- 1318) during a yearlong deployment in the Arabian Gulf. She has also deployed with incident management teams to oil spills and presidential inaugurations; serving as an action officer for the Principal Federal Official for Hurricane Katrina and for Operation Allies Welcome. Kate graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy with a B.S. in Civil Engineering, and from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government with a Master of Public Administration.