Watch Bill Worksheet
Build a watch bill by station and the Navy's standard watch periods, with the PQS qualification for each station, standbys, and the review and approval signatures the SORM requires.
What this worksheet covers
Name, rank, and unit prefill from your service profile.
Watch bill
- Command / Department / Division
- Duty section
- Watch organization
- Effective date(s)
- Turnover / reporting (time, place, uniform)
Assignments
- Watch stations and assignments
One row per station. Enter rate and last name in each period (e.g., BM3 Lee). Adjust the periods to your watch rotation; many in-port bills use 4-hour watches with split dog watches.
- Standbys
- Remarks / special instructions
Review and approval
- Prepared by (name, rate, date)
- Reviewed by (LCPO / Department Head)
- Approved by (XO / CO / CDO per command instruction)
- Changes after approval
How to fill out the Worksheet (OPNAVINST 3120.32, SORM)
A watch bill assigns qualified Sailors to watch stations for each watch period, so every required station is manned by someone qualified. The SORM makes the department head (in port, the command duty officer's organization) responsible for preparing it and the XO or CO for approving it. When: Draft it for each duty section rotation, underway period, or special evolution (sea and anchor, flight quarters, UNREP), with enough lead time for review. Many commands post the in-port bill a week ahead.
Step by step
- Enter the command, department or division, duty section, and the dates the bill covers.
- List every watch station required by the watch organization, with the PQS qualification it needs.
- Fill in each watch period with a qualified Sailor. Check that no one stands back-to-back watches without the rest your command requires.
- Assign standbys and note turnover times, uniform, and reporting location.
- Have it reviewed (watch coordinator, LCPO, department head) and approved by the authority the command's watch instruction names. Post it.
- Log every change after approval with the approver's initials. Watchstanders may swap only with approval.
What a strong one looks like
- Check qualifications against the PQS records, not memory. An unqualified watchstander is a safety and inspection finding.
- Balance the dog watches (1600–1800 and 1800–2000) so the same Sailors don't get the mid-watch every night.
- Account for leave, TAD, medical appointments, and school before you publish, not after.
- Keep under-instruction (U/I) watches paired with a qualified watchstander, and show both on the bill.
Common mistakes
- Posting a bill that hasn't been approved.
- Unrecorded swaps. The approved bill should always show who is actually on watch.
- Stations left blank. Every period needs a name or an approved "secured" note.