The Federal Maritime Commission is proposing to modernize and clarify some requirements associated with the filing of marine terminal operator schedules, the FMC said Sept. 21. The proposed changes are “non-policy related” and are intended to update “outdated” requirements while making the “existing requirements and definitions consistent with other parts” of the FMC’s regulations. The changes include a clarification to the definition of “bulk cargo,” a revision to the definition of “marine terminal operator,” and a removal of other “unnecessary language relating to accessing electronically published MTO schedules.” Comments are due Nov. 22.

The Federal Maritime Commission approved some recommendations made by Commissioner Rebecca Dye in July to address ocean freight delivery and port issues (see 2107290021), the commission said Sept. 25. Under one recommendation, the FMC will issue a “policy statement” to provide guidance to shippers seeking to obtain reparations for violations of the Shipping Act, including unfair detention and demurrage fees. The statement will provide guidance on the “scope of the prohibition against carrier retaliation,” when attorney fees may be imposed on the losing party, and who may file a complaint with the FMC.

The National Retail Federation seeks a meeting with President Joe Biden to address the congestion at key U.S. maritime ports that’s “causing significant challenges for America’s retailers,” NRF CEO Matthew Shay wrote to the White House June 14. The congestion has “added days and weeks to our supply chains,” leading to “inventory shortages impacting our ability to serve our customers,” Shay said. The delays “have added significant transportation and warehousing costs” that many larger retailers can absorb, but smaller retailers “may have no choice but to pass along these costs” to consumers, he said. Retailers continue to work with the ports and transportation providers to resolve the congestion, but “[w]e need strong leadership from the administration to galvanize attention to the current situation as well as work to resolve long-standing issues that limit safe and efficient port operations,” Shay said. The White House didn’t comment.

U.S. retail ports handled 2.27 million 20-foot containers or their equivalents in March, up 21.2 percent from February, the National Retail Federation reported. It was the highest single-month volume since NRF began tracking imports in 2002, it said. “Despite the continuing pandemic, most consumers are in good financial health and aren’t hesitating to spend,” said Jonathan Gold, NRF vice president-supply chain and customs policy. “More spending translates into more merchandise arriving at our ports as retailers continue to meet increasing demand. The cargo surge that began last fall doesn’t show any sign of stopping.” The March volume was up 64.9% from 2020, but the year-over-year growth “was artificially high because many Asian factories had shut down” in March 2020 due to the pandemic, and “most U.S. stores were being ordered to close,” NRF said.

Shipping regulations should be revised to allow the Federal Maritime Commission to better address unfair detention and demurrage fees, agricultural export issues and a range of other shipping problems at U.S. ports, FMC Chair Daniel Maffei said. While he didn’t propose any concrete changes, he said he is “frustrated” with the situation at the nation’s ports and is speaking with Congress about potentially proposing regulatory changes. “I'm not prepared to go into any details now, but I do think that some things clearly need to be clarified,” Maffei said during a May 5 National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America conference. “There are many, many areas where the law is vague or so outdated because it simply was written mostly in the time of tariffs, and now it's mostly contracts.”

A new container terminal at the port of Charleston, South Carolina, is the first container terminal to open in the U.S. since 2009, the South Carolina Ports Authority said April 9. The authority said the terminal was “20 years in the making” and expects it to offer some relief to highly congested container ports around the country, which are struggling to handle unprecedented levels of cargo. The first vessel arrived at the port last week.

The Port of Los Angeles launched a digital tool to allow traders to access truck capacity information and track cargo, which should help shippers and cargo owners better “predict and plan” cargo flows. The “Control Tower” data tool, launched Feb. 24, provides traders “snapshots” of truck turn times at the port’s terminals and “recent and future trending volume data,” the port said. Updates throughout the year will add more features. Port Executive Director Gene Seroka said the tool will help “get critical and reliable information to San Pedro Bay port stakeholders so that they can improve decision making and efficiencies.” The port is among many that have struggled to relieve container congestion since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to a rise in detention and demurrage fees (see 2102090028).

A new fee on cargo passing through the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach may start in the second half of 2021, a Port of Los Angeles spokesperson said, citing remarks from port staff at a Jan. 27 meeting. But each port’s harbor commission will need to vote to approve a start date for the Clean Truck Fund rate before the fee begins, the spokesperson said. Approved in March 2020, the fee will be assessed at $10 per twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) -- to be paid by the beneficial cargo owner -- for loaded containers hauled by heavy-duty trucks that enter or exit port terminals. The fee is intended to incentivize adoption of zero emissions trucks, which will be exempt from the fee. The ports are also considering exemptions for low nitrogen oxide trucks. Implementation of the fee has been delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the spokesperson said.

The Federal Maritime Commission is seeking tips from industry on ocean carriers and terminal operators that are violating regulations on detention and demurrage fees, the FMC said Dec. 17. The information will be used to aid the commission’s investigation into the unfair charges (see 2011200024) that began after industry complained FMC’s May rule on detention and demurrage was being ignored (see 2009140045 and 2011170041).

Traffic mitigation fees (TMF) at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will increase by 4.2% on Aug. 1, the West Coast MTO Agreement said in a June 30 press release. Beginning that date, the TMF will be $33.47 per twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU), or $66.94 for all other sizes of container, WCMTOA said. Some containers are exempt from TMF, including empty containers, some import or export cargo that transits the Alameda corridor, and transshipment cargo. “The adjustment matches the combined 4.2 percent increase in longshore wage and assessment rates that take effect in early July,” WCMTOA said.