The Biden administration should "quickly" help the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Pacific Maritime Association reach a new labor agreement to "ensure there is no disruption" to the operations of U.S. ports on the West Coast, more than 200 trade groups wrote in a March 24 letter to the White House. Because Marty Walsh left as secretary of the Department of Labor in February, it's crucial that a "new administration point person" be designated to help negotiations continue, the groups said.

There have been no known security breaches from Chinese-made cranes at U.S. ports, the American Association of Port Authorities said in a news release March 8. The statement came in response to a Wall Street Journal report that some U.S. officials were concerned that Chinese-made cranes, specifically cranes from Chinese company ZPMC, could be a spying tool for the Chinese government and a way for the Chinese government to disrupt the flow of goods. ZPMC now makes 80% of ship-to-shore cranes at U.S. ports, a U.S. official said, according to the report.

Truck inspections by Texas state authorities that resumed Dec. 13 are “once again causing severe backups and congestion and are harming supply chains during a season when shippers are striving to meet consumer demand and tight deadlines,” the Border Trade Alliance said in a letter to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.

The Los Angeles and Long Beach ports will end a program that could have eventually imposed surcharges on dwelling containers, the ports announced Dec. 16. The fee program was meant to incentivize the movement of dwelling containers (see 2110280031), but the ports never implemented it and instead postponed it weekly (see 2207220051) and later monthly (see 2211180061) since it was first announced in October 2021 (see 2207290053).

The Los Angeles and Long Beach ports again postponed by one month a new surcharge meant to incentivize the movement of dwelling containers (see 2110280031), the two ports announced Nov. 18. The ports had planned to begin imposing the fee a year ago, in November 2021, but postponed it each week until July 29, when the ports announced their first one-month postponement (see 2207290053). The latest one-month extension delays the effective date until Dec. 16.

The Transportation Department's Maritime Administration on Oct. 28 announced the awarding of $703 million in grants from the Port Infrastructure Development Program, for 41 projects for coastal seaports, Great Lakes ports and inland river ports. The American Association of Port Authorities said the bipartisan infrastructure package allowed more spending than ever happened in past years.

The Los Angeles and Long Beach ports again postponed by one month a new surcharge meant to incentivize the movement of dwelling containers (see 2110280031), the two ports announced Oct. 21. The ports had planned to begin imposing the fee in November 2021 but postponed it each week until July 29, when the ports announced their first one-month postponement (see 2207290053). The latest one-month extension delays the effective date until Nov. 18.

Imports at major U.S. container ports are expected by year-end to hit their lowest level in almost two years, said a Friday report from the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates. NRF Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said despite the lower volumes, retailers are still experiencing challenges along the supply chain, calling out U.S. ports and intermodal rail yards.

The Los Angeles and Long Beach ports again postponed by one month a new surcharge meant to incentivize the movement of dwelling containers (see 2110280031), the two ports announced Sept. 23. The ports had planned to begin imposing the fee in November 2021 but postponed it each week until July 29, when the ports announced their first one-month postponement (see 2207290053). The latest one-month extension delays the effective date until Oct. 21.

The Los Angeles and Long Beach ports again postponed by one month a new surcharge meant to incentivize the movement of dwelling containers (see 2110280031), the two ports announced Aug. 26. The ports had planned to begin imposing the fee in November 2021 but postponed it each week until July 29, when the ports announced their first one-month postponement (see 2207290053). The latest one-month extension delays the effective date until Sept. 23.