Ports Keep ‘Container Dwell Fee’ On Hold Until December 13

09 Dec Ports Keep ‘Container Dwell Fee’ On Hold Until December 13

The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, CA announced that consideration of the “Container Dwell Fee” would be held off another week until December 13.

Since announcing the fee on October 25, the twin ports have seen a combined decline of 37 percent in aging cargo on the docks. The executive directors of both ports said they would reassess fee implementation after another week of monitoring data.

Under the temporary policy, approved October 29 by the Harbor Commissions of both ports, ocean carriers could be charged for each import container that falls into one of two categories: 

1. In the case of containers scheduled to move by truck, ocean carriers could be charged for every container dwelling for nine days or more. 
2. For containers moving by rail, ocean carriers could be charged if a container has dwelled for six days or more. 

Currently, no date has been set to start the count for container dwell time. The ports plan to charge ocean carriers in these two categories $100 per container, increasing in $100 increments per day until the container leaves the terminal.

Before the pandemic-induced import surge began in mid-2020, on average, containers for local delivery remained on container terminals under four days, while containers destined for trains dwelled less than two days.

Any fees collected from dwelling cargo will be reinvested for programs designed to enhance efficiency, accelerate cargo velocity and address congestion impacts. The policy was developed in coordination with the Biden-Harris Supply Chain Disruptions Task Force, U.S. Department of Transportation and multiple supply chain stakeholders.