WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Senate has passed the bipartisan Ocean Shipping Reform Act, which aims to level the playing field for American exporters by making it harder for ocean carriers to unreasonably refuse goods ready to export at ports.
The legislation earned the endorsement of the American Association of Port Authorities, which represents more than 130 port authorities across North and South America. The bill is also endorsed by more than 100 organizations including the Wisconsin Farm Bureau, Wisconsin Agri-Business Association, Association of Port Authorities, the Agriculture Transportation Coalition (AgTC), the National Retail Federation, and the American Trucking Association.
The Ocean Shipping Reform Act will require ocean carriers to certify that late fees, shift burden of proof regarding the reasonableness of “detention or demurrage” charges from the invoiced party to the ocean carrier; prohibit ocean carriers from unreasonably declining shipping opportunities for U.S. exports, as determined by the FMC in new required rulemaking; and require ocean common carriers to report to the FMC each calendar quarter on total import/export tonnage and 20-foot equivalent units (loaded/empty) per vessel that makes port in the United States.
