LA, Long Beach ports delay cargo fee again

The fee is set to end on April 29.

The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach have once more delayed implementating a fee on companies whose import containers linger at marine terminals, with the assessment now potentially taking effect, if necessary, on Friday, April 8.

The Container Dwell Fee has been delayed numerous times, with the ports citing progress in reducing the number of containers at terminals as the reason. The ports, for example, said on Friday, April 1 — when announcing the fee would again be delayed — that they had seen a 56% combined decline in aging cargo on the docks since the fee was announced in late October.

Over the next week, officials will monitor and reassess the fee’s implementation.

The fee, announced on Oct. 25, was initially supposed to begin on Nov. 1, but the ports quickly delayed it to Nov. 15 to give ocean carriers time to comply. When Nov. 15 came, the ports, citing progress, delayed it until Nov. 22. The ports, the two busiest in the nation, have delayed implementing the fee every week since then.

The fee is one of several efforts aimed at speeding the processing of cargo at the San Pedro Port Complex to eliminate a backlog of ships trying to deliver merchandise. About 40% of import containers were idling at terminals for at least nine days, Port of Los Angeles officials said when announcing the fee in October.

Harbor commissions for both Long Beach and Los Angeles unanimously approved the policy Oct. 29, to be in effect for 90 days.The pilot program has since been extended to April 29.

The fines, if implemented, will begin at $100 per container, increasing by $100 per container each day. Containers set to be transported by truck and rail will incur the fee if they remain at the port for nine days or more.

Fees collected from the policy will be reinvested into programs that aim to enhance efficiency, accelerate cargo velocity and address congestion impacts.