On June 14th, the House of Representatives cleared bipartisan legislation designed to alleviate supply-chain backups by preventing ocean carriers from charging inaccurate fees and unreasonably refusing space on ships. Lawmakers voted 369-42 Monday in favor of the bipartisan bill, which represents the first major overhaul to ocean-shipping rules since 1998. The bill, crafted in response to exporter complaints and supply chain bottlenecks, already passed the Senate and now heads to President Joe Biden’s desk. President Biden signed the bill into law on June 16th.
Below is a summary of key provisions.
Carriers will be prohibited from:
“Unreasonably” refusing cargo space accommodations when available.
Assessing fees that don’t comply with applicable regulations.
Providing inaccurate invoices for demurrage or detention charges — late fees that carriers charge for holding cargo or assets beyond a contracted time period.
Giving unreasonable preference to any commodity group or shipment or disadvantaging any group or shipment.
The Federal Maritime Commission will have to:
Establish a webpage for complaint submissions and investigation requests.
Maintain an Office of Consumer Affairs and Dispute Resolution Services to provide support for resolving disputes related to shipments and cruises under its jurisdiction.
Hire additional staff to assist with investigations and oversight.
