The Federal Maritime Commission is seeking public comment to determine if changes are needed to existing regulations on carrier automated tariffs, which are publicly available systems containing common carrier rates, charges, classifications, rules, and practices.
Different carriers are interpreting and applying certain aspects of the FMC's rules inconsistently and this has led the FMC to issue an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) to facilitate a fuller understanding of these issues.
The Commission is responsible for establishing requirements for accuracy and accessibility of these systems. The FMC observes that carriers are charging widely varying fees and imposing varying minimum requirements for access to common carrier tariffs. The Commission wants to know the impact of such fees and minimum requirements on public access to common carrier rules, rates, practices and charges in published tariffs and whether existing fees or requirements are unreasonable.
Certain non-vessel-operating common carriers (NVOCCs) are applying what are commonly known as “pass-through charges” inconsistently under common carrier tariffs. The Commission is seeking comment on these practices to gain a broader understanding and information from industry stakeholders, including NVOCCs and vessel-operating common carriers (VOCCs).
Through an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the FMC is requesting comments by June 7, 2021. Send comments secretary@fmc.gov.
Comments