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Will Fining Companies Ease Port Congestion?

California  + Los Angeles  + Industrial  | 

In an effort to ease the logjam at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, the Biden Administration has mandated fines for shipping companies of $100 a day for every container left on the docks. These new rules will be enforced starting on November 1, sources say.

The hope is to put greater pressure on shipping companies to move cargo from docks in an effort to ease port jams and enable the record number of ships stuck at anchor to dock and unload new containers.

The ports said earlier this week that shipping firms have three days to move containers if the next step is by rail or nine days if the next step is by truck, as first reported by the Associated Press. If the containers stay longer, the ports will impose the daily fine until the containers are taken away.

The two ports have remained clogged for months because of the global supply chain crisis. After a decrease in shipping demand during the early days of the pandemic in 2020, a surge at the end of that year led to delays and blockages across the world.

Containers have been stacked up on the docks for weeks waiting to be unloaded, but a shortage of on-dock workers and truck drivers has further led to delays. This results in ships being unable to dock and drop new cargo.

A spokesperson for the Marine Exchange told Business Insider there were 110 vessels at anchor around these ports last week weekend, which is a new record, and 80 were carrying containers. For comparison, before the pandemic, the ports’ highest record was 17 ships waiting to anchor. Today’s count at the Port of Los Angeles is 21 vessels.

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About Lisa Brown

Lisa Brown has decades of experience in corporate communications and marketing management with organizations including Coldwell Banker Residential, Grubb & Ellis, Marcus & Millichap, NAIOP, SIOR and ALM. In those positions, she worked in conjunction with chief executive officers and chief marketing officers to create corporate messaging, cohesive branding standards, strategic marketing plans and thought pieces. Brown is a frequent speaker at industry events and an editing adjunct professor for an online course. She has a master’s degree in mass communications from San Jose State University.

  • ◦Economy
  • ◦Policy/Gov't