FMC Chair: More Effort Needed for Consensus on VGM Requirements
More work needs to be done to reach consensus on how shippers and carriers must carry out amendments to the Safety of Life at Sea Convention (SOLAS), which will on July 1 require that shippers provide a verified gross mass (VGM) on bills of lading for international ocean-bound cargo, Federal Maritime Commission Chairman Mario Cordero told senators during a March 8 hearing. In prepared remarks (here) for the hearing of the Senate Commerce, Transportation & Science Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Cordero reiterated that the Coast Guard is the lead agency on the matter, but noted that FMC will monitor implementation of the VGM requirement should it need to intervene pursuant to “relevant applicable portions of the Shipping Act.” The Coast Guard recently said it lacks the regulatory authority to enforce the coming container weight requirements (see 1603030014).
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Timely, relevant coverage of court proceedings and agency rulings involving tariffs, classification, valuation, origin and antidumping and countervailing duties. Each day, Trade Law Daily subscribers receive a daily headline email, in-depth PDF edition and access to all relevant documents via our trade law source document library and website.
Cordero indicated during the hearing that FMC plans to continue to facilitate dialogue between different groups expected to be affected by VGM implementation, through forums such as the listening session it held between the Coast Guard, agricultural shippers, and other industrial stakeholders on Feb. 18. One of FMC's responsibilities is to "provide forums for exporters, importers, and other members of the shipping public to obtain relief from ocean shipping practices or disputes that impede the flow of commerce," he added.
Cordero also pledged to continue its joint “full-court press” with the U.S. Maritime Administration to address long truck lines. He said, because of advances in modern technology, “there is no reason” truckers should have to wait two or three hours to enter a port. The ports of New York-New Jersey and Long Beach-Los Angeles see the longest truck wait times, Cordero said. U.S. Maritime Administration chief Paul Jaenichen said the interagency port performance working group, the Port Performance Freight Statistics Program being created under a requirement by the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, will also work to tackle the problem in a coordinated manner.
Cordero during the hearing also said he was optimistic that the Supply Chain Innovation Team ordered by FMC commissioner Rebecca Dye (see 1602020039) can create a fruitful discussion about how to thin port congestion. “The real value of this undertaking is that we believe it will lead to collaborative, practical solutions that will increase efficiencies and terminal throughput at port facilities,” Cordero said.