US must act as ports lose business to international rivals
US ports are losing business as shippers avoid the country’s Harbor Maintenance Tax by sending their cargo via Canadian and Mexican alternatives.
Now, following a request from Senators, the US Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) plans to study how the US Harbor Maintenance Tax is affecting how US-bound cargo enters the country.
Richard Lidinsky, FMC Chairman, said the eventual aim was to “level the playing field between US and other North American ports”.
Currently, cargo brought into a US port is subject to the tax, and the more valuable the cargo, the higher the tax. Shippers can avoid this by routing cargo through Canadian or Mexican ports.
In a letter to the FMC, US Senators Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell said: “Although the Harbor Maintenance Tax has existed since 1986, it has become a more significant competitiveness issue with the development of new Canadian and Mexican seaports along the west coast.
