L.A., Long Beach Ports Delay Container Dwell Fee Start Again

Containers at a Port of Long Beach terminal. Image: Port of Long Beach via Chris Valle Photography.

As the number of cargo containers lingering in the San Pedro Bay continues to drop, officials at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach have yet again decided to hold off implementing their Container Dwell Fee, this time until Feb. 11.

The nation’s two busiest seaports have seen a 68% total decrease in older cargo at their marine terminals since announcing the fee Oct. 25.

Formed in partnership with the Biden-Harris Supply Chain Disruptions Task Force, the U.S. Department of Transportation and supply chain partners, the fee program calls for ocean carriers to be billed $100 for every import that stays on the docks nine or more days, with additional daily $100 increments on every import until it leaves the ports.

Port leaders continue to assess the data weekly to determine when to enact the fee, which would go toward funding programs aimed at improving cargo flow and addressing bottleneck issues.

By Karen Robes Meeks