Executive Summary of Fact Finding 29 (June 15, 2021)

The record

Jurisdiction

Federal Maritime Commission; U.S. international ocean supply chain

Level

Federal

Authority

46 C.F.R. 502.281 et seq.

Issued

2021-06-15 June 15, 2021

Effective

not applicable (findings) (read as 2021-06-15)

End

not applicable

In force

June 15, 2021 (no end date recorded; counted as in force for 120 days)

Limitation types

Supply chainOther

Addressees

• Congress
• the maritime industry

Functions reached

• SC inbound supply chain
• PT port congestion
• CB importers whose 'businesses were shutdown'
• WH storage

Collection

Coast Guard and ports AGY-USCG-PORTS

Operative words

Even before COVID-19 reached the United States in early 2020, the global supply chain was disrupted by COVID-19 related impacts as the virus spread throughout China. Widespread closures and quarantines in China shuttered factories, which impacted freight flows, port operations, and ocean carrier service offerings. In the earliest days of COVID-19 related impacts to the supply chain in the United States, import cargo volumes dropped precipitously and ocean carriers cut services. And those imports that were delivered contributed to congestion at U.S. ports, particularly on the West Coast, because the import loads that were not being picked up for final delivery due to business shutdowns. The congestion was exacerbated by empty containers waiting to be repositioned.... I worked with port directors around the country to find available cargo storage locations for U.S. companies whose businesses were shutdown.

Enforcement

Notes