Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 90 / Tuesday, May 10, 2022 / Proposed Rules 27971 

1Advance notice of proposed rulemaking— 

Carrier Automated Tariffs, 86 FR 18240 (April 8, 

2021). 

been reviewed carefully to eliminate 

drafting errors and ambiguities. 

G. Executive Order 13132 (Federalism) 

The Administrator has reviewed this 

proposed rule in accordance with 

Executive Order 13132 regarding 

federalism and has determined that it 

does not have ‘‘Federalism 

implications.’’ The rule does not ‘‘have 

substantial direct effects on the states, 

on the relationship between the national 

government and the states, or on the 

distribution of power and 

responsibilities among the various 

levels of government.’’ 

H. Executive Order 13045 (Protection of 

Children From Environmental Health 

Risks and Safety Risks) 

In accordance with Executive Order 

13045, the Administrator has evaluated 

the environmental health and safety 

effects of this proposed rule on children. 

The Administrator has determined that 

the rule would have no environmental 

health and safety effect on children. 

I. Executive Order 13211 (Actions 

Concerning Regulations That 

Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use) 

In accordance with Executive Order 

13211, the Administrator has evaluated 

the effects of this proposed rule on 

energy supply, distribution, or use, and 

has determined that the rule will not 

have a significant adverse effect. 

J. Plain Writing Act of 2010 

Under Public Law 111–274 (October 

13, 2010), Executive Departments and 

Agencies are required to use plain 

language in documents that explain to 

the public how to comply with a 

requirement the Federal Government 

administers or enforces. The 

Administrator has attempted to use 

plain language in promulgating the 

proposed rule consistent with the 

Federal Plain Writing Act guidelines 

and requests public comment on this 

effort. 

List of Subjects in 42 CFR Part 88 

Aerodigestive disorders, Appeal 

procedures, Cancer, Healthcare, Mental 

health conditions, Musculoskeletal 

disorders, Respiratory and pulmonary 

diseases. 

For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, the Administrator and HHS 

Secretary propose to amend 42 CFR part 

88 as follows: 

PART 88—WORLD TRADE CENTER 

HEALTH PROGRAM 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 88 is 

revised to read as follows: 

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 300mm to 300mm–61. 

■ 2. Amend § 88.15 as follows: 

■ a. Redesignate paragraphs (d)(15) 

through (24) as paragraphs (d)(16) 

through (25). 

■ b. Add new paragraph (d)(15). 

■ c. In newly redesignated paragraph 

(d)(24), remove ‘‘Childhood cancers:’’ 

and add ‘‘Childhood cancers:’’ in its 

place. 

■ d. In newly redesignated paragraph 

(d)(25), remove ‘‘Rare cancers:’’ and add 

‘‘Rare cancers:’’ in its place. 

The addition reads as follows: 

§ 88.15 List of WTC-Related Health 

Conditions. 

* * * * * 

(d) * * * 

(15) Malignant neoplasms of corpus 

uteri and uterus, part unspecified. 

* * * * * 

John J. Howard, 

Administrator, World Trade Center Health 

Program and Director, National Institute for 

Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for 

Disease Control and Prevention, Department 

of Health and Human Services. 

Xavier Becerra, 

Secretary, Department of Health and Human 

Services. 

[FR Doc. 2022–09708 Filed 5–9–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4163–18–P 

FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION 

46 CFR Part 520 

[Docket No. 21–03] 

RIN 3072–AC86 

Carrier Automated Tariffs 

AGENCY: Federal Maritime Commission. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Maritime 

Commission (Commission) is seeking 

public comment on proposed 

modifications to its rules governing 

Carrier Automated Tariffs through this 

notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM). 

The proposed rule would remove the 

option for ocean common carriers to 

charge a fee to access their tariff; allow 

non-vessel operating common carriers 

(NVOCCs) to cross reference certain 

aspects of other carriers’ terms in their 

tariffs; clarify the ability for NVOCCs to 

reflect increases in certain charges 

passed-through by other entities without 

notice; update the definition of coloading to apply only to less than 

container loads; require that 

documentation be annotated with the 

names of all NVOCCs involved in a 

shipping transaction; and make other 

miscellaneous updates and 

clarifications to the regulation. 

DATES: Submit comments on or before 

June 9, 2022. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

by email to secretary@fmc.gov. For 

comments, include in the subject line: 

‘‘Docket No. 21–03, Comments on 

Carrier Automated Tariffs Rulemaking.’’ 

Comments should be attached to the 

email as a Microsoft Word or textsearchable PDF document. 

Instructions: For detailed instructions 

on submitting comments, including 

requesting confidential treatment of 

comments, and additional information 

on the rulemaking process, see the 

Public Participation heading of the 

Supplementary Information section of 

this document. Note that all comments 

received will be posted without change 

to the Commission’s website unless the 

commenter has requested confidential 

treatment. 

Docket: For access to the docket to 

read background documents or 

comments received, go to the 

Commission’s Electronic Reading Room 

at: https://www2.fmc.gov/readingroom/ 

proceeding/21-03/. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

William Cody, Secretary; Phone: (202) 

523–5725; Email: secretary@fmc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Discussion 

On April 8, 2021, the Commission 

issued an Advance Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking (ANPRM) seeking 

information on how common carriers 

interpret and apply certain Commission 

regulations in 46 CFR part 520.1 In 

response to the ANPRM, the 

Commission received three sets of 

comments from interested parties: The 

National Customs Brokers and 

Forwarders Association of America, Inc 

(NCBFAA); New York New Jersey 

Foreign Freight Forwarders & Brokers 

Association, Inc. (NYNJFFF&BA); and 

the Association of Food Industries, Inc. 

(AFI). NCBFAA and NYNJFFF&BA are 

trade associations whose members 

include non-vessel operating common 

carriers (NVOCCs), and AFI is a trade 

association for the U.S. food import 

industry. These comments are 

addressed later in this proposed rule. 

A. Tariff Access Fees 

Before the passage of the Ocean 

Shipping Reform Act of 1998 (OSRA), 

which became effective May 1, 1999, 

vessel operating common carrier 

(VOCC) and conference tariffs were filed 


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2 46 U.S.C. 40501(c). 

3 46 CFR 520.9(e)(3). 

4Circular Letter No. 00–2, Charges for Access to 

Tariffs and Tariff Systems (October 6, 2000) at 

https://www.fmc.gov/about-the-fmc/circulars/. 

5 Docket No. 21–03, Comments of the National 

Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of 

America, Inc., June 4, 2021, at 2. 

6 46 CFR 520.9(a). 

with the Commission through the 

Commission’s Automated Tariff Filing 

and Information system. OSRA 

eliminated the requirement that tariffs 

be filed with the Commission, and 

instead, directed carriers and 

conferences to publish tariffs in carrier 

automated tariff systems. 

The statute at 46 U.S.C. 40501(c) 

states that ‘‘[a] reasonable fee may be 

charged for’’ access to tariffs.2 The 

statute and the implementing 

regulations do not, however, state what 

is considered ‘‘reasonable’’ in the 

context of tariff access.3 In response to 

complaints from potential tariff users 

that certain tariff access fees and 

minimum subscription requirements 

were excessive, the Commission 

subsequently issued guidance to 

stakeholders through a Circular Letter 

which advised that tariff access fees 

should recover only costs and expenses 

incurred by carriers in making their 

tariffs accessible to the public.4 More 

recent experience indicates that, 

contrary to the Shipping Act and to the 

guidance provided in the Circular 

Letter, some tariff access fees may be so 

high as to effectively prevent tariff users 

from reviewing certain carrier tariffs. 

Comments received by the Commission 

in response to its ANPRM asserted that 

some carriers charge tariff access fees 

that ‘‘appear to be exorbitant and thus 

tend to discourage the public access to 

VOCC rates[.]’’ 5

A competitive and efficient ocean 

transportation system is dependent on 

transparency and availability of price 

information to the shipping public. It is 

the belief of the Commission that any 

unnecessary roadblocks to that 

transparency, including cost barriers to 

tariff access, are contrary to that goal. 

The Commission has learned that a 

limited number of carriers are charging 

unreasonably high fees that prevent 

public access to tariffs. The 

Commission’s implementing regulations 

were written at a time when dialup 

internet via public switched telephone 

networks was the norm and information 

was not as easily posted or located as is 

the case now.6 Intervening technological 

developments and efficiencies have 

made it nearly essential for businesses 

to operate a free, publicly accessible 

website. Seven of the top ten carriers 

that serve the U.S. make their tariffs 

available on their websites at no cost. 

With the ubiquity of websites among 

carriers, the decreases in the cost of 

providing information online, the 

efficiency of providing public access 

through a website, and the prevalence of 

free and open access to tariffs among the 

largest carriers, the Commission 

believes that free public access to tariffs 

is reasonable. 

While the Commission does not wish 

to place an undue burden on common 

carriers to make their tariffs available to 

the public, the Commission proposes to 

require carriers and conferences to 

provide free access to tariffs by 

removing the option to assess a fee for 

tariff access currently found at 46 CFR 

520.9(e)(3). The Commission welcomes 

comments on what specific costs the 

carriers would incur in order to provide 

free access to tariffs and comments from 

carriers who do not charge access on 

their rationale for that decision. 

B. Cross Referencing Tariffs 

In contrast to the current regulations 

in part 520, the Commission has granted 

broad flexibility to NVOCCs with regard 

to increases in charges passed through 

by VOCCs in 46 CFR part 531— 

Negotiated Service Arrangements 

(NSAs), and 46 CFR part 532—NVOCC 

Negotiated Rate Arrangements (NRAs). 

These regulations allow an increase in 

a VOCC charge to be passed through, 

without markup of the charges, by an 

NVOCC to its shipper if the shipper 

agrees to this arrangement, provided the 

underlying charge is listed in an NRA or 

NSA, or included in the NVOCC’s rules 

tariff. 

The Commission is persuaded that it 

is beneficial to address the pass through 

of charges by the NVOCC to the shipper 

in its rules governing carrier automated 

tariffs to align the regulations more 

closely in part 520 with those 

regulations in part 531 (NSAs) and part 

532 (NRAs) by allowing NVOCCs to 

cross reference an existing VOCC tariff 

in their NVOCC tariff. The Commission 

notes that, beyond the flexibility this 

regulation will grant to NVOCCs in their 

performance of transportation service, it 

also will clarify for shippers where 

certain charges originate, and will track 

when and how those charges may 

increase. 

Any increases in VOCC-originated 

surcharges and assessorials must be 

published in the VOCC tariff 30 days 

prior to taking effect. Although VOCCs 

are required to file 30-day notice of 

increases, NVOCCs commented in 

response to the ANPRM that, 

particularly in the current environment 

of high demand for vessel capacity, the 

number of new charges and frequent 

increases to existing charges make it 

impracticable for NVOCCs to provide 

same-day notice of those charges in 

their own tariffs. Therefore, NVOCCs 

may be unable to recover increases in 

VOCC surcharges and assessorials 

assessed to the NVOCC. Furthermore, 

NVOCC customers may have difficulty 

keeping up with new charges and 

increases in existing charges as they are 

imposed by various parties in the ocean 

shipping supply chain. 

To facilitate the transparency and 

application of VOCC-originated charges 

which are passed through from the 

NVOCC to its shipper, the Commission 

proposes to add a new § 520.7(a)(3)(iv) 

to allow an NVOCC to cross reference a 

VOCC’s tariff for certain specified 

surcharges and assessorials. The 

Commission notes that it is not the 

intent of this regulation to waive the 

application of § 520.8(a)(1) to any charge 

or increase in charge being published in 

a carrier tariff. This cross referencing of 

another tariff is to be used only for those 

charges which are being passed through 

to the shipper at cost. The Commission 

believes that this proposed rule will 

allow for greater transparency in the 

sourcing of various fees and assessorials 

in the ocean shipping market, which 

will in turn foster a more competitive 

marketplace. 

The Commission proposes to add 

§ 520.7(a)(3)(iv) to the regulations to 

allow NVOCCs to cross reference a 

VOCC’s tariff for certain specified 

surcharges and assessorials. 

C. Charges Passed Through by VOCCs 

NVOCCs are periodically assessed 

increases in charges by a VOCC that are 

‘‘passed through’’ after being imposed 

on the VOCC by an outside entity, such 

as canal tolls, taxes, or other third-party 

levies over which the VOCC has no 

control. In recognition of the fact that 

the entity collecting these types of 

charges is not necessarily subject to an 

obligation to provide 30-day notice of 

increases to the carrier, current 

regulations allow increases in these 

types of existing charges to take effect 

upon publication in the VOCC’s tariff. 

Commission regulations stipulate at 46 

CFR 520.8(b)(4) that this exemption 

only applies when the collecting agency 

has not given advance notice of the 

change to the common carrier. 

Currently, Commission regulations do 

not explicitly allow NVOCCs to pass 

through increases in these charges 

outside of the control of a common 

carrier, thereby preventing them from 

passing through to their customer an 

increase in a charge imposed by an 

outside entity and then subsequently 

passed through by a VOCC without the 


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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 90 / Tuesday, May 10, 2022 / Proposed Rules 27973 

7 Interpretive Rule on Demurrage and Detention 

Under the Shipping Act, 85 FR 29638 (May 18, 

2020). 

8 Doc. No. 22–04: Demurrage and Detention 

Billing Requirements Advance Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking, 87 FR 8506 (February 15, 2022); 

https://www2.fmc.gov/readingroom/proceeding/22- 

04/. 

9 Id. 

10 Docket No. 84–27, Publishing and Filing Tariffs 

by Common Carriers in the Foreign Commerce of 

the United States—Co-Loading Practices by 

NVOCCs, 49 FR 29980, 29982 (July 25, 1984). 

11https://www2.fmc.gov/readingroom/docs/93- 

22/93-22_003716807.pdf/ and https://

www2.fmc.gov/readingroom/docs/94-26/94-26_

003718346.pdf/. (Nov. 1, 2004). 

required 30-day notice. For this reason, 

an NVOCC may not be able to recover 

an increase in these types of charges if 

it is does not publish the increase in its 

own tariff sufficiently in advance of any 

such charge becoming effective in the 

tariff of the VOCC. 

The Commission is persuaded that it 

is beneficial to address the pass through 

of charges by the NVOCC to its shipper 

in its rules governing carrier automated 

tariffs to more closely align the 

regulations with the flexibilities 

afforded VOCCs. The Commission notes 

that, beyond the flexibility this 

regulation will grant NVOCCs in their 

performance of transportation service, it 

will also clarify for shippers the types 

of increases in charges that can be 

posted in an NVOCC’s tariff without a 

30-day waiting period. 

The Commission proposes to add a 

new § 520.7(h) which would explicitly 

state that NVOCCs can pass through 

charges not under the control of an 

ocean carrier in the same manner as 

VOCCs. 

The Commission interprets the 

passing through of a charge to mean it 

is assessed with no markup to the 

charge imposed on the common carrier 

by the underlying collecting agency. 

The proposed regulations which 

reference charges that may be passed 

through explicitly prohibit marking up 

these charges. However, current 

regulations at 46 CFR 520.8(b)(4) do not 

address the mark up of the charges 

listed. Therefore, the Commission 

proposes to revise regulations at 46 CFR 

520.8(b)(4) to specify that these charges 

may not be marked up above cost to be 

considered a pass-through cost. 

The Commission believes that clarity 

facilitates consistency in the application 

of regulations, which in turn provides a 

measure of assurance to the shipper that 

certain practices will be carried out 

uniformly among common carriers. The 

nature of pass-through charges, such 

that a shipper may not know the amount 

of a particular charge in advance, can 

deny full transparency to the shipper 

prior to being invoiced for such a 

charge. More recently, as expressed by 

all commenters, there is an increased 

number and variety of additional fees, 

and frequent changes to those fees, 

which has escalated the chances that a 

shipper is unaware of the final cost of 

transportation when tendering cargo for 

shipment. To address these 

inconsistencies, the Commission offers 

the following guidance as to the 

intended application of the proposed 

regulations at 46 CFR 520.7(a)(3)(iv) and 

(h), and the existing regulations at 

520.8(b)(4). 

1. General Rate Increases 

Some NVOCC commenters expressed 

concern that General Rate Increases 

(GRIs), when originating from an 

underlying VOCC, can appear similar to 

surcharges. Historically, the 

Commission has classified GRIs as a 

component of the base ocean freight 

assessed by the common carrier and are 

therefore not surcharges and not subject 

to any exemption under 46 CFR 

520.8(b)(4). The Commission declines to 

categorize GRIs as surcharges because 

they apply to the base freight rate for 

carriage, not a separate fee for ancillary 

costs associated with that 

transportation. Thus, in this proposed 

rule, GRIs will continue to be classified 

as a component of the base ocean freight 

assessed by the common carrier and will 

not be considered exempted from the 

regulations at § 520.8(a). 

2. Fees Connected to Pass-Through 

Charges 

Some of the comments reference 

‘‘administrative fees’’ in connection 

with the pass through of charges from 

the NVOCC to its shipper. Current 

regulations, at 46 CFR 520.8(b)(4) and 

proposed regulations at 520.7(a)(3)(iv) 

would relieve the common carrier from 

the requirement to provide a shipper 

with advance notice of an increase in a 

charge, under the condition that the 

common carrier itself was not advised of 

the increase in advance. This exemption 

is not intended to allow a markup of the 

charge above what the third party has 

billed to the NVOCC, which includes 

not allowing administrative or other 

named fees assessed by the NVOCC that 

apply only to charges passed through by 

that NVOCC, whether through a crossreferenced tariff or by name. 

3. Demurrage and Detention 

The Commission notes that comments 

included references to demurrage and 

detention charges levied by an 

underlying VOCC. Although demurrage 

and detention practices are not within 

the scope of this rulemaking, the 

Commission has issued guidance on 

how it assesses the reasonableness of 

demurrage and detention practices.7

Also, it has issued an Advance Notice 

of Proposed Rulemaking to seek 

comment on whether the Commission 

should require common carriers and 

marine terminal operators to include 

certain minimum information on or 

with demurrage and detention billings.8

The Commission is interested in 

receiving comments on whether it 

should require common carriers and 

marine terminal operators to adhere to 

certain practices regarding the timing of 

demurrage and detention billings. These 

changes were recommended by the Fact 

Finding Officer in Commission Fact 

Finding 29: International Ocean 

Transportation Supply Chain 

Engagement. The Commission 

welcomes additional comments on 

demurrage and detention practices in 

the docket for the Advance Notice of 

Proposed Rulemaking.9

4. Application of Exemption at 46 CFR 

520.8(b)(4) to NVOCCs 

The current regulations at 46 CFR 

520.8(b)(4) have exempted VOCCs from 

notifying shippers in advance of 

changes in charges for terminal services, 

canal tolls, additional charges, or other 

provisions which are not under the 

control of the common carriers or 

conferences when it acts as a collection 

agent for such charges, and it received 

no notice for such changes. This 

exemption from the waiting period set 

forth at § 520.8(a)(1) has been applied to 

VOCCs, but its application to NVOCC 

tariffs has been unclear. The 

Commission interprets the § 520.8(b)(4) 

exemption to apply to NVOCCs as well, 

provided that the underlying charge 

originates with an entity that is not 

subject to the requirements of 

§ 520.8(a)(1), and that the change was 

made without notification from the 

owner of the originating tariff. 

D. Definition of Co-Loading 

The Commission considered but 

declined to limit the definition of coloading to less-than-container load 

(LCL) (as opposed to full container load 

(FCL)) cargo in its 1984 rulemaking 

because ‘‘coloading FCLs was less 

prevalent and less likely than coloading 

LCL cargo.’’ 10 Although the definition 

of co-loading and its practices was 

revisited by the Commission in 1993 

and 1994, these docketed items were 

discontinued without further action.11


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27974 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 90 / Tuesday, May 10, 2022 / Proposed Rules 

12 Docket No. 98–29, Final Rule and Interim Final 

Rule: Carrier Automated Tariff Systems, 64 FR 

11225 (Mar. 8, 1999). 

OSRA also continued the co-loading 

definition without substantive change.12

In order to align regulations with 

current industry practices, the 

Commission proposes to amend the 

definition of co-loading to state 

specifically that co-loading applies to 

LCL cargo. The Commission proposes to 

add the term ‘‘less than container loads 

of’’ to the existing co-loading definition 

at § 520.2. 

E. Documentation for Co-Loading and 

Other NVOCC Arrangements 

Shipments involving multiple 

NVOCCs encompass a wide and 

complex range of interactions between 

parties in the supply chain. The various 

arrangements made among NVOCCs can 

provide efficiencies and result in lower 

transportation costs to the beneficial 

cargo owner (BCO). On the other hand, 

co-loading practices have the potential 

to reduce transparency in the shipping 

process and can lead to NVOCCs 

controlling cargo without the knowledge 

of the BCO. 

The current definition of co-loading at 

46 CFR 520.2 is ‘‘the combining of cargo 

by two or more NVOCCs for tendering 

to an ocean common carrier under the 

name of one or more of the NVOCCs.’’ 

As discussed above, this definition 

applies to the physical combining of 

LCL shipments in a single shipping 

container. Regulations at 46 CFR 

520.11(c)(2) require that the applicable 

bill of lading for co-loaded cargo be 

annotated with the identity of any other 

NVOCC to which the shipment has been 

tendered for co-loading. Since the 

promulgation of co-loading regulations, 

practices have evolved among NVOCCs 

that include the tender for transport of 

FCL shipments by one NVOCC to 

another NVOCC without the knowledge 

or consent of the BCO. This practice is 

often referred to in the industry as coloading, despite not conforming to the 

definition set forth by the Commission. 

The Commission proposes to add a 

regulation at 46 CFR 520.11(d) to 

require that the documentation 

accompanying FCL shipments is 

annotated with the name of all NVOCCs 

associated with the cargo. This 

annotation requirement ensures that, for 

either co-loaded cargo or full container 

loads, the BCO has the information 

required to contact any NVOCC which 

may have control of its cargo. This 

information is critical to the BCO, 

particularly in cases of failure to 

perform by the NVOCC with which the 

BCO contracted to transport its cargo. 

F. Other Proposed Changes to Part 520 

1. Clarifying Revisions 

The Commission proposes to revise 

several provisions within part 520 to 

clarify when the regulations are 

expressing a requirement or obligation. 

For example, the Commission proposes 

to replace the term ‘‘shall’’ with the 

term ‘‘must’’ to clearly indicate that 

certain acts are required and to identify 

regulatory obligations. In addition, the 

Commission proposes similar revisions 

by either deleting the word ‘‘shall’’ or 

other clarifying edits. Similarly, the 

Commission also proposes replacing 

certain usages of the term ‘‘may’’ with 

the term ‘‘must’’ to identify 

requirements or obligations. 

2. § 520.2 Definitions 

The proposed rule would: Add 

clarifying language to the definition of 

‘‘bulk cargo’’ to explain that bulk 

‘‘containerized cargo tendered by the 

shipper’’ is subject to mark and count 

and is, therefore, subject to the 

requirements of this part; amend the 

definition of combination rate to spell 

out the abbreviation for Tariff Rate Item; 

amend the definition of harmonized 

system to remove an outdated reference 

to the U.S. Customs Service; amend the 

definition of publisher to mean a person 

rather than an organization, and specify 

that a publisher is authorized to act by 

a common carrier; amend the definition 

of retrieval to remove outdated 

references to dial-up 

telecommunications and a network link; 

amend the definition of rules to clarify 

that a common carrier or a conference 

of common carriers govern the 

application of tariff matters; amend the 

definition of shipper to specify that 

ocean transportation refers to the 

transportation of cargo, and to specify 

that the person to whom delivery is to 

be made may be a consignee; amend the 

definition of shippers’ association to 

make a grammatical change; and amend 

the definition of through transportation 

to remove wording which does not 

affect the meaning of the definition. The 

Commission also proposes to add 

definitions for destination scope and 

inland division. Finally, the 

Commission proposes to remove as 

unnecessary the definitions of joint 

rates, commodity description number, 

local rates, points of rest, and shippers’ 

association. 

3. § 520.3 Publication Responsibilities 

Pursuant to § 520.3(d), the 

Commission requires that all common 

carriers publish a tariff in an automated 

tariff system and provide the location of 

that tariff to the Commission prior to the 

commencement of common carrier 

service. However, some NVOCCs will 

publish a tariff upon initially being 

licensed, but later allow the tariff to 

lapse and fall out of compliance. The 

Commission believes adding notice in 

§ 520.3 of the consequences which 

already exist pursuant to 46 CFR 515.1 

and 515.14 for failure to maintain a 

tariff could improve tariff compliance. 

The Commission therefore proposes to 

add a provision to § 520.3 that specifies 

the failure to maintain a tariff will result 

in the revocation of an NVOCC’s license 

or suspension of a foreign-based 

NVOCC’s registration. In addition, the 

Commission proposes to change the 

term used for the person a common 

carrier may use to meet their 

publication requirements from ‘‘agent’’ 

to ‘‘publisher’’; include the common 

carrier’s email address in the list of 

items provided to the Commission prior 

to commencement of common carrier 

service pursuant to a published tariff; 

and define the time period allowed for 

the common carrier to provide changes 

to its Form FMC–1 to the Commission 

to within 30 calendar days. 

4. § 520.4 Tariff Contents 

The Commission proposes to revise 

§ 520.4(a)(3) to clarify that the ocean 

transportation intermediary that may 

receive compensation paid by a carrier 

or conference is an ocean freight 

forwarder as defined by section 3(17)(A) 

of the Shipping Act. In addition, the 

Commission proposes to: Use plain 

language to reword the regulation at 

§ 520.4(a)(4) requiring that a tariff state 

each charge separately; revise 

§ 520.4(a)(5) to state that sample copies 

of bills of lading must be legible; and 

revise § 520.4(a)(8) to state that 

commodity tariffs must contain a 

retrievable commodity index. 

The Commission also proposes to 

delete § 520.4(e)(1) which describes 

voluntary coding for commodity 

descriptions. To streamline the rule and 

remove a non-mandatory regulation, the 

Commission proposes to delete 

paragraph (e)(1). Tariff publishers are 

still not required to use any numeric 

code to identify commodities and the 

Commission still encourages the use of 

the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the 

United States for both the commodity 

coding and associated terminology 

(definitions). In addition, the 

regulations still address the use of 

numeric codes to identify commodities. 

5. § 520.5 Standard Tariff Terminology 

The Commission proposes to update 

the source for geographic names listed 

in tariffs because they are currently out 

of date and inaccurate. 


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6. § 520.6 Retrieval of Information 

The Commission proposes to revise 

the search capability requirement for the 

retrieval of tariff information to specify 

that a search for a commodity 

description must result in a commodity 

or retrievable commodity index list. 

7. § 520.7 Tariff Limitations 

The Commission proposes to revise 

for clarity the date on which a new 

conference member’s participation in 

the conference tariff becomes effective 

and specify that the minimum time 

allowed to file an overage claim with a 

common carrier applies to claims filed 

by a shipper. The Commission also 

proposes to remove the regulation 

stipulating the methods to be used to 

compute the weight of green salted 

hides, in light of requirements 

mandated by the International Maritime 

Organization. In addition, the 

Commission proposes to add paragraph 

(h) to § 520.7 that states that NVOCCs 

may pass through certain charges 

received from ocean common carriers 

that are not under the control of the 

common carrier or conferences. The 

Commission clarifies that the charges 

must be clearly listed in the NVOCC’s 

tariffs and not marked up above cost. 

8. § 520.8 Effective Dates 

The Commission proposes to change 

‘‘destination grouping’’ to ‘‘destination 

scope’’ in § 520.8(b)(3), consistent with 

other references to ‘‘destination scope’’ 

in 46 CFR part 520. 

9. § 520.9 Access to Tariffs 

The Commission proposes to update 

the regulations under this section to 

remove references to obsolete 

technologies. 

10. § 520.10 Integrity of Tariffs 

The Commission proposes to revise 

the requirement to maintain historical 

tariff data in § 520.10(a) to define the 

time period that data must be made 

available to the Commission to within 

45 days of a request. The Commission 

believes 45 days is a reasonable period 

of time for a carrier or a conference to 

respond to a request for archived data. 

The Commission also proposes 

grammatical corrections to the 

requirement that carriers provide tariff 

access to the Commission. 

11. § 520.11 Non-Vessel-Operating 

Common Carriers 

The Commission proposes to remove 

the current regulation that an NVOCC 

must note in its tariff that it does not 

tender cargo for co-loading. This 

regulation is considered to be an 

unnecessary burden on an NVOCC that 

does not co-load. The Commission also 

proposes to remove the current 

regulation that an NVOCC may not offer 

special co-loading rates for the exclusive 

use of other NVOCCs. This regulation is 

outdated in light of 46 CFR part 531— 

Negotiated Service Arrangements, and 

46 CFR part 532—NVOCC Negotiated 

Rate Arrangements which allow an 

NVOCC to negotiate rates for the 

exclusive use of another NVOCC. 

12. § 520.12 Time/Volume Rates 

The Commission proposes to clarify 

the requirements applicable to time/ 

volume rates. The Commission also 

proposes revisions that clarify that 

common carriers or conferences may 

cancel time/volume rates when no 

shipper accepts these rates within thirty 

(30) days after the rates are published. 

13. § 520.13 Exemptions and 

Exceptions 

The Commission proposes to make 

change to update the governing rules of 

this part, and the requirements for 

Department of Defense cargo. The 

Commission also proposes to remove 

references to a business no longer in 

existence. 

14. § 520.14 Special Permission 

The Commission proposes to add a 

regulation which specifies the 

documents required when requesting 

confidential treatment of an application 

for special permission and update the 

process for submission and payment of 

applications for special permission. 

II. Public Participation 

How do I prepare and submit 

comments? 

Your comments must be written and 

in English. To ensure that your 

comments are correctly filed in the 

docket, please include the docket 

number of this document in your 

comments. 

You may submit your comments via 

email to the email address listed above 

under ADDRESSES. Please include the 

docket number associated with this 

notice and the subject matter in the 

subject line of the email. Comments 

should be attached to the email as a 

Microsoft Word or text-searchable PDF 

document. 

How do I submit confidential business 

information? 

The Commission will provide 

confidential treatment for identified 

confidential information to the extent 

allowed by law. If your comments 

contain confidential information, you 

must submit the following by email to 

the address listed above under 

ADDRESSES: 

1. A transmittal letter requesting 

confidential treatment that identifies the 

specific information in the comments 

for which protection is sought and 

demonstrates that the information is a 

trade secret or other confidential 

research, development, or commercial 

information. 

2. A confidential copy of your 

comments, consisting of the complete 

filing with a cover page marked 

‘‘Confidential-Restricted,’’ and the 

confidential material clearly marked on 

each page. 

3. A public version of your comments 

with the confidential information 

excluded. The public version must state 

‘‘Public Version—confidential materials 

excluded’’ on the cover page and on 

each affected page and must clearly 

indicate any information withheld. 

Will the Commission consider late 

comments? 

The Commission will consider all 

comments received before the close of 

business on the comment closing date 

indicated above under DATES. To the 

extent possible, we will also consider 

comments received after that date. 

How can I read comments submitted by 

other people? 

You may read the comments received 

by the Commission at the Commission’s 

Electronic Reading Room at the 

addresses listed above under 

ADDRESSES. 

III. Rulemaking Analyses and Notices 

Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 

U.S.C. 601–612, provides that whenever 

an agency is required to publish a notice 

of proposed rulemaking under the 

Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5 

U.S.C. 553, the agency must prepare and 

make available for public comment an 

initial regulatory flexibility analysis 

(IRFA) describing the impact of the 

proposed rule on small entities, unless 

the head of the agency certifies that the 

rulemaking will not have a significant 

economic impact on a substantial 

number of small entities. 5 U.S.C. 603, 

605. 

The proposed rule would require all 

common carriers to provide free tariff 

access, which the Commission believes 

will provide a benefit by ensuring there 

are minimal constraints to inhibit the 

shipping public from obtaining pricing 

information for ocean transportation. As 

referenced earlier, advancements in 

technology have significantly eased the 

burden on common carriers to make 


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13 44 U.S.C. 3507. 

14 5 CFR 1320.11. 

their tariffs available to the public, and 

many carriers are already providing 

their tariffs to the public free of charge. 

The rule also provides flexibility for 

NVOCCs to pass through to their 

customers charges assessed by other 

entities, which allows the NVOCC to 

recover payments made on behalf of its 

shipper. In addition, the rule provides a 

documentation annotation requirement 

for shipments arranged by two or more 

NVOCCs. This requirement provides 

information to the beneficial cargo 

owner which allows for a more 

expedient determination of cargo status 

and location and places no additional 

burden on the NVOCC. 

Because the costs to comply with this 

rule are minimal and few small entities 

are currently non-compliant, the 

proposed rule would not have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. For 

these reasons, the Chairman of the 

Federal Maritime Commission certifies 

that if this rule is promulgated, it would 

not have a significant economic impact 

on a substantial number of small 

entities. 

Congressional Review Act 

The rule is not a ‘‘major rule’’ as 

defined by the Congressional Review 

Act, codified at 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq. The 

rule will not result in: (1) An annual 

effect on the economy of $100,000,000 

or more; (2) a major increase in costs or 

prices; or (3) significant adverse effects 

on competition, employment, 

investment, productivity, innovation, or 

the ability of United States-based 

companies to compete with foreign 

based companies. 5 U.S.C. 804(2). 

National Environmental Policy Act 

The National Environmental Policy 

Act of 1969 (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321– 

4347) requires Federal agencies to 

consider the environmental impacts of 

proposed major Federal actions 

significantly affecting the quality of the 

human environment, as well as the 

impacts of alternatives to the proposed 

action. When a Federal agency prepares 

an environmental assessment, the 

Council on Environmental Quality 

(CEQ) NEPA implementing regulations 

(40 CFR parts 1500 through 1508) 

require it to ‘‘include brief discussions 

of the need for the proposal, of 

alternatives [. . .], of the environmental 

impacts of the proposed action and 

alternatives, and a listing of agencies 

and persons consulted.’’ 40 CFR 

1508.9(b). This section serves as the 

Commission’s Draft Environmental 

Assessment (Draft EA) for the proposed 

changes to 46 CFR part 520. 

Upon completion of an environmental 

assessment, it was determined that the 

proposed rule will not constitute a 

major Federal action significantly 

affecting the quality of the human 

environment within the meaning of the 

National Environmental Policy Act of 

1969, 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq., and that 

preparation of an environmental impact 

statement is not required. This Finding 

of No Significant Impact (‘‘FONSI’’) will 

become final within 10 days of 

publication of this notice in the Federal 

Register unless a petition for review is 

filed by any of the methods described in 

the ADDRESSES section of the document. 

The FONSI and environmental 

assessment are available for inspection 

at the Commission’s Electronic Reading 

Room at: https://www2.fmc.gov/ 

readingroom/proceeding/21-03/. 

This document sets forth the purpose 

of and need for this action. The purpose 

of this rulemaking is to update current 

regulations to reflect changes in 

industry practices. The rulemaking also 

proposes to remove the cost burden to 

the public associated with access to 

Carrier Automated Tariffs. Lastly, the 

rulemaking makes updates and 

clarifications to current regulations, 

which are largely technical. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(44 U.S.C. 3501–3521) (PRA) requires an 

agency to seek and receive approval 

from the Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB) before collecting 

information from the public.13 The 

agency must submit collections of 

information in proposed rules to OMB 

in conjunction with the publication of 

the notice of proposed rulemaking.14

The information collection 

requirements associated with the carrier 

automated tariffs requirements in part 

520 are currently authorized under 

OMB Control Number 3072–0064. In 

compliance with the PRA, the 

Commission has submitted the 

proposed revised information collection 

to the Office of Management and Budget 

and is requesting comment on the 

proposed revision. 

With the proposed addition of a new 

46 CFR 520.7(a)(3)(iv), there will be a 

shift in burden when NVOCCs can 

potentially direct shippers to existing 

VOCC tariffs for certain specific 

surcharges as opposed to listing those 

surcharges individually. However, the 

Commission believes that this shift in 

burden will not increase or decrease the 

overall industry burden. Although 

under the proposed rule shippers may 

be required to review a VOCC tariff 

alongside an NVOCC tariff, the NVOCC 

will no longer need to maintain a tariff 

precisely matching the terms of the 

chosen VOCC. It will not have a 

significant impact on members of the 

shipping public. 

In its proposed addition of a new 46 

CFR 520.11(d), the Commission is 

proposing an information collection 

burden for those NVOCCs issuing bills 

of lading on FCL shipments where they 

would place the cargo in the control of 

a different NVOCC. This requirement of 

placing this information in the 

document is de minimis, and the 

Commission believes that current 

industry best practices already in place 

mean that this change would not impact 

NVOCCs. 

Title: 46 CFR part 520—Carrier 

Automated Tariff Systems and Related 

Form FMC–1. 

OMB Control Number: 3072–0064. 

Abstract: 46 U.S.C. 40502 and 46 CFR 

part 520 requires common carriers and 

conferences of common carriers to 

publish tariffs to be made available to 

the public in automated tariff systems. 

Current Action: The proposed rule 

would clarify, modernize and update 

the current regulations. 

Type of Request: Revision of a 

previously approved collection. 

Needs and Uses: The Commission 

requires tariffs to be made available to 

ensure compliance with the Shipping 

Act of 1984. 

Frequency: The frequency of 

publishing and maintaining data in 

tariffs is determined by the common 

carrier and its customers. It is the 

common carrier’s responsibility to 

ensure that the rates and terms 

applicable to a shipment are published 

prior to the receipt of cargo for that 

shipment. 

Type of Respondents: Common 

carriers or their duly appointed agents 

are required make tariffs available to the 

public for inspection. 

Number of Annual Respondents: The 

Commission does not anticipate that the 

proposed revisions would affect the 

number of respondents. The 

Commission anticipates an annual 

respondent universe of 6,331 common 

carriers. 

Estimated Time per Response: The 

Commission does not anticipate that the 

proposed revisions would affect the 

estimated time per response, which 

would continue to range from .0167 to 

2 person-hours for tariff content 

requirements, notification and filing 

requirements, and reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements contained 

in the regulations, and 0.5 person-hours 

for completing Form FMC–81. 


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Total Annual Burden: The 

Commission does not anticipate that the 

proposed revisions would affect the 

number of tariffs made publicly 

available or the burden associated with 

each tariff and, therefore, would not 

affect the total annual burden The 

Commission estimates the total personhour burden at 2,509 person-hours. 

Comments are invited on: 

• Whether the collection of 

information is necessary for the proper 

performance of the functions of the 

Commission, including whether the 

information will have practical utility; 

• Whether the Commission’s estimate 

for the burden of the information 

collection is accurate; 

• Ways to enhance the quality, utility, 

and clarity of the information to be 

collected; 

• Ways to minimize the burden of the 

collection of information on 

respondents, including the use of 

automated collection techniques or 

other forms of information technology. 

Please submit any comments, 

identified by the docket number in the 

heading of this document, by the 

methods described in the ADDRESSES

section of this document. 

Executive Order 12988 (Civil Justice 

Reform) 

This proposed rule meets the 

applicable standards in E.O. 12988 

titled, ‘‘Civil Justice Reform,’’ to 

minimize litigation, eliminate 

ambiguity, and reduce burden. Section 

3(b) of E.O. 12988 requires agencies to 

make every reasonable effort to ensure 

that each new regulation: (1) Clearly 

specifies the preemptive effect; (2) 

clearly specifies the effect on existing 

Federal law or regulation; (3) provides 

a clear legal standard for affected 

conduct, while promoting simplification 

and burden reduction; (4) clearly 

specifies the retroactive effect, if any; (5) 

adequately defines key terms; and (6) 

addresses other important issues 

affecting clarity and general 

draftsmanship under any guidelines 

issued by the Attorney General. This 

document is consistent with that 

requirement. 

Regulation Identifier Number 

The Commission assigns a regulation 

identifier number (RIN) to each 

regulatory action listed in the Unified 

Agenda of Federal Regulatory and 

Deregulatory Actions (Unified Agenda). 

The Regulatory Information Service 

Center publishes the Unified Agenda in 

April and October of each year. You 

may use the RIN contained in the 

heading at the beginning of this 

document to find this action in the 

Unified Agenda, available at https://

www.reginfo.gov/public/do/ 

eAgendaMain. 

List of Subjects in 46 CFR Part 520 

Freight, Maritime carriers, Intermodal 

transportation, Report and 

recordkeeping requirements. 

For the reasons set forth in the 

preamble, the Federal Maritime 

Commission proposes to amend 46 CFR 

part 520 as follows: 

PART 520—CARRIER AUTOMATED 

TARIFFS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 520 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 553; 46 U.S.C. 305, 

40101–40102, 40501–40503, 40701–40706, 

41101–41109. 

■ 2. Amend § 520.2 by: 

■ a. Removing the word ‘‘shall’’ from 

the introductory text paragraph; 

■ b. Revising the definitions of ‘‘Bulk 

cargo’’, ‘‘Co-loading’’, ‘‘Combination 

rate’’, ‘‘Commodity description’’, 

‘‘Controlled carrier’’, ‘‘Harmonized 

system’’, ‘‘Location group’’, ‘‘Publisher’’, 

‘‘Retrieval’’, ‘‘Rules’’, ‘‘Shipper’’, ‘‘Tariff 

number’’, ‘‘Tariff rate item(‘‘TRI’’)’’ and 

‘‘Through transportation’’; 

■ c. Adding in alphabetical order the 

definitions of ‘‘destination scope’’, 

‘‘inland division’’ and ‘‘Through date’’; 

■ d. Removing definitions of 

‘‘cCommodity description number’’, 

‘‘Joint rates’’, ‘‘Local rates’’, ‘‘Point of 

rest’’, ‘‘Shippers’ association’’; ‘‘Thru 

date’’. 

The revisions and additions read as 

follows: 

§ 520.2 Definitions. 

The following definitions apply to 

this part: 

* * * * * 

Bulk cargo means cargo that is loaded 

and carried in bulk without mark or 

count in a loose unpackaged form, 

having homogeneous characteristics. 

Bulk containerized cargo tendered by 

the shipper is subject to mark and count 

and is, therefore, subject to the 

requirements of this part. 

Co-loading means the combining of 

less than container loads of cargo by two 

or more NVOCCs for tendering to an 

ocean common carrier under the name 

of one or more of the NVOCCs. 

Combination rate means a rate for a 

shipment moving under intermodal 

transportation which is computed by 

the addition of a Tariff Rate Item 

(‘‘TRI’’) and an inland rate applicable 

from/to inland points not covered by the 

TRI. 

* * * * * 

Commodity description means a 

comprehensive description of a 

commodity listed in a tariff, including a 

brief definition of the commodity, that 

may be identified by a specific number. 

* * * * * 

Controlled carrier means an ocean 

common carrier that is, or whose 

operating assets are, directly or 

indirectly owned or controlled by a 

government; ownership or control by a 

government will be deemed to exist 

with respect to any common carrier if: 

* * * * * 

Destination scope means a location 

group defining the geographic range of 

cargo destinations covered by a tariff. 

* * * * * 

Harmonized System means the 

Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the 

United States, published by the U.S. 

International Trade Commission, and 

Schedule B, administered by the U.S. 

Census Bureau. 

Inland division means the amount 

paid by a common carrier to an inland 

carrier for the inland portion of through 

transportation offered to the public by 

the common carrier. 

* * * * * 

Location group means a logical 

collection of geographic points, ports, 

states/provinces, countries, or 

combinations thereof, which is 

primarily used to identify, by location 

group name, a group that represents 

tariff origin and/or destination scope 

and TRI origin and/or destination. 

* * * * * 

Publisher means a person authorized 

by a common carrier to publish or 

amend tariff information. 

* * * * * 

Retrieval means the process by which 

a person accesses a tariff and interacts 

with the carrier’s or publisher’s system 

on a transaction-by-transaction basis to 

retrieve published tariff matter. 

* * * * * 

Rules means the stated terms and 

conditions set by a common carrier or 

a conference of common carriers which 

govern the application of tariff rates, 

charges and other matters. 

* * * * * 

Shipper means: 

(1) A cargo owner; 

(2) The person for whose account the 

ocean transportation of cargo is 

provided; 

(3) The person to whom delivery is to 

be made 

(4) A shipper’s association meaning a 

group of shippers that consolidates or 

distributes freight on a nonprofit basis 

for the members of the group to obtain 

carload, truckload, or other volume rates 

or service contracts; or 


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(5) An NVOCC that accepts 

responsibility for payment of all charges 

applicable under the tariff or service 

contract. 

* * * * * 

Tariff number means a unique 3-digit 

number assigned by the publisher to 

distinguish it from other tariffs. Tariffs 

must be identified by the 6-digit 

organization number plus the userassigned tariff number (e.g., 999999– 

001) or a Standard Carrier Alpha Code 

(‘‘SCAC’’) plus the user-assigned tariff 

number. 

Tariff rate item (‘‘TRI’’) means a 

single freight rate, in effect on and after 

a specific date or for a specific time 

period, for the transportation of a stated 

cargo quantity, which moves from origin 

to destination under a single specified 

set of transportation conditions, such as 

container size or temperature. 

* * * * * 

Through date means the date after 

which an amendment to a tariff element 

is designated by the publisher to be 

unavailable for use and the previously 

effective tariff element automatically 

goes back into effect. 

* * * * * 

Through transportation means 

continuous transportation between 

origin and destination, for which a 

through rate is assessed and which is 

offered or performed by one or more 

carriers, at least one of which is a 

common carrier, between a United 

States port or point and a foreign port 

or point. 

* * * * * 

■ 3. Revise § 520.3 to read as follows: 

§ 520.3 Publication responsibilities. 

(a) General. Unless otherwise 

exempted or excepted by § 520.13, all 

common carriers and conferences must 

keep open for public inspection, in 

automated tariff systems, tariffs showing 

all rates, charges, classifications, rules, 

and practices between all points or ports 

on their own routes and on any through 

transportation route that has been 

established. 

(b) Conferences. Conferences must 

publish, in their automated tariff 

systems, rates offered pursuant to 

independent action by their members 

and may publish any open rates offered 

by their members. Alternatively, open 

rates may be published in individual 

tariffs of conference members. 

(c) Publishers. Common carriers or 

conferences can use publishers to meet 

their publication requirements under 

this part. 

(d) Notification. (i) Prior to the 

commencement of common carrier 

service pursuant to a published tariff, 

each common carrier and conference 

must electronically submit to BTA, 

Form FMC–1 via the Commission’s 

website at www.fmc.gov. (ii) The 

common carrier and conference must 

include on Form FMC–1 its organization 

name, organization number, home office 

address, name, email address and 

telephone number of firm’s 

representative, the location of its tariffs, 

and the publisher, if any, used to 

maintain its tariffs. (iii) Any changes to 

the above information must be 

transmitted to BTA within 30 calendar 

days. (iv) The Commission will provide 

a unique organization number to new 

entities operating as common carriers or 

conferences in the U.S. foreign 

commerce. 

(e) Location of tariffs. The 

Commission will publish on its website, 

www.fmc.gov, a list of the locations of 

all common carrier and conference 

tariffs. 

(f) NVOCC failure to update tariff. 

Failure to maintain a tariff will result in 

revocation of an NVOCC’s license or 

suspension of a foreign-based NVOCC’s 

registration. 

■ 4. Amend § 520.4 by: 

■ a. Removing in introductory 

paragraph (a), paragraphs (b) through 

(d), and (h) the word ‘‘shall’’ and adding 

in its place the word ‘‘must’’; 

■ b. Revising paragraphs (a)(3) through 

(5), (8), (f)(5), (g), and (i); 

■ c. Removing paragraph (e)(1); 

■ d. Redesignating paragraphs (e)(2) and 

(3) as paragraphs (e)(1) and (2) 

respectively; 

■ e. Replacing the word ‘‘shall’’ in 

newly redesignated paragraphs (e)(1), 

(e)(2)(ii), and (iii) with the word ‘‘must’’; 

and 

■ f. Revising newly redesignated 

paragraph (e)(2)(i). 

The revisions read as follows: 

§ 520.4 Tariff contents. 

(a) * * * 

(3) State the level of compensation, if 

any, to be paid by a carrier or 

conference to an ocean freight 

forwarder, as defined by section 

3(17)(A) of the Act (46 U.S.C. 

40102(19)); 

(4) State separately each terminal or 

other charge, privilege, or facility under 

the control of the carrier or conference 

and any rules that in any way change, 

affect, or determine any part or the total 

of the rates or charges; 

(5) Include sample copies of any bill 

of lading showing legible terms and 

conditions, contract of affreightment 

and/or other document evidencing the 

transportation agreement; 

* * * * * 

(8) For commodity tariffs, also contain 

a retrievable commodity index, 

commodity descriptions and tariff rate 

items. 

* * * * * 

(e) * * * 

(2) Commodity index. (i) Common 

carriers or their publishers must have at 

least one similar index entry which will 

logically represent the commodity 

within the alphabetical index for each 

commodity description it creates under 

this section. Common carriers or their 

publishers must create multiple entries 

in the index for articles with equally 

valid common use names, such as, 

‘‘Sodium Chloride,’’ ‘‘Salt, common,’’ 

etc. 

* * * * * 

(f) * * * 

(5) Origin and destination scopes or 

location groups; 

* * * * * 

(g) Location groups. In the primary 

tariff, or in a governing tariff, a 

publisher may define and create groups 

of cities, states, provinces, and countries 

(e.g., location groups) or groups of ports 

(e.g., port groups), which can be used in 

the construction of TRIs and other tariff 

objects, in lieu of specifying particular 

place names in each tariff item, or 

creating multiple tariff items which are 

identical in all ways except for place 

names. 

* * * * * 

(i) Shipper requests. Conference tariffs 

must contain clear and complete 

instructions, in accordance with the 

agreement’s provisions, stating where 

and by what method shippers can file 

requests and complaints and how they 

can engage in consultation pursuant to 

section 5(b)(6)–(7) of the Act (46 U.S.C. 

40303(b)(6)–(7)), together with a sample 

rate request form or a description of the 

information necessary for processing the 

request or complaint. 

* * * * * 

■ 5. Amend § 520.5 by 

■ a. Removing in paragraph (a) the word 

‘‘may’’ in the third sentence and adding 

it its place the word ‘‘can’’; and 

■ b. Revising paragraph (b) to read as 

follows: 

§ 520.5 Standard tariff terminology. 

* * * * * 

(b) Geographic names. Tariffs should 

employ locations (points) that are 

provided by the National GeospatialIntelligence Agency or the Geographic 

Names Information System developed 

by the U.S. Geological Survey. Ports 

published or approved for publication 

in the World Port Index (Pub. 150) 

should also be used in tariffs. Tariff 

publishers can use geographic names 


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that are currently in use and have not 

yet been included in these publications. 

■ 6. Amend § 520.6 by: 

■ a. Removing in paragraphs (a), (c), and 

(d) the word ‘‘shall’’ and adding in its 

place the word ‘‘must’’; and 

■ b. Revising paragraphs (b), (e), and (f) 

to read as follows: 

§ 520.6 Retrieval of information. 

* * * * * 

(b) Search capability. Publisher must 

provide the capability to search for tariff 

matter by non-case sensitive text search. 

Text search matches for commodity 

descriptions must result in a commodity 

or retrievable commodity index list. 

* * * * * 

(e) Basic ocean freight. The minimum 

rate display for tariffs must consist of 

the basic ocean freight rate and a list of 

all assessorial charges that apply for the 

retriever-entered shipment parameters. 

The tariff must indicate when other 

rules or charges apply to a shipment 

under certain circumstances. 

(f) Displays. All displays of individual 

tariff matter must include the 

publication date, effective date, 

amendment code (use codes in 

Appendix A of this part) and object 

name or number. When applicable, a 

through date or expiration date must 

also be displayed. Use of ‘‘S’’ as an 

amendment code must be accompanied 

by a Commission issued special 

permission number. 

■ 7. Amend § 520.7 by: 

■ a. Removing in paragraphs (a), (b), and 

(c) the word ‘‘shall’’ and adding in its 

place the word ‘‘must’’; 

■ b. Removing in paragraphs (a)(3)(ii) 

and (iii) the word ‘‘may’’ and adding in 

its place the word ‘‘can’’; 

■ c. Adding a new paragraph (a)(3)(iv); 

■ d. Removing paragraph (e). 

■ e. Redesignating paragraphs (f) 

through (h) as paragraphs (e) through 

(g); 

■ f. Revising newly redesignated 

paragraphs (e) and (f); and 

■ g. Adding a new paragraph (h). 

The additions and revisions read as 

follows: 

§ 520.7 Tariff limitations. 

(a) * * * 

(3) * * * 

(iv) An NVOCC may cross-reference 

an ocean common carrier tariff for the 

purpose of charging its shipper the 

ocean common carrier’s surcharges and 

assessorial charges, provided the named 

charges are clearly listed in the 

NVOCC’s tariff, and not marked up 

above cost. 

* * * * * 

(e) Conference situations. (1) New 

members of a conference must cancel 

any independent tariffs applicable to the 

trades served by the conference, within 

ninety (90) days of membership in the 

conference. Individual conference 

members can publish their own separate 

open rate tariffs. A new member’s 

participation in the conference tariff is 

effective on the date notice of 

membership is published in the 

conference tariff, unless a later effective 

date is specified. 

* * * * * 

(f) Overcharge claims. (1) A tariff must 

not limit the filing of overcharge claims 

by a shipper with a common carrier to 

a period of less than three (3) years from 

the accrual of the cause of action. 

(2) The acceptance of any overcharge 

claim cannot be conditioned upon the 

payment of a fee or charge. 

(3) A tariff must not require that 

overcharge claims based on alleged 

errors in weight, measurement, or 

description of cargo be filed before the 

cargo has left the custody of the 

common carrier. 

* * * * * 

(h) Charges assessed by ocean 

common carriers to non-vessel operating 

common carriers. NVOCCs may pass 

through charges received from ocean 

common carriers for terminal services, 

canal tolls, additional charges, or other 

provisions which are not under the 

control of the common carrier or 

conferences, and for which the ocean 

common carrier merely acts as a 

collection agent. The charges must be 

clearly listed in the NVOCC’s tariffs, 

and not marked up above cost. 

■ 8. Amend § 520.8 by: 

■ a. Revising paragraph (b)(3) and (4); 

and 

■ b. Removing in paragraph (c) the 

wording ‘‘shall be’’ and adding in its 

place the word ‘‘are’’. 

The revisions read as follows: 

§ 520.8 Effective dates. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(3) The addition of a port or point to 

a previously existing origin or 

destination scope; or 

(4) Changes in charges which are not 

under the control of the common carrier 

or conference (including terminal 

services, canal tolls, additional charges, 

or other provisions), for which the 

carrier or conference merely act as a 

collection agent for such charges, and 

the agency making such changes does so 

without notifying the tariff owner. The 

carrier must not mark up these charges 

above cost. 

* * * * * 

■ 9. Revise § 520.9 to read as follows: 

§ 520.9 Access to tariffs. 

(a) Methods to access. Carriers and 

conferences must provide access to their 

published tariffs, via the internet. 

(b) Internet connection. (1) The 

internet connection requires that 

systems provide a uniform resource 

locator (‘‘URL’’) internet address (e.g., 

https://www.tariffsrus.com or https://

1.2.3.4). (2) Carriers or conferences must 

ensure that their internet service 

providers provide static internet 

addresses. 

(c) Tariff availability. (1) Tariffs must 

be made available to any person without 

time, quantity, or other limitations. 

(2) Carriers and conferences must 

provide free access to their tariff 

publication system. 

(3) Tariff publication systems must 

provide user instructions for access to 

tariff information. 

(d) Federal agencies. Carriers and 

conferences must not assess any access 

charges against the Commission or any 

other Federal agency. 

(e) User identifications. Carriers and 

conferences must provide the 

Commission with the requisite 

documentation and the number of user 

identifications and passwords required 

to facilitate the Commission’s access to 

their systems, if those systems require 

such identifications and passwords. 

■ 10. Amend § 520.10 by revising 

paragraphs (a), (b), and (d) to read as 

follows: 

§ 520.10 Integrity of tariffs. 

(a) Historical data. Carriers and 

conferences must keep the data that 

appeared in their tariff publication 

systems for a period of five (5) years 

from the date such information is 

superseded, canceled or withdrawn, and 

must provide on-line access to such data 

for two (2) years. After two (2) years, 

such data must be retained on-line or in 

other electronic form, and must be made 

available to any person or the 

Commission upon request within 45 

days, unless otherwise agreed. Carriers 

and conferences may charge a 

reasonable fee for the provision of 

historical data, not to exceed the fees for 

obtaining such data on-line. Carriers 

and conferences must not charge a fee 

to the Commission or any other Federal 

agency. 

(b) Access date capability. Each tariff 

must provide the capability for a 

retriever to enter an access date, i.e., a 

specific date for the retrieval of tariff 

data, so that only data in effect on that 

date would be directly retrievable. This 

capability would also align any rate 

adjustments and assessorial charges that 

were effective on the access date for rate 

calculations and designation of 


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applicable surcharges. The access date 

also applies to the alignment of tariff 

objects for any governing tariffs. 

* * * * * 

(d) Access to systems. Carriers and 

conferences must provide the 

Commission reasonable access to their 

automated systems and records for the 

Commission’s review. 

■ 11. Amend § 520.11 by: 

■ a. Removing in the introductory text 

in paragraphs (a) and (c) the word 

‘‘shall’’ and adding in its place the word 

‘‘must’’; 

■ b. Revising paragraphs (a)(5) and (b); 

■ c. Removing paragraph (c)(1)(i); 

■ d. Redesignating paragraphs (c)(1)(ii) 

and (iii) as (c)(1)(i) and (ii), respectively; 

■ e. Removing in newly redesignated 

paragraph (c)(1)(i) the word ‘‘shall’’ and 

adding in its place the word ‘‘must’’; 

■ f. Revising newly redesignated 

paragraph (c)(1)(ii); 

■ g. Removing paragraphs (c)(2) and (3); 

and 

■ h. Adding paragraph (d). 

The revisions and addition read as 

follows: 

§ 520.11 Non-vessel-operating common 

carriers. 

(a) * * * 

(5) The number of its bond, insurance 

policy, or guaranty; and 

* * * * * 

(b) Agent for service. Every NVOCC 

not in the United States must state the 

name and address of the person in the 

United States designated under part 515 

of this chapter as its legal agent for 

service of process, including subpoenas. 

The NVOCC must also state that in any 

instance in which the designated legal 

agent cannot be served because of death, 

disability, or unavailability, the 

Commission’s Secretary will be deemed 

to be its legal agent for service of 

process. 

(c)(1) * * * 

(ii) If two NVOCCs enter into a coloading arrangement which results in a 

shipper-to-carrier relationship, the 

tendering NVOCC must describe its coloading practices and specify its 

responsibility to pay any charges for the 

transportation of the cargo. A shipperto-carrier relationship is presumed to 

exist where the receiving NVOCC issues 

a bill of lading to the tendering NVOCC 

for carriage of the co-loaded cargo. 

(d) Annotation. An NVOCC which 

tenders cargo to another NVOCC must 

annotate each applicable bill of lading 

with the identity of any other NVOCC 

to which the shipment has been 

tendered. Such annotation must be 

shown on the face of the bill of lading 

in a clear and legible manner. 

■ 12. Amend § 520.12 by: 

■ a. Revising paragraphs (a), (c), and (e); 

and 

■ b. Removing in paragraphs (b)(2) and 

(d) the word ‘‘shall’’ and adding in its 

place the word ‘‘must’’. 

The revisions read as follows: 

§ 520.12 Time/Volume rates. 

(a) General. Common carriers or 

conferences must publish in their tariffs, 

rates that are conditioned upon the 

receipt of a specified aggregate volume 

of cargo or aggregate freight revenue 

over a specified period of time. 

* * * * * 

(c) Accepted rates. Once a time/ 

volume rate is accepted by one shipper, 

it will remain in effect for the time 

specified, without amendment. If no 

shipper gives notice within 30 days of 

publication, a common carrier or 

conference may cancel the time/volume 

rate. 

* * * * * 

(e) Liquidated damages. Time/volume 

rates must not impose or attempt to 

impose liquidated damages on any 

shipper that moves cargo under the rate. 

Carriers and agreements must rerate 

cargo moved at the applicable tariff rate, 

if a shipper fails to meet the 

requirements of the time/volume offer. 

■ 13. Amend § 520.13 by: 

■ a. Revising paragraphs (a), (b)(2), 

(c)(4), (d)(2)(ii)(A), and (d)(2)(ii)(B)(1); 

and 

■ b. Removing paragraph (d)(2)(iii). 

The revisions read as follows: 

§ 520.13 Exemptions and exceptions. 

(a) General. Exemptions from the 

requirements of this part are governed 

by section 16 of the Act (46 U.S.C. 

40103) and the Commission’s Rules of 

Practice and Procedure, § 502.92, of this 

chapter. 

(b) * * * 

(2) Controlled carriers in foreign 

commerce. A controlled common carrier 

is exempt from the provisions of this 

part exclusively applicable to controlled 

carriers when: 

* * * * * 

(c) * * * 

(4) Department of Defense cargo. 

Transportation of U.S. Department of 

Defense cargo moving in foreign 

commerce under terms and conditions 

negotiated and approved by the Surface 

Deployment and Distribution Command 

and published in a universal service 

contract. An exact copy of the universal 

service contract, including any 

amendments thereto, must be provided 

to the Commission in electronic format 

upon request. 

* * * * * 

(d) * * * 

(2) * * * 

(ii) British Columbia and Puget Sound 

Ports; rail cars—(A) Through rates. 

Transportation by water of cargo moving 

in rail cars between British Columbia, 

Canada and United States ports on 

Puget Sound, and between British 

Columbia, Canada and ports or points in 

Alaska, if the cargo does not originate in 

or is not destined to foreign countries 

other than Canada, and if: 

* * * * * 

(B)(1) This exemption does not apply 

to cargo originating in or destined to 

foreign countries other than Canada; 

and 

* * * * * 

■ 14. Amend § 520.14 by: 

■ a. Revising paragraphs (b), (c)(1) 

through (3), and (d); and 

■ b. Adding paragraph (c)(3)(iv). 

The revisions and addition read as 

follows: 

§ 520.14 Special permission 

* * * * * 

(b) Clerical errors. Typographical and/ 

or clerical errors constitute good cause 

for the exercise of special permission 

authority. Every special permission 

application must plainly specify the 

error and present clear evidence of its 

existence. The special permission 

application must also include a full 

statement of the attending 

circumstances. The special permission 

application must be submitted with 

reasonable promptness after publishing 

the defective tariff material. 

(c) Application. (1) Applications for 

special permission to establish rate 

increases or decreases on less than 

statutory notice or for waiver of the 

provisions of this part must be made by 

the common carrier, conference, or 

agent for publishing. Every such 

application must be submitted to the 

Bureau of Trade Analysis and be 

accompanied by a filing fee of $313. 

(2) Applications for special 

permission must be made by letter, 

submitted via mail or email, followed 

promptly by electronic payment of the 

filing fee. 

(3) Applications for special 

permission must contain the following 

information: 

* * * * * 

(iv) A statement that identifies any 

part(s) of the application for which 

confidential treatment is sought and a 

justification for such confidential 

treatment. In such cases, the applicant 

must provide both a confidential 

version and a public version of the 

application. 

(d) Implementation. The authority 

granted by the Commission must be 


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used in its entirety, including the 

prompt publishing of the material for 

which permission was requested. 

Applicants must use the special case 

number assigned by the Commission 

with the symbol ‘‘S.’’ 

By the Commission. 

William Cody, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2022–09592 Filed 5–9–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6730–02–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

49 CFR Part 350 

[Docket No. FMCSA–2022–0079] 

State Inspection Programs for 

Passenger-Carrier Vehicles 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), Department 

of Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Request for comment on 

withdrawn advance notice of proposed 

rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: On November 15, 2021, the 

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act 

(IIJA) was enacted, directing FMCSA to 

solicit additional comment on the 

Agency’s April 27, 2016 advance notice 

of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) 

concerning the potential establishment 

of requirements for States to implement 

annual inspection programs for 

commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) 

designed or used to transport passengers 

(passenger-carrying CMVs). 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before June 9, 2022. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

identified by Docket Number FMCSA– 

2022–0079 using any of the following 

methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

https://www.regulations.gov/docket/ 

FMCSA-2022-0079/document. Follow 

the online instructions for submitting 

comments. 

• Mail: Dockets Operations, U.S. 

Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, 

Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590–0001. 

• Hand Delivery or Courier: Dockets 

Operations, U.S. Department of 

Transportation, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE, West Building, Ground 

Floor, Room W12–140, Washington, DC 

20590–0001, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

holidays. To be sure someone is there to 

help you, please call (202) 366–9317 or 

(202) 366–9826 before visiting Dockets 

Operations. 

• Fax: (202) 493–2251. 

To avoid duplication, please use only 

one of these four methods. See the 

‘‘Public Participation and Request for 

Comments’’ portion of the 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for 

instructions on submitting comments. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Loretta Bitner, Chief, Passenger Carrier 

Safety Division, Office of Safety, 

FMCSA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 

Washington, DC 20590–0001, (202) 385– 

2428, Loretta.Bitner@dot.gov. If you 

have questions on viewing or submitting 

material to the docket, call Dockets 

Operations at (202) 366–9826. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Public Participation and Request for 

Comments 

A. Submitting Comments 

If you submit a comment, please 

include the docket number for this 

request for comment (FMCSA–2022– 

0079), indicate the specific section of 

this document to which your comment 

applies, and provide a reason for each 

suggestion or recommendation. You 

may submit your comments and 

material online or by fax, mail, or hand 

delivery, but please use only one of 

these means. FMCSA recommends that 

you include your name and a mailing 

address, an email address, or a phone 

number in the body of your document 

so FMCSA recommends that you 

include your name and a mailing 

address, an email address, or a phone 

number in the body of your document 

so FMCSA can contact you if there are 

questions regarding your submission. 

To submit your comment online, go to 

https://www.regulations.gov/docket/ 

FMCSA-2022-0079/document, click on 

this request for comment, click 

‘‘Comment,’’ and type your comment 

into the text box on the following 

screen. 

If you submit your comments by mail 

or hand delivery, submit them in an 

unbound format, no larger than 81⁄2 by 

11 inches, suitable for copying and 

electronic filing. If you submit 

comments by mail and would like to 

know that they reached the facility, 

please enclose a stamped, self-addressed 

postcard or envelope. 

FMCSA will consider all comments 

and material received during the 

comment period. 

Confidential Business Information (CBI) 

CBI is commercial or financial 

information that is both customarily and 

actually treated as private by its owner. 

Under the Freedom of Information Act 

(5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt from 

public disclosure. If your comments 

contain commercial or financial 

information that is customarily treated 

as private, that you actually treat as 

private, and that is relevant or 

responsive to the request for comment, 

it is important that you clearly designate 

the submitted comments as CBI. Please 

mark each page of your submission that 

constitutes CBI as ‘‘PROPIN’’ to indicate 

it contains proprietary information. 

FMCSA will treat such marked 

submissions as confidential under the 

Freedom of Information Act, and they 

will not be placed in the public docket. 

Submissions containing CBI should be 

sent to Mr. Brian Dahlin, Chief, 

Regulatory Analysis Division, Office of 

Policy, FMCSA, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590– 

0001. Any comments FMCSA receives 

not specifically designated as CBI will 

be placed in the public docket. 

B. Viewing Comments and Documents 

To view any documents mentioned as 

being available in the docket, go to 

https://www.regulations.gov/docket/ 

FMCSA-2022-0079/document and 

choose the document to review. To view 

comments, click this request for 

comment, then click ‘‘Browse 

Comments.’’ If you do not have access 

to the internet, you may view the docket 

online by visiting Dockets Operations in 

Room W12–140 on the ground floor of 

the DOT West Building, 1200 New 

Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 

20590–0001, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

holidays. To be sure someone is there to 

help you, please call (202) 366–9317 or 

(202) 366–9826 before visiting Dockets 

Operations. 

C. Privacy 

DOT solicits comments from the 

public to better inform its regulatory 

process, in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 

553(c). DOT posts these comments, 

without edit, including any personal 

information the commenter provides, to 

www.regulations.gov, as described in 

the system of records notice (DOT/ALL 

14—Federal Docket Management 

System), which can be reviewed at 

www.transportation.gov/privacy. 

II. Background 

On April 27, 2016, in accordance with 

section 32710 of the Moving Ahead for 

Progress in the 21st Century Act (Pub. 

L. 112–141, 126 Stat. 405, 815), FMCSA 

published in the Federal Register, an 

ANPRM titled ‘‘State Inspection 

Programs for Passenger-Carrier 

Vehicles’’ (Docket No. FMCSA–2014– 

0470, 81 FR 24769). The ANPRM 


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