FMC Operations Suspended Due to Federal Government Shutdown

The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) closed as part of the federal government shutdown that began January 31st. The FMC’s regulations, however, remain in force during the federal government shutdown. There is no impact on FMC filing for new and amended tariff rates and rules, VOCC Service Contracts (SCs), NVOCC Service Arrangements (NSAs), or Negotiated Rate Arrangements (NRAs). 

During the shutdown, the Commission is not accepting new or amended NVOCC registrations, new or amended NVOCC licenses, and new or amended VOCC registrations. The FMC is also not accepting new or updated VOCC and MTO agreements, formal or informal complaints, or any filings in proceedings pending before the Commission.

The Commission’s online databases:  SERVCON, the VOCC and NVOCC Tariff List, List of FMC Licensed and Bonded OTIs, and the Agreement Notices and Library will remain accessible. Commission staff will not update these databases during the federal government shutdown.

Upon reopening of the federal government, the public may contact the Office of the Secretary at (202) 523-5725 or Secretary@fmc.gov with any questions.

The Commission published a detailed shutdown plan, which may be viewed at www.fmc.gov.

Laura DiBella Designated as Chairwoman of FMC

On January 28, 2026, President Donald Trump designated Laura DiBella to serve as Chairwoman of the Federal Maritime Commission.

Chairwoman DiBella was sworn in as a Commissioner on January 6, 2026. She was nominated by President Trump on September 3, 2025, and confirmed by the United States Senate on December 18, 2025, to serve a term that expires on June 30, 2028.

Prior to joining the Commission, DiBella served as a government relations advisor at the law firm, Adams & Reese. Prior to joining Adams & Reese, DiBella served as President of Business Development at FloridaCommerce, President/CEO at Enterprise Florida, and President of the Florida Opportunity Fund. DiBella also has prior maritime experience. She was the Executive Director of Florida Harbor Pilots Association from 2019 to 2022. She also served as Port Director of Port of Fernandina Ocean Highway and Port Authority from 2017 to 2019. Prior to that she worked as the Executive Director of Nassau County Economic Development Board. She has also been a Florida licensed real estate broker for over 20 years. DiBella earned her Bachelor of Science in Human Resource Management and Business Administration and Management from the University of Florida.

The Commission now has four out of five Commissioners. President Trump nominated Robert Harvey also of Florida to serve as an FMC Commissioner in September 2025. Harvey was nominated for a term ending June 30, 2029. His nomination was approved by the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation on February 3, 2026. He now awaits final approval by the U.S. Senate

FMC Assesses MSC Civil Penalties Totaling $22.67 Million

The U.S. Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) assessed a civil penalty of $22.67 million against MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company, S.A. (MSC) for various U.S. Shipping Act violations, including failure to update its FMC tariff.

The Commission’s Bureau of Enforcement, Investigations, and Compliance (BEIC), through its Offices of Investigation and Enforcement, investigated and prosecuted the matter under Docket No. 23-08.

BEIC’s investigation alleged that MSC violated the Shipping Act over the course of several years. The first violation, which occurred during the period of 2018-2020, related to MSC’s billing of customs agents as “notify parties” for demurrage and detention charges (late fees) through the “merchant clause” found in its bills of lading, even though such parties were not involved in moving the cargo. The Commission affirmed the initial decision of the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) that MSC’s use of its “merchant clause” violated the U.S. Shipping Act’s prohibition against unreasonable practices. The assessed civil penalties for these violations totaled $65,000.

Additionally, BEIC’s investigation alleged that MSC violated the U.S. Shipping Act’s tariff requirements by failing to include in its published tariff a statement of applicable fees for non-operating reefers (NORs). The Commission held that MSC’s failure to update its tariff from 2021 to early 2023 was knowing and willful. The assessed civil penalties for those violations totaled $9,460,000.

Finally, BEIC alleged that MSC violated the U.S. Shipping Act’s prohibition against unreasonable practices by overcharging its customers demurrage and detention fees for use of its NORs. The Commission held that the record indicated that the overcharging happened in about 23 percent of NOR bills during 2021. Therefore, the Commission concluded that MSC’s billing was not merely the result of a mistake but rather that it constituted an unreasonable practice. For this conduct the Commission assessed a penalty of $5,000 per violation for a total of $13,145,000.

The FMC does not receive any revenue when assessing civil penalties. Civil penalties are paid directly to the General Fund of the U.S. Treasury.

For more details visit the FMC’s online reading room. The FMC’s reading room provides access to FMC dockets, related documents, notices, and orders.

FMC Launches Investigation of Possible Chassis Usage Restrictions

The U.S. Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) launched an investigation into chassis restrictions. The FMC is examining actions by ocean common carriers that may be unjustly and unreasonably restricting motor carriers and shippers’ choice of chassis providers.

The Commission seeks to determine whether ocean common carriers are using practices that directly or indirectly deprive truckers and shippers from negotiating and dealing with chassis providers. Any practices, whether through rules, service contracts, or other means, which unjustly or unreasonably restrict truckers and shippers from dealing with chassis providers may violate the U.S. Shipping Act.

The Commission seeks information from shippers, motor carriers, and the public identifying restrictions, practices, or tactics of any kind imposed by ocean common carriers on chassis provider selections or negotiations for chassis usage.

For more information about how to comment, please visit the Federal Register notice at: Investigation Into Ocean Common Carriers’ Practices and Restrictions on Chassis Usage. Public comments must be submitted on or before March 27, 2026.

Commenters requesting that all or a portion of their comment remain confidential should contact David Eng, Secretary of the Federal Maritime Commission at Secretary@fmc.gov.

FMC Adds Two Additional Administrative Law Judges on Temporary Basis

The U.S. Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) appointed two temporary administrative law judges to the Commission’s Office of Administrative Law Judges (OALJ) through the end of the fiscal year.

The temporary details of Judge Jamie Mendelson and Judge Debra Tesh, both from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, began on January 26, 2026. The Commission has experienced a significant increase in the number and complexity of cases filed with its OALJ. Many cases involve disputes emanating from the pandemic-era supply chain disruption.

Judge Mendelson served as a Supervisory Administrative Law Judge in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals since 2019. She previously served as an Administrative Law Judge for the Social Security Administration, an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Colorado, and an active-duty Judge Advocate General in the United States Air Force. She continues to serve in the Air Force Reserve and is currently appointed as an Appellate Judge on the Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals. Judge Mendelson received her J.D. from Stanford Law School, and her B.S. in Civil Engineering from University of California at Los Angeles. She is a member of the California bar.

Judge Tesh served as a Supervisory Administrative Law Judge with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals since 2019. She previously served as a Senior Administrative Law Judge for the Office of Administrative Hearings in Washington state, primarily hearing public assistance and protective services appeals. As an attorney, she represented the Washington state Department of Health and Human Services. Judge Tesh received her J.D. from Seattle University School of Law and her B.A. from the University of Washington. She is a member of the Washington State bar.

FMC Chairwoman DiBella and Commissioner Vekich Issue Statement on Closing the Harbor Maintenance Tax Land-Border Loophole

FMC Chairwoman Laura DiBella and Commissioner Max Vekich issued a joint statement on the Harbor Maintenance Tax (HMT) Land-Border Loophole. They commended the Trump Administration for taking steps to close the land border loophole. Section 6 of the President’s April 2025 Executive Order on Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance seeks to protect U.S. jobs and revitalize the U.S. maritime industry by closing tax loopholes.

According to Chairwoman DiBella and Commissioner Vekich, Canada and Mexico have been using this loophole to redirect supply chains away from U.S. ports. They believe the situation today is urgent with both Canadian and Mexican port development projects in the works. Chairwoman DiBella and Commissioner Vekich believe the land border loophole has been financially significant enough to drive shippers to avoid U.S. ports. According to a 2012 FMC study, eliminating Canada’s HMT advantage could result in half of the U.S.-bound containers moving via Canada’s West Coast ports to revert to using U.S. ports. They allege the same dynamic applies to Mexican ports.

Chairwoman DiBella and Commissioner Vekich applaud the Trump Administration for recognizing this threat and taking steps to counteract it.

Transpacific Eastbound Carriers File GRIs Effective February 15, 2026, and March 1, 2026

Several leading carriers serving the Transpacific container trades have recently updated their respective tariffs to include new General Rate Increases (GRIs) effective February 15, 2026, including CMA CGM, COSCO, Evergreen, Hapag Lloyd, HMM Company Limited, Ocean Network Express (ONE), Yang Ming, and ZIM. See table below for GRI amounts per 40ft container; GRI amounts for all other container sizes are as per formula. The February 15th GRIs will be the fourth GRI of 2026 for the East Asia/USA trade lane. 

TRANSPACIFIC EASTBOUND (Asia to USA)
GENERAL RATE INCREASE (GRI) Effective February 15, 2026
Carrier	in USD, per 40ft ctr
CMA CGM	2000
COSCO (note 1)	3000
Evergreen (note 2)	3000
Hapag Lloyd	3000
HMM	3000
ONE	1000
Yang Ming	2000
ZIM	2000

NOTE 1:  COSCO GRIs apply on all cargo moving under service contracts only.   

NOTE 2:  Evergreen GRIs will be USD 3000 per 40ft container for dry cargo, and USD 3000 per reefer container. GRI amounts for all other container sizes are as per formula. 

Some carriers also updated their tariffs to include new General Rate Increases (GRIs) effective March 1, 2026, including CMA CGM, COSCO, Evergreen, Hapag Lloyd, HMM Company Limited, Yang Ming, and ZIM. See table below for GRI amounts per 40ft container; GRI amounts for all other container sizes are as per formula. The March 1st GRIs will be the fifth GRI of 2026 for the East Asia/USA trade lane. 

TRANSPACIFIC EASTBOUND (Asia to USA)
GENERAL RATE INCREASE (GRI) Effective March 1, 2026
Carrier	in USD, per 40ft ctr
CMA CGM	2000
COSCO (note 1)	3000
Evergreen (note 2)	3000
Hapag Lloyd	3000
HMM	3000
Yang Ming	2000
Zim	2000

NOTE 1:  COSCO GRIs apply on all cargo moving under service contracts only.   

NOTE 2:  Evergreen GRIs will be USD 3000 per 40ft container for dry cargo, and USD 3000 per reefer container. GRI amounts for all other container sizes are as per formula. 

Each carrier maintains its own tariffs and controls its own pricing.

The information contained herein is obtained from reliable sources. It is subject to change at any time, however, depending on changes in laws and regulations. While we continually attempt to monitor this information, we do not guarantee its accuracy and are not responsible for any damages suffered by any party in reliance on it.