[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 219 (Monday, November 14, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70448-70450]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-29226]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION

[Docket No. 11-20]


Publication of Inaccurate or Inactive Ocean Common Carrier 
Tariffs; Order to Show Cause

    This proceeding is instituted pursuant to sections 8 and 11 of the 
Shipping Act of 1984 (1984 Act), 46 U.S.C. 40501, 41302, and the 
Commission's regulations governing tariff requirements of ocean common 
carriers, 46 CFR part 520. Section 8 of the 1984 Act, 46 U.S.C. 40501, 
provides that an ocean common carrier holding out to provide service in 
the United States foreign trades must keep open to public inspection in 
an automated tariff system tariffs showing all of the carrier's rates, 
charges, classifications, rules, and practices between all points or 
ports on its own route and on any through route that has been 
established. The Commission's rules require that prior to the 
commencement of common carrier service pursuant to a published tariff, 
each common carrier must notify the Commission's Bureau of Trade 
Analysis (BTA) of the location of its tariff(s) and the publisher, if 
any, used to maintain its tariffs, by electronically submitting Form 
FMC-1 via the Commission's Web site. A list of the locations of all 
carrier and conference tariffs submitted on Form FMC-1 is published on 
the Commission's Web site. The list is updated in real-time to permit 
any interested person to obtain tariff information and to allow the 
Commission to assess carrier compliance with statutory tariff 
publication requirements. Any changes in this information or the 
carrier's name, organization number, home office address, or telephone 
must be immediately transmitted to BTA. 46 CFR 520.3(d). The 
Commission's rules also require that carriers and conferences inform 
BTA, in writing, whenever a tariff is cancelled and the effective date 
of that cancellation. 46 CFR 520.7(b).
    It has come to the attention of the Commission that the entities 
listed in Schedule A to this Order are currently identified as active 
vessel-operating common carriers (VOCCs) on the Commission's Web site, 
but do not

[[Page 70449]]

appear to be engaged in providing ocean common carrier service in the 
foreign commerce of the United States. As of July 2010, three hundred 
fifteen (315) VOCCs were identified on the Commission's Web site as 
active carriers maintaining tariff publications at the Web site 
locations specified therein. BTA's Office of Service Contracts and 
Tariffs (OSCT) recently performed an audit of the carriers appearing in 
the FMC-1 database to determine the accuracy of the information 
provided to the Commission and verify their activity in the services 
held out in their tariffs. Relying on a variety of online resources\1\ 
as well as individual carrier Web sites, the audit identified the 
absence of any recent activity in the foreign waterborne commerce of 
the United States by those VOCCs identified in Schedule A. It appears 
that those carriers may have in fact ceased operations and failed to 
notify the Commission.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ Journal of Commerce (JOC) Sailings, PIERS, Sea-Web, and 
SERVCON.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The Commission previously has found that maintenance of common 
carrier tariffs absent a present intention to furnish those services 
held out in such tariffs is contrary to the purposes of the Shipping 
Act and the Commission's tariff regulations. In Docket No. 98-31, 
Publication of Inactive or Inaccurate Ocean Common Carrier Tariffs, 28 
SRR 832 (FMC, 1999), the Commission found that ten respondents had 
violated Section 8 of the Shipping Act by holding out to provide 
services as VOCCs and ``by not operating vessels providing common 
carrier services in the U.S. foreign commerce in accordance with their 
respective VOCC tariffs.'' Similar findings were entered by the 
Commission in Docket No. 80-77, Failure of Vessel Operating Common 
Carriers in the Foreign Commerce of the United States to Comply With 
the Certification Filing Requirements of Section 21(b) of the Shipping 
Act, 1916, 21 SRR 706, 707 (FMC, 1978), wherein the Commission held 
that:

    [C]arriers not actively carrying cargo or clearly committed to 
commence carrying cargo between ports named in a tariff at the rates 
stated therein are not common carriers by water within the meaning 
of Section 18(b) and their tariffs in such unserved trades are 
subject to cancellation. See Publication of Inactive Tariffs, 20 FMC 
433, (1978). The Commission will, therefore, cancel the tariffs of 
the Appendix B carriers as contrary to Section 18(b) and the 
Commission's tariff filing regulations (46 CFR part 536), but will 
take no further action against them.

    In Publication of Inactive Tariffs by Independent Carriers, 17 SRR 
471, 472 (FMC, 1977), the Commission concluded that tariff 
cancellations were a necessary step in serving important public 
purposes:

    It is misleading to the public, potentially unfair to competing 
carriers, and an administrative burden upon our staff for ``paper'' 
tariffs to be kept on file, available for possible use it should 
suit the narrow purposes of the persons issuing them to quickly 
enter the trade, but otherwise describing a nonexistent service. We 
construe such a situation as contravening the implicit requirements 
of Shipping Act 18(b), subsections (1) through (3), which 
necessitates the prompt submission of accurate information 
concerning the services offered by a common carrier, including the 
suspension of all or any part of the operations described by its 
published tariffs. [Citations omitted].

    See also Ghezzi Trucking Inc.--Cancellation of Inactive Tariffs, 11 
SRR 598, 600 (FMC, 1970). In proposing this action, the Commission 
seeks also to assure that vessel-operating common carrier tariffs not 
be used as a means or device by which others may circumvent the bonding 
and licensing requirements applicable to Non-Vessel-Operating Common 
Carriers (NVOCCs).
    Now therefore, it is ordered That pursuant to Section 11 of the 
Shipping Act of 1984, 46 U.S.C. 41302, the entities listed in Schedule 
A to this Order are directed to show cause why the Commission should 
not cancel the FMC-1 filings identifying the location of the carrier's 
published tariff(s) currently on file with the Commission, for failure 
to provide service as a vessel-operating common carrier in accordance 
with the routes and rates set forth therein;
    It is further ordered That the entities listed in Schedule A to 
this Order are directed to show cause why the Commission should not 
order those entities to cease and desist all activities by which they 
may hold out to provide service as a common carrier within the meaning 
of Section 3 of the 1984 Act, 46 U.S.C. 40102, unless and until such 
time as they commence providing ocean common carrier service in the 
foreign commerce of the United States or have filed with the Commission 
proof of compliance with the tariff and financial responsibility 
requirements governing NVOCCs;
    It is further ordered That this proceeding be limited to the 
submission of affidavits of fact and memoranda of law;
    It is further ordered That any person having an interest and 
desiring to intervene in this proceeding shall file a petition for 
leave to intervene in accordance with Rule 72 of the Commission's Rules 
of Practice and Procedure, 46 CFR 502.72. Such petition shall be 
accompanied by the petitioner's memorandum of law and affidavit of 
fact, if any, and shall be filed no later than the day fixed below;
    It is furthered ordered That the entities listed in Schedule A to 
this Order are named as Respondents in this proceeding. Affidavits of 
fact and memoranda of law shall be filed by Respondents and any 
intervenors in support of respondents no later than December 7, 2011;
    It is further ordered That the Commission's Bureau of Enforcement 
(BOE) be made a party to this proceeding;
    It is further ordered That reply affidavits and memoranda of law 
shall be filed by BOE and intervenors in support no later than December 
22, 2011;
    It is further ordered That:
    (a) Should any party believe that an evidentiary hearing is 
required, that party must submit a request for such hearing together 
with a statement setting forth in detail the facts to be proved, the 
relevance of those facts to the issues in this proceeding, a 
description of the evidence which would be adduced, and why such 
evidence cannot be submitted by affidavit;
    (b) Any request for evidentiary hearing shall be filed no later 
than December 22, 2011;
    It is furthered ordered That notice of this Order to Show Cause be 
published in the Federal Register, and that a copy thereof be served 
upon each Respondent at its last known address;
    It is further ordered That all documents submitted by any party of 
record in this proceeding shall be filed in accordance with Rule 2 of 
the Commission's Rules of Practice and procedure, 46 CFR 502.2, as well 
as being mailed directly to all parties of record;
    Finally, it is ordered That pursuant to the terms of Rule 61 of the 
Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure, 46 CFR 502.61, the final 
decision of the Commission in this proceeding shall be issued by March 
6, 2012.

    By the Commission.
Karen V. Gregory,
Secretary.

[[Page 70450]]



              Schedule A--Listing of Ocean Common Carriers
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                       Name and address                          Tariff
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Action Marine Group LLC, 7140 NW. Miami Court, Miami, FL          020521
 33150.......................................................
African Atlantic Lines, Inc., One International Place,            016858
 Boston, MA 02110............................................
Allstate Shipping Line, LLC, 1156 Clifton Avenue, Irvington,      021135
 NJ 07111....................................................
American-Iraqi Shipping Line, Inc., 1900 Campus Commons           019754
 Drive, Suite 340, Reston, VA 20191..........................
Arawak Line, Ltd., 50 Shirley Street, Nassau, Bahamas........     016405
Asia Project Services Pte. Ltd., 70 Shenton Way, 14-     019854
 01 Marina House, Singapore, Singapore 079118................
Atlantsskip HF, Vesturvor 29, 200 Kopavogur, Kopavogur,           016243
 Iceland.....................................................
Autoterminal International Limited, P.O. Box 186, Tortola,        020075
 Road Town, British Virgin Islands...........................
Azure Shipping Corporation S.A., Torre Universal, Ave             013897
 Federico Boyd, Panama City, Panama..........................
BSLE Malta Limited, 57 St Christopher Street, Valetta, Malta.     020287
Carib Services Ltd., 2377 Guy N Verger Blvd., Tampa, FL 33605     015585
Caribbean Star I Freight Lines, 5353 W. Tyson Avenue, D, Tampa, FL 33611........................................
Caribbean Transport Line S.A., 700 SE. 32nd Court, Fort           013360
 Lauderdale, FL 33183........................................
Ceylon Shipping Corporation Ltd., 498 Westgate Drive, 323, Edison, NJ 08820.....................................
Cido Car Carrier Service Limited, 20th Floor, World-Wide          021100
 House, No. 19 Des Voeux Road Central, Hong Kong, China......
Columbia Coastal Transport Incorporated, 100 Walnut Avenue,       013594
 Clark, NJ 07066.............................................
Gateway Maritime Transport Corporation, 5505 Mitchelldale,        010789
 Suite 118, Houston, TX 77092................................
GMP Holdings, Ltd., P.O. Box SS-5178, Nassau, Bahamas........     018663
IMC Maritime Group, 1214 Stonehollow Drive, Kingwood, TX          010613
 77339.......................................................
Jackson Shipping, Inc., 5353 W. Tyson Ave., Bldg. C, Tampa,       008866
 FL 33611....................................................
Kookyang Shipping Co., Ltd., 2nd Floor, Donsung Building,         020957
 17-7, 4-KA, Namdaemun-Ro, Chung-Ku, Seoul, South
 Korea.......................................................
Last-Land Air & Sea Transport, 11757 Katy Freeway, Suite          020008
 1300, Houston, TX 77079.....................................
LCI Shipholdings, Inc., 650 Poydras Street, Suite 170, New        007840
 Orleans, LA 70130...........................................
Lineas Agromar S.A., Calle 73 Via 40-350, Apartado Aereo 359      001608
 and 5313, Barranquilla, Columbia............................
Lineas Maritimas Mundiales, S.A., Avenida Nunez de Caceres,       018002
 Esp. Luis F. Tomen, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.......
Moby Maritime Corporation, P.O. Box 466, Palm City, FL 34991.     016284
MP Ferrymar, Inc., P.O. Box 16620, San Juan, PR 00908-6620...     017333
MP Line de Mexico, Bosque de Duraznos 69-1105 Torre      019817
 B, Bosques de las Lomas, Mexico City, Mexico................
Olympic International Ltd., Room 1217, World Trade Center         009647
 Bldg., 2-4-1, Hamamatsucho, Minato-Ku, Tokyo 105, Japan.....
Omnium Brasil Line, LLC, 2353 St. Johns Bluff Road, South         018968
 Jacksonville, FL 32246......................................
Overseas Carrier, Inc., 3526 F.M. 528, Suite 104,                 015799
 Friendswood, TX 77546.......................................
Overseas Transport Company of 2000, E.A. Creque Bldg., Main       016891
 Street, Road Town, Tortola, British Virgin Islands..........
Pan Ocean Shipping Company, Ltd., Dae Han Fire Insurance          000989
 Building, 51-1 Namchang-Dong, Jungk-Ku, C.P.O. Box 3051,
 Seoul, South Korea..........................................
Phoenix Caribbean Shipping Line, Inc., 2945 Richmond              017772
 Terrance, Staten Island, NY 10303...........................
POL-Atlantic, LTD., 10 Lutego 24, Gydnia, Poland.............     014038
Rusflot Shipping Line N.V., 4 Dormasolweg, Willemstad,            011301
 Curacao, Netherlands Antilles...............................
Sloman Neptun, Langenstrasse 44, Bremen, D-28195, Germany....     019484
Star West Joint Service, Albion House, 20 Queen Elizabeth         009407
 St., London, SE1 2LS........................................
Strong Maritime Corporation, 6th Fl, No. 87 Sung Jiang Road,      020122
 Taipei, Taiwan 10486........................................
Texas American Shipping Corp., 16800 Greenspoint Drive, Suite     005781
 S-105S, Houston, TX 77060...................................
Transportacion Maritima Grancolombiana S.A., Carrera 13 A No.     014492
 77A-63, SantaFe De Bogota, Bogota, Colombia.................
Unimar Maritime Limited, 2, Pinat Can St; P.O.B. 8005, Haifa,     014286
 Israel......................................................
Venezuelan Container Line, C.A., Piso 16, Torre El Chorro,        007292
 Esquina El Chorro, Caracas, Venezuela.......................
VOC Steel Services B.V., Westeriaan 10, 3016 CK Rotterdam,        016823
 Netherlands.................................................
Western Pacific Shipping Company, Malakal Commercial Port,        017300
 Box 9005, Koror, Palau 96940................................
Windward Maritime LLC, 300 Pigeon Point Rd., New Castle, DE       019885
 19720.......................................................
------------------------------------------------------------------------

[FR Doc. 2011-29226 Filed 11-10-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6730-01-P