The Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles have approved a Clean Trucks fee to provide $1.6 billion to fund the ports' Clean Trucks Program (CTP) tariff which progressively bans older, dirtier trucks in order to reduce port-related truck emissions by 80 percent over the next five years.

The Clean Trucks fee is also in the form of a port tariff. According to the Port of Los Angeles, all Clean Trucks Fees collected by the two ports will be allocated to the replacement or retrofitting of about 16,800 older trucks by 2012 with clean diesel trucks or trucks fueled by liquidated natural gas (LNG) or other approved technologies that can achieve the 2007 standard adopted in the ports' Clean Air Action Plan (CAAP).

Highlights from the ports' press releases, Q&As, and fact sheets include (partial list):

$35 Clean Truck Fee Per Loaded TEU Scheduled to Begin June 1, 2008

The approved measure will place a $35 charge on every loaded twenty-foot equivalent (TEU) cargo container entering or leaving the ports of Long Beach or Los Angeles cargo terminals by short-haul (drayage) trucks, and is scheduled to begin on June 1, 2008.

The fee will not apply to containers entering or leaving the port via on-dock rail, which is loaded within the terminals. In addition, the ports could decide to adjust the fee on an annual basis.

Shipping Terminals to Collect Fee; Use OCR/RFID to Monitor Trucks for Compliance

The $35 per loaded TEU will be collected by the ports' shipping terminals. Terminal operators will also be responsible for monitoring compliance of the trucks entering their terminals, and will be able to use an Optical Character Recognition (OCR) device in addition to radio frequency identification devices (RFID) and other identifiers, to confirm compliance with CTP requirements prior to terminal access by a drayage truck.

Fee Expected to Result in Additional Costs to Cargo Owners of Exports/Imports

The Clean Trucks fee is expected to result in additional costs to cargo owners of both exports and imports, and may ultimately increase the cost of goods shipped in containers. However, the ports' economic studies indicate that there would not be a major disruption to the economy and little if any cargo diversion to other ports would occur because of this fee.

Ports to Consider Other Clean Trucks Measures in Early 2008

The ports are now expected to consider other Clean Truck Program measures, with port staff preparing information and recommendations in early 2008 that will cover:

* A cargo fee imposed by tariff that would generate revenue to support local and regional port-related good movement infrastructure. This fee would be separate and distinct from the Clean Trucks fee;

* A permit or license program to register the licensed motor carriers that will provide drayage service at the ports;

* Funding and financing options (i.e., grants, leasing programs, loans, loan guarantees) to help provide capital for truck retrofits or replacements;

* A plan for the successful integration of the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) program; and

* An incentive program for companies that invest in 2007 compliant trucks with their own funds and which perform drayage in the ports consistent with port requirements.