FMC’s WON: OSRA ONLY MARGINALLY SUCCESSFUL

FMCÆS WON: OSRA ONLY MARGINALLY SUCCESSFUL    Ocean carriers’ antitrust immunity, which has made it possible for carriers to set voluntary rate and service guidelines under discussion agreements, has undermined the full benefit of confidential service contracting under the ocean shipping reform act, said Federal Maritime Commission member Del Won.
   Addressing customs brokers and forwarders attending the Western Cargo Conference 2000 in Palm Springs, Calif, Won judged OSRA as being “only marginally successful.”
   The drive to curtail carriers’ antitrust immunity is undergoing international and congressional scrutiny, and will not go away, Won predicted.
   He called on the FMC to change its focus from looking at specific activities like discussion agreements as being legal under the words of OSRA, to making findings regarding the “market-distorting” nature of such activities.
   The FMC is unable to do anything about problems confidential contracts pose regarding brokerage billings and export declarations, Won said.
   Brokers and forwarders can try to resolve the problem by working with the U.S. Customs Service to review their information requirements, Won said. Current requirements are based on all shipping rates being public. Under OSRA, all rates are no longer public, he added.
   “Customs needs to review and revise its requirements to comport them to congressional intent as codified in OSRA,” he said.
   The FMC will not take lightly an upcoming request from the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America to exempt ocean transportation intermediaries from tariff filing and publication requirements, Won said.
   Those wishing an industry-wide exemption must show that detariffing will not be detrimental to commerce or anticompetitive, Won said. They must also answer the question as to whether Congress intended the FMC’s exemption authority to change requirements specifically spelled out in the reform law, he said.