Overseas Survey: Additional Survey Items for Port of Seattle
1. Role of Ports
1) In Japan, since it is common for taxes (national and local) to be used for port and harbor development, it is necessary to as a rule make ports and harbors accessible to all parties; therefore, exclusive use by designated corporations is not recognized.
What is the thinking in the United States concerning the roles and status of ports and harbors?
(For example)
・ Even if port activities are the driving force behind the local economy and are facilities where private corporations conduct activities and make profits, such port activities serve the public interest because the profits are eventually returned to the local economy.
2) Based on this thinking, when selecting container terminal tenants, rather than relying on public advertisement, does the port authority select and hold negotiations with companies that are deemed to be the most valuable for the port based on scale of company, financial conditions, past performance, future plans, and so on?
3) When the Port Authority turns a lease contract into the terminal operator in order to secure common use at the time of emergency, what or terms have been put? For example, in Japan, the terminal operators have to recognize the common use and to obey the Port Authority's indications in emergency and they don't have to exclude a specific user.
4) If this thinking is demonstrated in legislation, ordinances and the sort (national, state, county, municipal, etc.), please indicate.
2. Preferential Use in Container Terminals
(1) Concerning utilization of container terminals
1) What is the procedure in cases where parties other than shipping companies which have a lease for container terminals wish to use your terminals(excluding alliance use)?
(For example)
・ The port authorities grant secondary rights of use for berths which have been leased to designated corporations. (In such cases, is it also possible to use cranes and yards)?
・ An independent terminal company is introduced and the terminal and shipping companies conduct negotiations.
・ The port authorities do not become involved at all because this is a problem between private companies.
・ The request is refused on the grounds that there is no space.
