Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer today called for the National Guard to be deployed to the Port of Los Angeles to improve the movement of goods amid a backlog that has dozens of ships waiting at anchor for an average of 13 days.
“It’s not only a Los Angeles problem. It’s not only a California problem. It’s a problem across the country,” Feuer said during an unrelated news conference. “The president has been asked about engaging the National Guard. It’s time.”
The White House was considering deploying the National Guard but considered it an unlikely option, CNN reported on Oct. 20, citing information from a person familiar with the matter.
Feuer also said that other states should send their National Guard members to California because supply chain disruptions affect the entire country.
On Friday, the Los Angeles Harbor Commission will consider a policy change already authorized by the City Council to fine companies whose containers linger at the marine terminals.
The fines will begin at $100 per container, increasing by $100 per container each day. The Port of Long Beach is planning to impose the same fines.
According to a joint statement on Monday from the ports, containers set to be transported by truck will incur fines if they remain at the port for nine days or more. For rail containers, fines will be assessed if they are at the port for three days or more.
President Joe Biden recently announced an agreement for both ports to operate around the clock to help speed the movement of cargo. Last week, Long Beach eased restrictions on the height of stacked cargo containers in hopes of allowing more container storage at the port and moving ships out more quickly.
On Thursday, California and the U.S. Department of Transportation announced a multibillion loan agreement to improve supply chain infrastructure long-term. The announcement will not affect the current backlog, but officials hope it will make the infrastructure system more equipped for the future.
The “Emerging Projects Agreement” will allocate the federal government’s infrastructure program’s two main loan programs—Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) and Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing (RRIF)—“on a blanket basis to the state of California to develop a comprehensive program of projects” that will benefit both the state and the U.S. through supply chain improvements, according to the Biden administration’s Port Envoy John D. Porcari.
