DENVER — The Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) announced revisions to proposed port service fees on April 17, which came in response to “China’s unreasonable acts, policies and practices to dominate the maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sectors,” the department said in its announcement.

“Ships and shipping are vital to American economic security and the free flow of commerce,” said USTR Jamieson Greer. “The Trump administration’s actions will begin to reverse Chinese dominance, address threats to the US supply chain and send a demand signal for US-built ships.”

After publishing the revisions, the US Meat Export Federation highlighted which changes will be the most significant to US red meat exporters.

First, fees will not be charged on every port call, only per voyage. Additionally, a vessel can only be charged a maximum of five times per year. USMEF said this reduces the likelihood that carriers will eliminate port calls, which had been a major concern for US exporters.

“So definitely an improvement from where we were,” said Dan Halstrom, president and chief executive officer of USMEF.

Secondly, the revised service fee structure is based more on vessel capacity rather than flat fees, making it less burdensome for smaller ships used for shorter routes, USMEF explained.

“Lastly, in the same category, there’s an improvement in the sense that some of the shorter haul routes into key destinations — such as Central America and Colombia, for example, and US beef and pork — the schedule is much more attractive in terms of fees and a lower per pound basis impact,” Halstrom said.

“USTR, in fact, did listen to the industry and the concerns that we had,” he added. “Anything that adds cost to the process is always a concern. But compared to the original proposal, we are very encouraged by these improvements that USTR has made.”

USTR first proposed service fees and restrictions on certain maritime transport services on Feb. 21, 2025, in the Federal Register.