Alabama § 33-4A-33 - Pay of Pilots - Generally.

§ 33-4A-33. Pay of Pilots - Generally.

(a) The master, owner, agent, or operator of any ship or vessel shall pay the bar pilot who conducts a vessel into or out of the Bay or Harbor of Mobile a fee to be fixed by the commission at the rate of thirty-eight dollars ($38) per draft foot for actual draft of water at the time of pilotage for every vessel crossing the outer bar of Mobile Bay. The minimum pilot fee shall be computed on a minimum of 15 feet regardless of whether or not the vessel has a draft of less than 15 feet at the time of pilotage.

(b) In addition to the pilotage fee based on the draft of the vessel, the bar pilot shall also be paid a pilotage fee for every vessel crossing the outer bar of Mobile Bay in the sum of six and one-quarter cents ($0.0625) per ton. The minimum pilot fee shall be computed on a minimum of 6,500 maximum registered gross tons, regardless of whether or not the vessel has a maximum registered gross tonnage of less than 6,500 maximum registered gross tons.

(c) In addition to the foregoing fees, the commission shall set fees for special services rendered by the bar pilots to vessels which are incidental to or connected with vessels being conducted into or out of the Bay or Harbor of Mobile which include, but are not limited to, docking and undocking, going on and off drydock, turning the vessel, shifting, anchorage and stand-by, and delayed sailing.

(d) Vessels drawing seven feet or less of water shall not be required to employ a bar pilot, but if a bar pilot is employed, the regular pilotage shall be paid.

(e) Effective January 1, 2020, the commission, annually at the first convened quarterly meeting after the release of official annual changes to the Consumer Price Index, shall adjust upward or downward the tariff rates to provide a cost-of-living adjustment to the applicable tariff rates. For purposes of this chapter, tariff rates are fees based on draft and tonnage and other fees referenced in subsections (a), (b), and (c). The commission shall use the Consumer Price Index published by the U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Labor Statistics for the previous calendar year as a basis to make the necessary upward adjustments. Notwithstanding the foregoing, at its sole discretion, the commission, upon request from bar pilots or otherwise, may adjust tariff rates based on other economic consideration to an amount greater than increases based on changes in the Consumer Price Index for any given year.

(f) No discounts or adjustments to rates and fees can be offered to shippers, owners, or any agents of shipping companies.

(g) The schedule for all tariff rates and fees shall be maintained by the commission and available to interested parties upon written request.