(a) Filing.

(1) Any owner or operator of a liner, bulk, tramp or other vessel documented under the laws of the United States who believes that its access to ocean trade between foreign ports has been, or will be, unduly impaired may file a written petition for relief under the provisions of this part.

(2) An original and fifteen copies of such a petition including any supporting documents shall be filed with the Secretary, Federal Maritime Commission, Washington, DC 20573. The petition must be accompanied by remittance of a $306 filing fee.

(b) Contents. Petitions for relief shall include the following and shall also include an affidavit attesting to the truth and accuracy of the information submitted:

(1) The name and address of the petitioner;

(2) The name and address of each party (foreign government, agency or instrumentality thereof, carrier, or other person) against whom the petition is made and a statement as to whether the party is a foreign government, agency or instrumentality thereof;

(3) A concise description and citation of the foreign law, rule or government or commercial practice complained of;

(4) A certified copy of any law, rule, regulation or other document concerned, when available and, if not in English, a certified English translation thereof;

(5) Any other information relating to any law, rule or regulation, or indicating the existence of any government or commercial practice;

(6) A description of the service offered or proposed, as a result of which petitioner is alleging harm, including information which indicates the ability of the petitioner to otherwise participate in the trade;

(7) A clear description, in detail, of the harm already caused, or which may reasonably be expected to be caused, to the petitioner for a representative period, including:

(i) Statistics documenting present or prospective cargo loss due to discriminatory government or commercial practices if harm is alleged on that basis; such statistics shall include figures for the total cargo carried or projected to be carried by petitioner in the trade for the period, and the sources of the statistics;

(ii) Information documenting how the petitioner is being prevented from entering a trade, if injury is claimed on that basis;

(iii) Statistics or other information documenting the impact of discriminatory government or commercial practices resulting in an increase in costs, service restrictions, or other harm on the basis of which injury is claimed, and the sources of the statistics; and

(iv) A statement as to why the period is representative.

(8) A separate memorandum of law or a discussion of the relevant legal issues.

(9) A recommended action, rule or regulation, the result of which will, in the view of the petitioner, address the alleged conditions unduly impairing the access of petitioner to the affected trade.

(c) Deficient petition. A petition which substantially fails to comply with the requirements of paragraph (b) of this section shall be rejected and the person filing the petition shall be notified of the reasons for such rejection. Rejection is without prejudice to filing of an amended petition.

[49 FR 45406, Nov. 15, 1984, as amended at 63 FR 50537, Sept. 22, 1998; 67 FR 39862, June 11, 2002; 70 FR 10331, Mar. 3, 2005; 81 FR 59145, Aug. 29, 2016; 83 FR 50295, Oct. 5, 2018; 85 FR 72579, Nov. 13, 2020]