Juneau committee approves $7-per-lower-berth dockage fee and redirects passenger-fee subsidies

The Assembly Finance Committee voted on Jan. 8 to introduce an ordinance that would change Juneau’s dockage fee structure to $7 per lower berth and to set that change to take effect for the 2026 cruise season.

The committee also voted to stop using marine passenger-fee revenue to subsidize restrooms and security at public and private docks; instead, the committee directed staff to fund dock operations from dockage revenues. That allocation passed 5–3 on a recorded roll call (yes: Bryson, Kelly, Atkinson, Hughes Gandy, Chair Wall; no: Smith, Hall, Steininger).

Why it matters: Committee members and staff said higher dockage revenues would fund maintenance and capital needs at the docks while freeing passenger-fee revenue to address community impacts from cruise visits, such as additional bussing, security and visitor services. Staff estimated the two fee approaches under review would raise seasonal dock-related revenue from roughly $2.5 million today to about $5.0 million under the higher-fee scenarios.

Details of the fee decision: Port staff provided two model approaches — doubling the current lineal-foot/registered-ton structure, or moving to a per-lower-berth flat fee. Committee members and the docks director recommended the $7-per-lower-berth structure because it produces a similar total revenue outcome while spreading costs more evenly across vessels of different sizes and passenger densities. Staff told the committee the online supplemental spreadsheet in the packet had a formula error on one line; staff corrected the typo and confirmed the season-total revenue figures.

Notice and timing: The dock director said the industry requested two years’ notice for fee changes; staff recommended a one-year notice. Committee members debated a one- versus two-year lead time. An amendment to delay the fee’s effective season from 2026 to 2027 failed on a 6–2 roll call (yeas: Bryson, Steininger; nays: Scandis, Atkinson, Kelly, Hall, Smith, Chair Wall). The primary motion — introduce an ordinance to set the fee at $7 per lower berth effective for the 2026 cruise season — passed with no objections when moved.

How revenues will be used: The committee debated three options for passenger-fee and dockage-fee uses. The committee chose option 2: use dockage fees to fully fund the docks and harbors operational budget and stop providing passenger-fee subsidies for restrooms and security at any dock. Supporters said that approach returns control of passenger-fee budgeting to the assembly and manager’s office and aligns fee collection with the enterprise that provides the service. Opponents said continuing passenger-fee subsidies for restrooms and security would better assure visitor services and public safety.

Next steps: Staff will draft the ordinance for introduction and prepare a detailed implementation plan and notice timeline. The docks director noted any draft ordinance will reflect the corrected spreadsheet and clarified the one-year notice recommended by staff.

Context and constraints: Staff reminded the committee that dockage revenue must be used within the docks enterprise fund; passenger fees have separate legal and settlement constraints and historically have been used to mitigate community impacts. The Committee’s action seeks to reduce the need to subsidize docks from passenger-fee proceeds moving forward.