Kodiak’s Harbormaster has proposed updating local rates and fees for vessel moorage, petroleum products and dry storage, among other things. The tariff rates currently in place were adopted in 2020.
The city’s Port and Harbors Advisory Board gave its approval for this year’s tariff changes last month on April 12, and is waiting for the City Council to make the final decision.
The proposed changes include an overhaul of moorage or docking restrictions. Vessel owners that pay a daily moorage rate will no longer be capped at an annual amount. Instead they will continue to be charged each day based on the size of their boat.
Smaller boats up to 40 feet in length will now pay $45 per linear foot annually to dock in Kodiak. That’s $5 more than the current rate which is $39.74 for vessels 0-20 feet, 21-30 feet, and 31-40 feet. In Fiscal Year 2026, that rate will increase to $54.28 annually.
Harbormaster Dave Johnson said not only did he want to overhaul the rates, but also how dockage fees are charged.
“Instead of 12 hour periods, which creates headaches, and a bunch of other issues, we’re going to a 24 hour rate. However, non-passenger vessels would be eligible to pay 50% [of the daily rate], if they are there [docked] 12 hours or less,” Johnson explained. “So most users will save money.”
Dockage rates will be different for commercial fishing vessels however. Commercial fishing vessels 80 feet and under will be charged $2.20 per day rather than the daily rate of 75 cents for all other boats under 40 feet. Larger vessels will pay slightly more than that; $2.50 per day for commercial fishing vessels over 80 feet long. Or 1/60th of annual moorage rate for all other boats based on their size.
Johnson’s proposed changes also includes dialing back a petroleum products’ tariff for vessels leaving the port, which has increased significantly over the last few years. The rate for outbound vessels was two cents per gallon in 2020 and jumped up to 20 cents per gallon this year.
“So what I recommended to the PHAB was let’s go dial that back to 5 cents; it doesn’t put an undue burden on the remote sites. I’m a lot more comfortable going to the transporters and having that conversation with them when we’re talking 5 cents a gallon instead of 20 cents,” Johnson said.
The Harbormaster also pointed out that very little revenue is generated by that tariff as it is rare for outbound fuel to cross Kodiak’s docks. However the local port does provide a significant number of petroleum products like propane tanks to boaters going to fish camps and lodges around the island.
The port’s general cargo rate of $8.60 for all landing craft carrying cargo or shipments will remain the same through Fiscal Year 2026. According to city documents, this rate is higher than the Port of Anchorage’s general cargo rate.
Kodiak’s City Council briefly discussed the tariff changes during a work session last week on April 23, but took no formal action. It is unclear when the council will vote on the port rate updates, but the next regular meeting is scheduled for May 9.
