A BILL FOR AN ACT TO AMEND THE PORT AUTHORITIES ACT
Enacted by the Parliament of The Bahamas
1. Short title and commencement.
2. (1) (2) This Act, which amends the Port Authorities Act (Ch. 269) shall be cited
as the Port Authorities (Amendment) Act, 2025.
This Act shall come into force on the 1st day of July, 2025.
Section 2 of the principal Act is amended by the insertion in the appropriate
alphabetical order of the following new definitions—
““Chief Valuation Officer” means the public officer appointed in
accordance with the Real Property Tax Act (Ch. 375);
“commercial seabed” means marinas, private destinations, commercial
operations, and commercial ports;
“foreign vessel” means a vessel beneficially owned by a foreign entity;
“jetty” means a structure constructed or situated over a body of water,
which provides mooring or access for vessels, or a similar
purpose;”;
“leaseholder” means a person or entity to whom a seabed lease is
granted;”;
“seabed” means the body of land beneath the sea or other navigable
waters, including land created or reclaimed through dredging or a
similar process, except for canals and ponds;” ;
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3. 4. “seabed lease” means the lease referred to in section 41A;
“sufferance wharf” means a place for the loading or unloading of goods
that is owned or operated by or on behalf of a person or entity other
than the Government and appointed as a Customs place under the
under section 13 Customs Management Act (Ch. 293);”.
The principal Act is amended by the insertion, immediately after section 6, of the
new section 6A as follows —
(1) Without prejudice to section 6 of this Act, the Minister may
make regulations for any of the following purposes –
(a) to establish and regulate the use of anchorage zones;
(b) to establish procedures governing maritime cabotage,
in the case of marine transport of goods and passengers
between port areas;
(c) to implement and manage marine traffic services for
the safe and efficient navigation of boats and
watercrafts throughout port areas;
(d) to implement measures to prevent and respond to
marine incidents, including but not limited to vessel
collisions, groundings, and pollution events, such as
oil or hazardous substance spills; and
(e) to issue and disseminate navigational warnings,
including mariner notices concerning hazards to
navigation and weather considerations.
(2) The Minister may provide, in any regulations made under
this section, for the imposition upon any person, upon
summary conviction for an offence against any such
regulations and such other penalty as the Minister deems
appropriate to the offence concerned.”.
Section 19 of the principal Act is amended —
(a) by the deletion of the full stop at the end of paragraph (g) and the
substitution of a semi-colon;
(b) by the insertion of additional subsections, immediately after
paragraph (g), as follows –
“(h) to cooperate with public sector agencies, to verify the
capacity of reception facilities to receive ship-generated
waste and residue within declared port areas, in accordance
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5. 6. (i) (j) (k) (l) (m) (n) (o) with standards set by international conventions to which The
Bahamas is a party;
generally to cooperate with local and international agencies,
for the purpose of ensuring compliance with national,
regional and international maritime law;
to ensure that training programmes are made available for
port personnel on pollution response, including procedures
for containment and cleanup of oil spills, hazardous
substances, and other pollutants;
to ensure that training programmes are made available for
port personnel on the certification of port state control
officers and the conduct of marine casualty investigations;
to coordinate with local and international agencies, for
periodic joint exercises and drills to enhance preparedness for
marine pollution incidents;
to cooperate with public sector agencies, for the provision of
hydrographic services, including marine surveying and
charting, to ensure safe navigation in declared port areas;
to maintain a register of certified fuel oil suppliers operating
within declared port areas;
as necessary, to enter into an agreement with public sector
agencies, for the purpose of fulfilling any provision of this
Act.” .
The principal Act is amended by the insertion, immediately after section 28, of
the new section 28A as follows —
The Minister may enter into an agreement for the upkeep and
maintenance of lights, lighthouses and navigational structures
within The Bahamas, and for the assessment thereof.” .
Section 40A of the principal Act is amended —
(a) in subsection (1) by the deletion of the words “1st January 2025”
and the substitution of the words “1st July 2025” ;
(b) in subsection (4)(b), by the insertion of the words “Port Controller
or” immediately before the word “Administrator”;
7. 8. (c) in subsection (5)(b), by the insertion of the words “Port Controller
or” immediately before the word “Administrator”;
(d) by the insertion of a new subsection (7) immediately after
subsection (6) as follows –
“(7) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to exempt a
leaseholder with a jetty, groin, mooring, causeway or pipeline
on or over the leased seabed area from the requirement to
obtain and maintain a valid seabed lease under this Act.”.
The principal Act is amended by the insertion, immediately after section 40A of
the new section 40B as follows -
(1) Every foreign vessel that is in Bahamian waters shall at all
times -
(a) (b) (2) (3) be equipped with an automated identification system;
ensure that the automated identification system is
properly functioning; and
(c) ensure the automated identification system is turned
on.
For the avoidance of doubt subsection (1) applies whether the
foreign vessel is -
(a) docked in The Bahamas;
(b) traversing the waters of The Bahamas; or
(c) passing through The Bahamas.
Section 41A to the principal Act is repealed and replaced as follows —
(1) Any person or entity desiring to construct an industrial,
commercial or private pier, wharf, jetty, groin, mooring or
abutment, or undertake any other activity on or affecting the
seabed shall—
(a) apply for a lease of the area of the seabed on which the
pier, wharf, jetty, groin, mooring or abutment is to be
constructed or the activity undertaken in Form I of the
Sixth Schedule;
(b) furnish supporting documents as may be reasonably
required, including financial statements of the
applicant, a site plan, and any licences or permits
related to the proposed activity;
(c) demonstrate compliance with all applicable
environmental and regulatory requirements.
When considering an application made under subsection (1)
of this section, the Minister shall be guided by–
(a) the Environmental Planning and Protection Act;
(b) the technical expertise of the Department of Lands and
Surveys.
The maximum term for any seabed lease granted under this
Act shall not exceed twenty-five years, with the option to
renew.
The Minister shall, by Order, prescribe the rates for a seabed
lease.
In addition to the rates charged for the lease of any area of
the seabed, the Minister shall —
(a) charge a seabed environmental levy fee annually; and
(b) by Order, prescribe the rate of the seabed
environmental levy fee.
A phased penalty structure shall apply to every leaseholder
who fails to make payments in accordance with the terms of
their seabed lease, as follows –
(a) if a leaseholder fails to pay the annual fee within thirty
days of the due date, the leaseholder shall be liable to
pay, a late payment fee as provided in section 76A;
(b) if a leaseholder fails to pay the annual fee and any
penalties, after one hundred and ninety days of the due
date the Minister may terminate the lease agreement
by written notice to the leaseholder.
Where a leaseholder breaches any term or condition of the
seabed lease, other than a payment obligation, the leaseholder
shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding one hundred
thousand dollars, and the Minister may, in addition to
imposing such penalty, terminate the lease.
A lease granted in accordance with this section –
(a) shall not be transferred or assigned to any other person
or entity without the prior written approval of the
Minister;PORT AUTHORITIES (AMENDMENT) BILL, 2025
9. 10. 11. (9) (b) shall be subject to the fees specified in the Seventh
Schedule and shall be collected by the Port Controller
shall be paid into the Consolidated Fund.
Any person who contravenes any provision of this section,
for which no penalty applies, shall be liable to a fine not
exceeding two hundred and fifty thousand dollars or to
imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or both.”.
The principal Act is amended by the insertion, immediately after section 75, of
the new section 75A as follows —
Any individual or entity that exploits, uses or occupies a seabed
area without a valid seabed lease issued under this Act shall be
guilty of an offence and liable to a penalty of fifty thousand dollars
per acre of the area used unlawfully or to imprisonment for a term
not exceeding two years or both.”.
The principal Act is amended by the insertion, immediately after section 77, of
the new section 77A as follows —
Where any offence under this Act is committed by a company, firm,
or other association of individuals, every director and officer of the
company, every partner and officer of the firm or every member and
every person concerned in the management of the affairs of the
association, as the case may be, shall severally be liable to be
prosecuted and punished for the offence in like manner as if he had
himself committed the offence, unless the act or omission
constituting the offence took place without his knowledge, consent
or connivance.”.
The principal Act is amended by the insertion, immediately after the Fifth
Schedule of the new Sixth Schedule as follows —
APPLICATION FOR A SEABED LEASE AGREEMENT
Under
1. Name of applicant (Individual or Entity): ………………
2. Address of applicant: ……………………………………
3. Phone number: ………………………………………….
4. Nationality (for individuals) / Country of Incorporation
(for entities): ……….............................................................
5. Purpose of lease (e.g. mooring, dock construction,
resource extraction, etc.): …..………………………….......
6. Duration of lease requested: …………………………….
7. Estimated start date of project: ………………………….
8. Location of relevant seabed area (coordinates or
description): …...……...……........................................
9. Seabed area (in acres) requested for lease: ………..
10. Coordinates of seabed boundary lines using World
Geodetic System 84 (WGS 84):
………………………………………………………..
11. Is the requested seabed area located in a protected or
restricted area?
Yes or No.
12. Has an Environmental Impact Assessment been
conducted? Yes or No
13. Please list any regulatory compliance requirements
your project will adhere to ……………………………
I, the undersigned, hereby certify that all information provided in
this application is accurate and complete to the best of my
knowledge. I understand that providing false or misleading
information may result in the rejection of this application or the
revocation of an existing lease.
…………………………….
Signature of Applicant
…………………………….
Date
required supporting documents to the Port Department. Note
that the maximum penalty for making a Declaration which is
to the knowledge of the declarant false or in any material
respect misleading shall not exceed one thousand dollars. ”.
Clause 1 of the Bill sets out the Short Title and commencement.
Clause 2 of the Bill seeks to amend section 2 of the principal Act by inserting new
definitions,
Clause 3 of the Bill seeks to grant the Minister additional regulatory-making powers
with respect to marine traffic.
Clause 4 of the Bill seeks to expand the duties of the Port Controller, amongst other
things, to cooperate with public sector and international agencies to ensure compliance
with maritime laws and standards and to enhance preparedness for marine pollution
incidents.
Clause 5 seeks to authorise the Minister to enter into agreements for the maintenance
of lights and lighthouses.
Clause 6 of the Bill seeks to increase the fees for Moorings.
Clause 7 of the Bill seeks to impose the duty on all foreign vessel in Bahamian waters
to utilize an automated identification system at all times and the penalty of $1000.00
for persons who do not comply.
Clause 8 of the Bill seeks to repeal and replace section 41A to strengthen the regulatory
regime for the grant of seabed leases.
Clause 9 of the Bill seeks to provides for a penalty for using a seabed area without a
lease.
Clause 10 of the Bill seeks to provide for offences committed by a company.
Clause 11 of the Bill seeks to amend the Schedule to provide for an application for a
seabed lease.