# 2026-19254: Coast Guard Hikes Great Lakes Ship Pilot Rates 10 Percent

2026-19254, Great Lakes Pilotage Rates-2027 Annual Review and Revisions to Methodology, is a Federal Register proposed rule from Homeland Security Department, Coast Guard published 2026-09-21, effective Comments and related material must be received by the Coast Guard on or before October 21, 2026.; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-09-28).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-19254
- As of: 2026-09-28
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Document number: 2026-19254
- Title: Great Lakes Pilotage Rates-2027 Annual Review and Revisions to Methodology
- Type: Proposed Rule
- Agencies: Homeland Security Department; Coast Guard
- Citation: 91 FR 59712
- Published: 2026-09-21
- Effective: Comments and related material must be received by the Coast Guard on or before October 21, 2026.
- Comments close: 2026-10-21
- Significant: no
- Touches household money: yes
- Regulation identifier numbers: 1625-AD07
- Last updated: 2026-09-28

## In one line

Coast Guard Hikes Great Lakes Ship Pilot Rates 10 Percent

## Summary

The Coast Guard is proposing new pilotage rates for the Great Lakes shipping season in 2027, including a new rate for the Straits of Mackinac. These changes could raise operating costs by about 10% compared to 2026. Pilots, shipping companies, and anyone involved in Great Lakes shipping should weigh in by October 21, 2026, to help shape the final rates and rules.

## Abstract

In accordance with the Great Lakes Pilotage Act of 1960, the Coast Guard is proposing pilotage rates for the 2027 shipping season. We are conducting a full ratemaking for 2027. We are requesting comments on the Great Lakes pilotage ratemaking methodology, including one proposed update to that methodology. We also propose the pilotage rate for the Straits of Mackinac, newly designated for pilotage requirements by the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026. The Coast Guard estimates that this proposed rule would increase operating costs by approximately 10 percent compared to the 2026 season.

## Effects PRIA read

- Hourly Pilotage Rates Rise for 2027: cost, medium. The Coast Guard proposes hourly pilotage rates for the 2027 Great Lakes season that range from $445 to $1,002 per Pilot hour, payable by shippers to pilotage associations. The agency estimates the proposed rates would raise operating costs by about 10 percent (an estimated $3,977,204 increase) vers…
- Pilot Pay Benchmark Raised: mixed, medium. The Coast Guard proposes a 2027 individual target Pilot compensation benchmark of $496,674 per Pilot (a $15,032 increase, or 3.12 percent, over 2026). The proposed Apprentice Pilot wage benchmark is set at 36 percent of a Pilot's benchmark, equal to $178,803 for 2027.
- Straits of Mackinac Designation Clarified: benefit, low. The Coast Guard proposes to list the Straits of Mackinac as designated waters in the 2027 pilotage rate schedule and to apply the same Area 6 pilotage rate used for the adjacent undesignated waters. The agency states this statutory designation will not materially change costs, staffing, or require…
- Staffing Increase: +4 Pilots, +1 Apprentice: mixed, medium. To meet projected needs for 2027, the Coast Guard's proposed ratemaking supports adding four Pilots and one Apprentice Pilot. The Coast Guard says this staffing increase accounts for about 53 percent of the projected $3,977,204 increase in revenue needed for 2027.

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- [2026-20087](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-20087): Clarification of Certain Mariner Training Requirements, 2026-10-01
- [2026-13137](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-13137): Marine Casualty Reporting on the Outer Continental Shelf, 2026-06-30
- [2026-08699](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-08699): Shipping Safety Fairways Along the Atlantic Coast, 2026-05-05
- [2026-20632](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-20632): Special Local Regulations; San Francisco Bay Navy Fleet Week Parade of Ships and Blue Angels Demonstration, San Francisco, CA, 2026-10-08
- [2026-20527](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-20527): Area Maritime Security Advisory Committee (AMSC), Eastern Great Lakes, Western New York; Sub-Committee Vacancy, 2026-10-07
- [2026-20522](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-20522): Safety Zone; Luminsea Miami Shootout and Races, Miami Marine Stadium Harbor, Miami FL, 2026-10-07

## Sources
- [2026-19254 on federalregister.gov](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/09/21/2026-19254/great-lakes-pilotage-rates-2027-annual-review-and-revisions-to-methodology)
- [2026-19254 as published (PDF)](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-09-21/pdf/2026-19254.pdf)

## Related
- [Previous: 2026-19248, Proposed Deletion From the National Priorities List; Correction](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-19248)
- [Next: 2026-19255, Airworthiness Directives; The Boeing Company Airplanes](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-19255)
- [All Federal Register documents](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-19254 (as of 2026-09-28).