National Maritime Day offers the nation’s ports a great opportunity to showcase the value of their facilities, operations and personnel to their respective communities. AAPA President and CEO Kurt Nagle will participate in the federal government’s commemorative program at USDOT’s Washington, D.C., headquarters for the National Maritime Day and Wreath Laying Ceremony. "America’s seaports support more than 23 million American jobs, annually generate more than $321 billion in federal, state and local taxes, account for over a quarter of the U.S. economy and handle more than 2.2 billion metric tons of international and domestic cargo. From these statistics alone, it’s clear that ports play a vital role in supporting our national economy, jobs, tax resources and their communities," said Mr. Nagle.

The Port of Oakland announced the award of $187.4 million in 2018 Trade Corridor Enhancement Program Grants funded by Senate Bill 1 to construct two projects of the Global Opportunities: 7th Street Grade Separation (East) and Freight Intelligent Transportation System. The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority received federal funding for infrastructure projects that will improve the flow of goods to and from the Port of Vancouver.

The Port of Beaumont hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony for its recently completed display, a restored Atchison Topeka Santa Fe (ATSF) caboose, once used in Southeast Texas by the Santa Fe Railroad. The Port of Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners awarded $353,850 in sponsorships to 124 arts, civic and educational organizations.

The Port of Hueneme celebrated the groundbreaking of the Terminal Paving Improvement phase of their Intermodal Infrastructure Project. The project is possible in large part thanks to a $1.5 million grant awarded from the United States Economic Development Administration (EDA). The Port of Virginia introduced a new, unified terminal operating system that is driving the terminal data and control systems at Virginia International Gateway (VIG) following the recent, successful changeover from a system that was more than 10 years old.

The Ports of Indiana set a record for first quarter shipments in 2018, handling 3.2 million tons at all three ports. The Port of Baltimore’s public and private marine terminals handled 38.4 million tons of cargo in 2017, the most since 1979 and the third-highest tonnage in its history. The Georgia Ports Authority's busiest April ever pushed its fiscal year-to-date totals to more than 3.4 million TEUs, an increase of 8.8 percent (280,000 TEUs) compared to the first 10 months of FY2017.

Delegates from the Port of Corpus Christi traveled to Austin to receive the 2018 Texas Environmental Excellence Award (TEEA) in Pollution Prevention, presented by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), and met with Governor Abbott and TCEQ Commissioners.