Petersburg AK will start charging a US$5-per-head fee for cruise passengers in 2019.
The borough assembly of Petersburg gave final approval to the new charge, despite the lawsuit over similar fee in Juneau along with concerns from cruise industry.
Among the Southeast communities, Petersburg joins Ketchikan and Juneau in charging a local fee on cruise passengers, sometimes named a head tax.
Petersburg’s assembly went back and forth over what to name it due to concerns that cruise industry sued Juneau port over use of head tax money.
They recently agreed to change the name back to "marine passenger fee", instead of "infrastructure fee."
Cruise companies which make stops in Petersburg, have not opposed the fee but asked for changes.
Other companies asked for a delay in implementation, as they have already priced their voyages for the next couple of years, or ways to encourage ships to begin and end their sailings here.
Only smaller to mid-size cruise ships stop in Petersburg, because it doesn’t have a deep water port to accommodate larger vessels.
The new fee is expected to raise around US$30,000 per year. It takes effect in January next year.