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HomeHarbors and Navigation CodeDiv. 5Ch. 3§ 1165 Pilotage Pension Funding Rates

§ 1165 Pilotage Pension Funding Rates

Harbors and Navigation Code·California
AI Summary·Official Text·Key Terms·Related Statutes·References
AI SummaryVerified

§ 1165 Pilotage Pension Funding Rates

This law adds an extra charge to pilot fees to pay the pension benefits for pilots, and it tells how that extra charge is calculated each year.

Key Takeaways

  • •An extra pilot fee is charged only to fund the pension plan.
  • •The fee is calculated four times a year based on upcoming pension payouts and past shipping volume.
  • •The rate is expressed in mills (one‑thousandth of a dollar) per gross registered ton and starts on the next scheduled date (Jan 1, Apr 1, Jul 1, or Oct 1).

Example

A shipping company uses pilots to guide its ships through a harbor. The pilots need to fund a pension plan for retired pilots, so the company has to pay a small extra fee on each ship’s cargo weight.

Every few months the agency looks at how much money the pension plan must pay out and how many tons of ships were handled. It then works out a tiny extra charge (in mills per ton) that will cover those payments. That charge is added to the normal pilot fee starting on the next scheduled date.

How to Calculate

Additional pilotage rate (mills per gross registered ton) = (Total monthly pension payout) ÷ (Gross registered tons handled in the prior 12‑month period)

  1. Find the total amount the pension plan must pay out for the upcoming month (the agency lists this on March 1, June 1, Sept 1, or Dec 1).
  2. Find the total gross registered tons (GRT) of ships that pilots handled in the 12‑month period that ends on the most recent September 30, December 31, March 31, or June 30, depending on the benefit period.
  3. Divide the payout amount by the total GRT to get dollars per ton.
  4. Convert dollars per ton to mills per ton (1 mill = $0.001).
  5. Round the result to the nearest hundredth of a mill.

The pension plan will pay $120,000 for the month of July. In the 12‑month period ending March 31, pilots handled 3,000,000 gross registered tons.

Result: Rate = $120,000 ÷ 3,000,000 = $0.04 per ton. $0.04 = 40 mills per ton. Rounded to the nearest hundredth of a mill, the additional pilotage rate is 40.00 mills per gross registered ton.

AI-generated — May contain errors. Not legal advice. Always verify source.

Official Source
View on CA.gov

§ 1165 Pilotage Pension Funding Rates

(a) In addition to, and concurrently with, the basic pilotage rate described in Section 1190, a charge shall be levied for pilotage services at a rate necessary to provide the benefits to be paid out pursuant to the pension plan. The additional rate shall be determined as follows: (1) On March 1, June 1, September 1, and December 1 of each year, the number of persons eligible to receive benefits under the plan, their identities, the calculated amount each shall be entitled to receive, and the total amount to be paid out to all of those persons during each month of the next three-month period shall be determined by the fiduciary agent or agents. (2) After the total amount to be paid out monthly under the plan has been determined, the rate necessary to provide that amount each month shall be calculated by the fiduciary agent or agents. The rate shall be based upon the volume of shipping, in gross registered tons, handled by pilots licensed under this division for the 12-month periods ending the previous September 30 for benefit periods commencing the following January 1, ending the previous December 31 for benefit periods commencing the following April 1, ending the previous March 31 for benefit periods commencing the following July 1, and ending the previous June 30 for benefit periods commencing the following October 1, respectively. The rate shall be expressed as mills per gross registered ton and shall be calculated to the nearest one-hundredth of a mill. (3) The estimated cost of the services of the fiduciary agent or agents to administer the pension plan shall be calculated by the fiduciary agent or agents for the benefit periods described in paragraph (2), shall be expressed as mills per gross registered ton, and shall be calculated to the nearest one-hundredth of a mill. (b) The rate determined pursuant to paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of subdivision (a) shall become effective on January 1 of the following year with respect to the September 30 calculations, on April 1 of the following year with respect to the December 31 calculations, on July 1 of that year with respect to the March 31 calculations, and on October 1 of that year with respect to the June 30 calculations. The rates shall be in effect for the succeeding benefit payment period. (Amended by Stats. 1992, Ch. 639, Sec. 5. Effective January 1, 1993.)

Last verified: January 11, 2026

Key Terms

pilotage servicespension planfiduciary agentmills per gross registered tonbenefit payment period

Related Statutes

  • § 1166 Pilot Pension Payment Distribution
  • § 1161 Pilot Pension Fund Use
  • § 1162 Pilot Pension Plan Administration
  • § 1168 Pension Plan Review Authority
  • § 1160 San Francisco Pilot Pension Plan

References

  • Official text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
  • California Legislature. Harbors and Navigation Code. Section 1165.
View Official Source