Editing Tailspins & Tiki Gods:The Authorities (section)

==“Daytime Business” (and standing policies)==

''Contact with out-villages'': there are minor atolls that can sustain no more than 40-50 people. The Port Authority checks in on them every so often, on behalf of the Mayor or Governor, if the villages are otherwise not heard from. (If they are in a lazy mood, they pay someone else to ‘knock on the doors’.)  

''Concessions'': If it’s ashore, it’s the Town’s problem, but if you’re a businessman who approaches ships directly (say, rowing up to the side and offering goods on the spot), the Port Authority ‘has a word’. They also “recommend” porters/stevedores/longshoremen for freighters.  (The town has a separate authority for the Marketplace, however. This has the effect of making landing and using the Marketplace a more effective option, which helps the town as a whole)

''Customs & Tariffs Inspections:'' Typical items-of-interest include firearms (without proper documentation), drugs (especially Opium- both the local Benevolent Society and the Port Authority put their heavy boots on regarding this), wild or domestic animals NOT in transit.

''Harbormastering'': The Port Authority rigorously controls where private vessels (aside from very small craft) go while in the lagoon. The recent introduction of seaplanes makes this VERY IMPORTANT. (The Capitaine de Port has expressed an interest in making a ‘landing strip’ area of the lagoon taboo to islander boating, but this so far seems unworkable. And development of a rudimentary air-traffic control system is in progress.) 

''Hiring:''They ‘recommend’ lighters (locally-run shore boats) for people who haven’t brought their own, as well as recommending locals for dockside work. (Here, they work with the Wangguan Benevolent Association’s hiring hall system, as well as native and local groups with identifiable ‘representatives’.) 

''Mooring:'' The Port Authority is responsible for charging for mooring (cost depending on location and availability, as well as duration.) 

''Navigation:'' They do maintain channel markers, as needed.

''Notices to Mariners:'' The Port Authority is partly responsible for issuing weather and surf advisories, among other things. (OOC: If a kraken started preying on local boats, they would be the ones to have to decide whether to warn everyone or if it would “Cause a Panic”, a la most monster movies. ;) ) 

''The On-Ship Rule'': Ships’ crews are confined to ship after nightfall. This actually does have a certain crime-preventing effect. (It’s hard to mug sailors by night when those sailors are on their boats, for example, and drunken brawls are kept to a minimum), but shop-owners complain that it’s restraining trade. 
“Liberty of the Town” can be arranged through the Port Authority, or via the Mayor’s Office.

''Passports:'' They do typically inspect them. They do not, however, ''stamp'' them (though they do have, if need be, access to a lovely set: Papeete, Nuku Hiva, Tubuai, Uturoa…). THEY ARE AN OFF-THE BOOKS EXCEPTION to the law that requires all foreign visitors to go through Papeete first. (This was a draw for the film company- shorter trip than going to Tahiti, ''then'' out to the island.) 

''Pilotage'': If you have a larger vessel and wish to NOT drop anchor outside the lagoon’s barrier reefs, the Port Authority will charge you to have a PA Pilot either taking the wheel of your vessel or watch over your shoulder.

''Quarantine:'' They are authorized to call ‘quarantine’ on a ship. This usually involves consulting with Port Cochere’s town doctor. If an initial inspection shows rampant vermin (rats, bugs, etc), contagious illness, or is shown to carry insufficiently contained dangerous live cargo, that vessel may be quarantined for any amount of time. Alternately, a ‘restricted bill of health’ may allow the crew to unload onto a lighter without any further contact or disembarkation. (This is a big deal- through a combination of vigilance and dumb luck, Ile Trouve is almost completely clear of invasive species like rats, and managed to avoid the worst of the global influenza epidemic in 1918.)

''Registry:'' They gladly keep books of what registered ships have passed through, per international maritime custom. (They do it so gladly that they keep more than one book!) They also ask to know where you’re going, as ports often do. They do know that almost any answer they get is likely to be a lie, however. They also keep an eye out for stolen or otherwise ‘commandeered’ vessels.[OOC: It is by no means a dealbreaker. (“Typical business” means you pay the ‘expediting’ fee) ]

''The Safe Harbor Rule:'' “Any port in a storm” is a law of the sea. The Port Authority cannot, by custom, refuse entry during an emergency. (Some clever bastards sometime try to arrive DURING a storm, in order to obtain berthing they otherwise would not get. They are seldom up to any good. )

''Shipping News:'' Using ships notices given by Mr. Kinney (Port Cochere’s young radioman), they know who is announced to be coming or going.

''Tugboat:'' The Port Authority also runs the majestic ''Le Pot de Rouille'', Port Cochere’s only tugboat. If you’re being towed in, this is the only game in town.