Editing Tailspins & Tiki Gods:The Authorities (section)

==“Nighttime Business”==

If the Mayor’s office represents the high-end “intrigue” end of Port Cochere’s business, the Port Authority represents pure piratical instinct. 

''Additional Fees:'' While it is subsidized by the French government (represented in the person of His Honor the Mayor), the Port Authority nonetheless (off the record) extracts ‘fees for special procedures’ (for things likewise off-the-record). The most profitable fee the Authority uses is a ‘bypass’. Basically, for a fee, one need not bother oneself with the fine details. Port Liberty is sometimes sold, either for a fee or for a refundable security.  

Obviously, this is only done within limits, otherwise nobody would use the harbor at all. Thus, all ‘fees’ must be justifiable to someone (ie, no straight up graft), and they must be taken in moderation (“Part of doing business”). The Port Authority does (per the old saw) “stay bought”, typically, and they know when to stop squeezing the stone. 

They also keep the “surface tension” going. By making it prohibitive for smugglers or other demimondaines to just barge into the port, they encourage them to ‘transfer’ to light transport on out-islands, making it possible to say “we didn’t know!”. Since affordable anonymity is Ile Trouve’s most profitable industry, setting the price just-so is important. 

''“Hiring Fees”'' (ie kickbacks): In exchange for ‘primary recommendation’ in hiring, the Port Authority tends to want a “Finder’s Fee”. Bas Ville is chock full of be crewmen whose hitch is over for one reason or another (“They left without me.” “I wonder WHY, hm?”), drifters, stowaways, renegade islanders no longer welcome at home, even refugees (though they’d have to be really stubborn refugees to be way out here.) This can make hiring a nightmare. While the Port Authority does show favoritism in ‘recommendations’, it at least imposes as sense of order. 

''“Reading”:'' Members of the Port Authority have a knack for telling what’s on a ship and where it’s likely to go. (If you know the fuel-efficiencies of a ship and its fuel-load, you can find out where it’s going. Since ships rarely carry more ballast than they need to, a ship claiming to go a short distance while clearly loaded to go a long way (or vice versa) is of note. This information can then be ‘sold’ (to interested parties) or ‘sold back’ (to the owners of the ship in question). )