Story thread · 3 reports / 2 sources

Enough waivers. Congress should repeal the Jones Act | Column

tampabay.com · 12dShare

President Donald Trump recently extended a waiver for the Jones Act for a second time. The extended waiver continues what has become the longest suspension of the law in its history. According to Reuters , the exemption has been used nearly 200 times over the past several months to help move critical resources, including energy, between American ports. The continued use of waivers shows that the Jones Act needs reform. For more than a century, the Jones Act has been defended as necessary to protect American shipping and strengthen our maritime industry. Yet when the country has needed greater shipping capacity and flexibility, the federal government has repeatedly set the law’s restrictions aside. At some point, repeated exceptions stop looking exceptional and start revealing a problem with the rule itself. That is especially relevant here in Tampa Bay, where maritime commerce is a critical part of the regional economy. Tampa Bay serves as an important gateway for energy, construction

First report: Op-Ed: Error of Extending the Jones Act Wavier — maritime-executive.com, 14d