US Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Subcommittee Chairman Mike Ezell (R-MS) addressed a hearing titled “America Builds: Maritime Infrastructure” on Wednesday saying: “It is clearly critical that we must build a safer
US Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Subcommittee Chairman Mike Ezell (R-MS) addressed a hearing titled “America Builds: Maritime Infrastructure” on Wednesday saying: “It is clearly critical that we must build a safer and more efficient system.”
The new chairman, for the 119th Congress, said the Jones Act is quite literally the bedrock and foundation of the nation’s shipbuilding industrial base because it helps to maintain a pool of qualified American mariners that the US relies on to transport goods and its military, in times of peace and war.
“Unfortunately, the rise of the shipbuilding industries of global competitors has led to a decline in our own shipbuilding capacity. Coastal Mississippi and the Gulf Coast as a whole, is home to several shipyards employing thousands of Americans. I look forward to discussing ways to reinvigorate this critical industry.”
Giving witness testimony, Joe Rella, President, St. Johns Ship Building, Inc., on behalf of Shipbuilders Council of America, pointed out that when the Jones Act is not enforced or is undermined by shortsighted policies, it can have detrimental effects on the broader domestic maritime industry and U.S. job creation.
For example, a 2017 decision by the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) allowed certain foreign-built,
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