Jones Act and Fagan firing in the spotlight at maritime infrastructure hearing
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The House Coast Guard and Maritime Infrastructure Subcommittee held its first hearing under the chairmanship of Subcommittee Chairman Mike Ezell (R.-Miss) on Feb. 5.<\/p>\n
Entitled \u201cAmerica Builds: Maritime Infrastructure,\u201d the hearing covered a range of topics from ports and shipbuilding to uncrewed vehicles and, not too surprisingly, the importance of the Jones Act got a lot of attention \u2014 as did the current state of the U.S. shipbuilding industry and the MARAD programs that support it.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Jones Act is a fundamental statute for the domestic maritime industry,\u201d said Chairman Ezell in his opening remarks. \u201cThe Jones Act is quite literally the bedrock and foundation of our nation\u2019s shipbuilding industrial base because it helps to maintain a pool of qualified American mariners that we rely on to transport goods and our military, in times of peace and war.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnfortunately, 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.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn order to promote the domestic maritime industry, the Maritime Administration in the U.S. Department of Transportation administers several programs that fund projects to construct and expand maritime infrastructure and U.S. shipbuilding.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope to look at the current operation of each of these programs to find ways we can improve them and look forward to recommendations from our stakeholders here today.\u201d<\/p>\n