JONES ACT BILL RE-INTRODUCED
Five Republican senators have re-introduced legislation that would allow
non-U.S. built dry and liquid bulk vessels into the Jones Act trades.
The legislation would not apply to containerships, and would leave the
U.S. ownership, manning and U.S. flag registration requirements intact.
The legislation has been promoted without success in Congress over the
past several years by former Federal Maritime Commission member Rob Quartel and his Jones
Act Reform Coalition.
The bill’s GOP sponsors are Sens. Sam Brownback and Pat Roberts, of
Kansas; Sen. Jesse Helms, of North Carolina; Sen. Richard Lugar, of
Indiana; and Sen. Peter Fitzgerald, of Illinois.