The Maritime Cabotage Task Force (MCTF), a broad coalition devoted to protecting laws that strengthen domestic U.S.-flag shipping, last month issued a letter offering many important points in the wake of two Jones Act waivers related to Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita.“From the outset, we would like to emphasize that the general state of the Jones Act and long-term outlook are strong,” the MCTF letter noted. “President Bush has been a strong supporter of the Jones Act since before he was elected, and he understands that the Jones Act is the foundation of our industry. The unique circumstances resulting from the unprecedented devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina, followed almost immediately by Hurricane Rita, and resultant pressure on the Federal Government to respond in any manner possible, which have given rise to limited waivers of the Act, will ease over time as sufficient U.S.-flag Jones Act vessel capacity is demonstrably available and Gulf Coast refineries return to production.”
On Sept. 1, in response to Hurricane Katrina, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced a temporary waiver of the Jones Act for the movement of certain petroleum products.
A subsequent waiver, scheduled to expire late last month, was issued following Hurricane Rita.
“Because of the blanket nature of these waivers, no official government data is available as to the extent they have been used,” the letter stated. “Based on industry sources, however, it appears that 4-6 foreign vessel movements occurred under the first waiver and that three vessels moved immediately under the second from the New York area to the Gulf. No movements under the waiver have been reported since.”
The task force noted that it did not oppose the initial petroleum waiver “for a variety of reasons, including the extreme human tragedy and loss of life in the Gulf region, and significant interruptions to the production and transportation of refined petroleum products….
“However, in contrast to generally supporting the President on the initial waiver, the MCTF and domestic industry have taken the public position that the second waiver was neither necessary nor justified by any demonstrated need, notwithstanding the devastating impact of Rita on American refinery capacity. In meetings with government officials, we stress that we understand what they are trying to accomplish—the seamless movement of refined product throughout the U.S.—but that we do not understand how a Jones Act waiver helps achieve that objective. We don’t understand which transportation movements are made more efficient by the waiver. We also have emphasized that there is a substantial fleet of U.S.-flag tank vessels standing by and ready to assist in the movement of refined product within the U.S. We also point out the absurdity of a situation where U.S.-flag vessels manned by American crews stand idly by while foreign vessels with foreign crews transport domestic cargoes.
“Moreover, we remind them that these waivers could substantially harm the American maritime industry. This is particularly true in the Gulf region, where the maritime industry is a major employer and where there is an urgent need to get American workers back on the job.”
The MCTF did credit the administration for listening and responding to the industry’s needs, which resulted in the curbing of proposed waivers that were comparatively extreme.
In part, the letter concluded, “The extraordinary circumstances created by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita have placed unprecedented strain on the U.S. refineries and the transportation system for refined petroleum products. They are also creating an opportunity for the industry to do what it does best —transporting U.S. goods to U.S. markets in support of our domestic economy. The ability of the industry to do so, and the MCTF’s efforts to educate policy-makers to that effect, are our best weapons to gain continued support for the Jones Act and related cabotage laws.”
The SIU is one of more than 400 member organizations of the Maritime Cabotage Task Force.
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