President Donald Trump's recent decision to issue a 60-day waiver of the Jones Act – allowing oil, natural gas, fertilizer, and coal to be transported between U.S. ports on foreign vessels amid the conflict with Iran – was smart, strategic, and should kick off an important conversation: Why do we still have the Jones Act at all?
For decades, the antiquated law has constrained the efficient movement of goods and raised costs for American consumers, something this administration clearly understands. By acting so decisively, the president is keeping his promise to lower costs for everyday American families.
Congress should take note of the White House's example and make this a permanent reform.
Also known as the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, the Jones Act requires that cargo shipped between U.S. ports travel on vessels that are American-built, American-owned, American-flagged, and crewed primarily by Americans.
The law was originally intended to ensure a strong domestic maritime industry. Instead, it has become a textbook example of how interfering with the free market can backfire – constraining supply, stifling competition, driving up costs for American families, and decimating the very industry it was meant to protect.
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