America ' s Finest: The Critics Respond

In arecent opinion piece for theWall Street Journal I highlighted the plight of America’s Finest, a fishing vessel that, unless it is granted a waiver, will be prohibited from operating in U.S. waters due to its violation of the Jones Act. Although built in Washington state, the ship used steel, amounting to approximately 10 percent of the ship’ s weight, that was cut and bent in the Netherlands. Coast Guard rules related to the Jones Act limit the amount of such foreign-modified steel to 1.5 percent (foreign-made raw steel, in contrast, can be used in unlimited amounts). Unsurprisingly the column has generated some notes of dissent, includinga letter to the editor from  Chris Philips, the managing editor of Fishermen ’s News:Regarding Colin Grabow ’s “The Jones Act Drives America ’s Finest Into Exile” (op-ed, April 30): The Jones Act is a cabotage rule similar to those enacted in most countries having a coastline, including Canada, Japan, South Korea, China, Germany and France. Mr. Grabow claims: “The shipyard says it simply wasn’t aware of the rule.”The shipyard in question has been building Jones Act vessels for more than 40 years. No one at Dakota Creek Industries, from the security guard to the president, is unaware of the rule.Mr. Philips is correct that the Jones Act is a cabotage rule. His contention that it is similar to those of most countries, and those he lists in particular, however, is incorrect. The World Economic Forum, for example, has...
Source: Cato-at-liberty - Category: American Health Authors: Source Type: blogs