Under Mounting Pressure, Jones Act Lobby Claims the Law Is Cost ‐​Free to Hawaii

Colin GrabowJones Act supporters in Hawaii can be forgiven for feeling a bit on edge these days. Last December Rep. Ed Case (D-Hawaii),citing the Jones Act ’s impact on the state’s cost of living, introducedthree bills aimed at reforming the law. A May poll of state residents, meanwhile, found that, among those familiar with the Jones Act, a stunning85 percent thought it should be repealed or changed. And just last month the Honolulu-based Grassroot Institute of Hawaii releaseda study placing the Jones Act ’s annual cost to the state at $1.2 billion.Amidst this mounting pressure the American Maritime Partnership (AMP), a pro-Jones Act lobbying group, has attempted to change the narrative with anew study of its own. Its conclusion: the Jones Act hasno effect on the state ’ssky-high cost of living.It ’s a claim that should be greeted with considerable skepticism.Passed in 1920, the Jones Act restricts the domestic waterborne transportation of goods to vessels that are U.S.-registered and U.S.-built as well as mostly U.S.-owned and crewed. That is to say, over 99 percent of the world ’s ships are off-limits for domestic transport. And those that can be used cost far more to build—4-5 times as much as those built in other countries —and have significantly higher crewing costs.This combination of expensive ships and crew, along with reduced competition, inevitably leads to higher transportation costs. That ’s no small thing for one of the most geographically isol...
Source: Cato-at-liberty - Category: American Health Authors: Source Type: blogs