We have a completely untapped resource in the U.S. that would help reduce emissions, decrease supply chain strain, not to mention reduce energy costs for many regions of the country.
Why the U.S. can't tap into that, is the subject of the Jones Act. A century plus old piece of legislation that bans any ships operating within the U.S.' waterways that's not American built and crewed.
In this episode, Cato Research Fellow Colin Grabow, joins me to give a refresher on the state of the law along with some very interesting case studies showing what life could be like without it. Spoiler alert, it'd be a lot better without it.
If you'd like to check out the other episodes with Colin, one that explains the Jones Act in more detail as well as the starting of it, and another that dives deep into the U.S.' very own sugar cartel, which fixes and orchestrates the production of sugar in the states.
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(0:00) - Introduction
(8:03) - The Jones Act and its Impact
(10:40) - The Great Lakes and Canadian Fleet
(14:39) - Missed Opportunities and Environmental Implications
(25:18) - Impact on Energy Supply & the Environment
(30:56) - The Impact on Puerto Rico
(34:03) - The Damaging Aspect of the US Built Requirement
(38:48) - The Cost of Building New Ships in the United States
(1:02:30) - The impact of the Jones Act on the shipbuilding industry
(1:05:46) - Creative Ways to Improve the Jones Act
(1:09:29) - State of Play with the Jones Act
