The U.S. Congress has introduced a bill to open its shipbuilding market to allies such as Korea. The existing Jones Act, which stipulates that only ships built in the U.S., owned by U.S. nationals, and operated by Americans can sail along U.S. coasts, has been regarded as a major obstacle to the Korea-U.S. shipbuilding cooperation project 'Make American Shipbuilding Great Again' (MASGA).
Democratic Representative Ed Case and Republican Congressman James Moylan announced on the 1st (local time) that they have introduced the 'Merchant Marine Allies Partnership Act,' which aims to address loopholes in shipping-related regulations, including the Jones Act. The proposal suggests that allies such as Korea and Japan should be exempt from the Jones Act.
The newly introduced bill includes provisions to allow exemptions from the Jones Act for vessels purchased from allied countries, enabling transportation between U.S. ports. It also stipulates that U.S. corporations will be exempt from the existing 50% import tax when carrying out significant vessel modification work at shipyards located in allied countries such as Korea and Japan. Additionally, it allows allied corporations to operate foreign-built ships with foreign crew members along U.S. coasts under certain regulatory conditions.
If this bill passes, the MASGA project is expected to gain momentum. Congressman Moylan emphasized, 'This bipartisan bill modernizes outdated maritime laws that impose unfair burdens on Americans, and by preventing loopholes that benefit China and instead collaborating with reliable allies like Japan and Korea, we can enhance our shipbuilding capacity.'