Jones Act and Fagan firing in the spotlight at maritime infrastructure hearing

Image: Architect of the Capitol

The House Coast Guard and Maritime Infrastructure Subcommittee held its first hearing under the chairmanship of Subcommittee Chairman Mike Ezell (R.-Miss) on Feb. 5.

Entitled “America Builds: Maritime Infrastructure,” the hearing covered a range of topics from ports and shipbuilding to uncrewed vehicles and, not too surprisingly, the importance of the Jones Act got a lot of attention — as did the current state of the U.S. shipbuilding industry and the MARAD programs that support it.

“The Jones Act is a fundamental statute for the domestic maritime industry,” said Chairman Ezell in his opening remarks. “The Jones Act is quite literally the bedrock and foundation of our nation’s shipbuilding industrial base because it helps to maintain a pool of qualified American mariners that we rely on to transport goods and our military, in times of peace and war.

“Unfortunately, the rise of the shipbuilding industries of global competitors has led to a decline in our own shipbuilding capacity. Coastal Mississippi and the Gulf Coast as a whole, is home to several shipyards employing thousands of Americans. I look forward to discussing ways to reinvigorate this critical industry.

“In order to promote the domestic maritime industry, the Maritime Administration in the U.S. Department of Transportation administers several programs that fund projects to construct and expand maritime infrastructure and U.S. shipbuilding.

“I hope to look at the current operation of each of these programs to find ways we can improve them and look forward to recommendations from our stakeholders here today.”

MINORITY VIEW

The status of the MARAD maritime infrastructure programs was also on the minds of Rick Larsen (D. Wash.) Ranking Member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure , and Salud Carbajall (D. Calif.) —as was the removal of Admiral Linda Fagan as Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard.

“What the President did was unjustified and reckless. Never before in the history of the Service has a Commandant been relieved—let alone for political purposes, “ said Ranking Member Larsen. “I want to thank Admiral Fagan for all she has done for this country.

“Acting Commandant Lunday and the next Commandant must continue to move the Coast Guard forward ….”

“Before I turn to the matter at hand today, I have to discuss the outrageous executive actions directed at the Coast Guard, specifically the unprecedented, misguided, and clearly political firing of the Coast Guard Commandant, Admiral Linda Fagan,” said Ranking Member Carbajal. “As the first female service chief of any branch of the military, she served with honor and distinction and exhibited a true commitment to making things better for the service as a whole. It is deeply unfair for this Administration to invent a false narrative for her termination and use that as a basis to engage in political theater and retribution.”

You can read both Ranking Members’ full prepared statements HERE

WITNESSES

Witnesses at the hearing were:

• Paul Anderson, President and Chief Executive Officer, Port Tampa Bay | Witness Testimony
• Joe Rella, President, St. Johns Ship Building, Inc., on behalf of Shipbuilders Council of America | Witness Testimony
• Tom Reynolds, Chief Strategy Officer, Seasats, on behalf of Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International | Witness Testimony
• Brian Schoeneman, Political and Legislative Director, Seafarers International Union of North America, on behalf of USA Maritime | Witness Testimony