Report says Jones Act waiver handed US cargo to Chinese-linked ships
Study of the first 60 days finds no military justification and available US-flag tonnage
A new analysis has concluded that the Trump administration's blanket Jones Act waiver moved American cargoes onto Chinese-built and Chinese-controlled ships without meeting the law's own justification. The report by Navigistics Consulting, commissioned by the American Maritime Partnership, reviewed the waiver's first 60 days using federal data covering 659 cargo movements across 78 completed voyages.
It found that none of the voyages met the statutory test of an immediate adverse effect on military operations, since every shipment involved commercial fuels, blendstocks or crude rather than military-grade fuel. US-flag vessels were available for roughly 87% of qualifying voyages, yet 23% of the ships used under the waiver were built in China and about 19% were Chinese-controlled, the largest ownership share identified.
The study also disputed claims that the waiver eased prices at the pump, finding no credible evidence of an effect and noting that only around 6.5% of US gasoline moves on Jones Act vessels. It attributed California's fuel troubles to four refinery closures that removed about a quarter of the state's refining capacity, rather than to Jones Act rules. During the waiver period, it said, the US exported some 731 million barrels of petroleum.
The waiver was invoked in March under the Merchant Marine Act, citing Strait of Hormuz disruption, and has been extended through 17 August. American Maritime Partnership president Jennifer Carpenter urged the administration to let it lapse, arguing it undercuts US mariners and vessels.
