Gas Prices and the Jones Act: A Market Reality Check
By Sam Norton, CEO of Overseas Shipholding Group. Gasoline prices in the US are on the rise and the Trump Administration is “looking at all options” to reverse this inconvenient collateral effect of war in the Middle East. A reflexive impulse of those seeking easy answers to a complicated problem is to boldly suggest that […]
Jones Act Carriers Fuel Oregon During Energy Shortage
This article was originally published in December 2025 by the American Maritime Officers. It’s become a common sight to see fleets of Jones Act tankers coming to deliver life-saving aid after natural disasters hit America’s coastal areas. But those same American-owned, American-built, American-crewed vessels also respond to other distress calls around the nation. In November, […]
Jones Act Operator Crowley Earns Environmental Achievement Honors for Combined 958 Years of Safe Operations
By Crowley. (JACKSONVILLE, Fla.; Dec. 3, 2025) – Crowley has been recognized by the Chamber of Shipping of America (CSA) for its commitment to environmental stewardship, earning Environmental Achievement Awards for 108 Crowley-operated vessels that have collectively earned 958 years without an incident. The awards celebrate companies and mariners who maintain the highest standards of safety […]
MV Jean Anne Makes History as First U.S. Ro-Ro to Plug Into Shore Power
By VOICES Staff. The United States just hit a major clean-maritime milestone at the Port of San Diego, where Pasha Hawaii’s MV Jean Anne became the first roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro) vessel in the nation to connect to shore power. This achievement also marks the first-ever shore-powered pure car/truck carrier (PCTC) in America, setting a new standard […]
WWII Merchant Mariners Recognized Nationwide During Veterans Day 2025
By VOICES Staff. Across the United States this Veterans Day, Americans honored the extraordinary service and sacrifice of our warfighters—especially the World War II merchant mariners who helped win the war at sea. From solemn national ceremonies in Washington, DC, to parade routes in New York City, to hometown remembrances, the 2025 commemorations underscored a […]
Around the World, Nations Are Adopting Their Own Jones Acts
By VOICES Staff. A new study by Seafarers’ Rights International (SRI), commissioned by the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), finds that 105 nations now have cabotage laws — up from 91 in 2018 — covering 85 percent of the world’s coastlines. These are laws that reserve a nation’s domestic shipping routes for its own vessels, […]
The Tugboat, Towboat and Barge Industry’s Importance to National and Homeland Security
By American Waterways Operators. The American Waterways Operators, the trade association of the American tugboat, towboat and barge industry, has released a new video on the industry’s contributions to U.S. national and homeland security. The two-minute video, The Tugboat, Towboat and Barge Industry: Supplying America, Securing America, notes that while the mariners who transport cargo […]
Jennifer Carpenter: America First Requires the Jones Act
By Jennifer Carpenter, President of the American Maritime Partnership. It comes as no surprise that President Donald Trump is building a legacy as a consequential maritime president. After all, there are few areas of our economy that are more America First than the U.S. maritime industry. We have been a maritime nation since our founding, […]
VOGEL: Want More Ships? Fix How Washington Builds Them
By Jeff Vogel, TOTE Services. President Donald Trump’s call for new investment in U.S. shipbuilding comes at a pivotal moment. From icebreakers to training ships, America faces rising demand for vessels even as foreign competitors pour billions into their own yards. But there has been significant concern about how America can keep up. Government shipbuilding programs have fallen behind due […]
How This Shipyard is Training America’s Next Generation of Shipbuilders
By VOICES Staff. As the Trump administration’s focus on domestic energy production drives new opportunities in American shipbuilding, the Jones Act remains critical to workforce development initiatives across the maritime industry. Eastern Shipbuilding Group recently launched an innovative Marine Electrician Apprenticeship Program to grow Florida’s 65,900-strong maritime workforce—but warns that any Jones Act repeal would […]