Michael Hansen of the Hawaii Shippers Council joins Malia Hill on the “Grassroot Perspective” podcast to discuss the Jones Act, the provision of federal. maritime law that requires goods shipped between U.S. ports to be carried on U.S.-flag ships constructed in the U.S. and owned and crewed by Americans.
This piece of protectionism has created a number of absurd effects, including making it cheaper for some states to import salt from South America than buy it from Ohio, or greatly increasing the cost of fuel in the American Northeast.
But the most severe effects of the Jones Act are reserved for those places that depend heavily on shipping — islands such as Hawaii or Puerto Rico.
In this episode, Hill and Hansen discuss the effect of the Jones Act on Hawaii, the chances that it can be amended or repealed, and the latest in the efforts to analyze its economic impact.
