Thousands of Americans in Puerto Rico are without power after Hurricane Fiona roared through last week. Idling off the island’s coast is a ship that reportedly carries 300,000 barrels of diesel fuel from Texas. Yet unloading that fuel is illegal without a Jones Act waiver, which the Biden Administration hasn’t granted.
The Jones Act, also known as the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, is protectionism at its worst. The law says waterborne cargo between U.S. points must be carried by ships that are primarily built, owned and crewed by Americans. This raises shipping prices, while shifting cargo to trucks, which are less efficient and worse for the environment. The law also explains why wintry Boston imports Russian liquefied natural gas.
The Jones Act is particularly hard on areas like Hawaii and Puerto Rico. Pedro Pierluisi, the Democratic governor of Puerto Rico, has asked Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to expedite a waiver. The ship carrying diesel was diverted to Puerto Rico at the request of a wholesaler. Its general manager told CBS that, given the damage wrought by the hurricane, the company asked its supplier in good faith “to see if there was a cargo in the vicinity of the island that could come earlier.”
The Trump Administration issued a Jones Act waiver after Hurricane Maria in 2017. But Congress later tightened the requirements. Then the Defense Secretary could obtain a waiver if it was broadly “in the interest of national defense.” Now that kind of waiver must “address an immediate adverse effect on military operations.”
The Department of Homeland Security can approve a more limited waiver if the feds certify “the non-availability of qualified United States flag capacity to meet national defense requirements.” Does this apply today? After the Colonial Pipeline shut down last year, Mr. Mayorkas approved a waiver for fuel shipments to the East Coast, which he said was “in the interest of national defense.”
Puerto Rico is the home of Fort Buchanan, the U.S. Army’s “Sentinel of the Caribbean,” so perhaps there’s an argument that it harms national defense if the island is in chaos. Federal officials are anonymously telling the press that they’re unsure whether a waiver for Puerto Rico would be legal. Yet it’s hard not to wonder if President Biden is putting maritime unions above hurricane aid. Four months ago he pledged “unwavering support” for the Jones Act.
Several members of Congress, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, are calling on Mr. Mayorkas to give Puerto Rico some type of waiver. Maybe they should try to convince their Democratic colleagues to exempt the island for good — or better yet, kill the Jones Act entirely.
The Wall Street Journal
