MaritimeFedWatch

On December 11, 2019, U.S. Customs and Border Protection finalized changes to Jones Act interpretations which will go into effect for “merchandise” transported after February 17, 2020.

On May 17, 2018, the Office of Management and Budget in the Executive Office of the President issued a public request for information or RFI “seeking public input on how the Federal government may prudently manage regulatory costs imposed on the maritime sector.” Comments are due July 16, 2018.

On March 8, 2018, the U.S. Department of Energy announced a sale of seven million barrels of sweet crude oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Offers are due by a specified time on March 21.

On November 2, 2017, a study entitled “U.S. Jones Act Compliant Offshore Wind Turbine Installation Vessel Study” was released. The Study was prepared for state government energy authorities in Massachusetts, New York, and Rhode Island.  

On October 4, 2017, the Coast Guard issued build determinations for the two Kanaloa-class combination container and roll-on/roll-off vessels to be constructed by the National Steel and Shipbuilding Company.

On January 9, 2017, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Project Management Office of the U.S. Department of Energy issued a Notice of Sale for eight million barrels of crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. 

Although there have been numerous recent studies on the potential economic impact of U.S. crude oil exports, it was not until recently that the U.S. Government issued its own study directly on those effects. On September 1, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) issued “Effects of Removing Restrictions on U.S. Crude Oil Exports,” which concluded (with a number of caveats and assumptions) that removal of remaining U.S. crude oil export restrictions would either leave U.S. gasoline prices unchanged or slightly reduced.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit turned away a challenge to the Jones Act on July 30, 2015. The case, brought in Hawaii by certain shipper interests, argued that the Jones Act impaired interstate trade and therefore violated the United States Constitution.

In connection with the financing crisis in Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico commissioned a report on changes that can be made to reverse the situation. The report – “Puerto Rico – A Way Forward” – was released on June 29, 2015.