Congress moves to repeal Jones Act, opening U.S. coastal shipping to foreign competition
S. 2043 — Open America's Waters Act · Filed by Mike Lee (R-UT) · Introduced Jun 12, 2025 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill repeals the Jones Act's restrictions on coastwise trade by removing the requirement that vessels engaging in domestic maritime commerce meet specific U.S. construction and ownership standards. It allows foreign-built and foreign-owned vessels to compete in U.S. coastal shipping, subject only to general safety and security rules enforced by the Coast Guard within 90 days of enactment.
Why we flagged it
The bill's operative mechanism is the outright repeal of the Jones Act's domestic-vessel requirement for coastwise trade. This is a deregulatory measure that opens a protected domestic market to foreign competition, framed as 'opening waters' but functionally a labor-market disruption.
What the text implies
- Repeal of Section 12132 (loss of coastwise trade privileges) removes the penalty mechanism for vessels that violate Jones Act rules, eliminating enforcement teeth and signaling a broader shift away from domestic-preference maritime policy.
- The 90-day Coast Guard rulemaking window is extremely tight for developing safety/security standards for a new class of foreign vessels; standards may be minimal or unequal to existing domestic requirements.
The full analysis lists 5 implications of this text.
Who stands to gain
foreign shipping companies and vessel operators; foreign shipbuilders; international maritime logistics firms