President Trump issued a 60-day Jones Act waiver in an effort to lower shipping costs for fuel supplies, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said. The Act prohibits foreign-flagged ships from transporting goods between U.S. ports. Waiving the policy allows them to do so.
The Jones Act, signed by then-President Woodrow Wilson as part of the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, aimed to protect the maritime industry, although it increased shipping costs.
“President Trump’s decision to issue a 60-day Jones Act waiver is just another step to mitigate the short-term disruptions to the oil market as the U.S. military continues meeting the objectives of Operation Epic Fury,” Leavitt wrote in a X post. “This action will allow vital resources like oil, natural gas, fertilizer, and coal to flow freely to U.S. ports for sixty days, and the Administration remains committed to continuing to strengthen our critical supply chains.”
“We are deeply concerned about this 60-day, broad waiver being abused and unnecessarily displacing American workers and American companies,” the American Maritime Partnership told Fox Business. “The law sets a high bar: this waiver exists solely to address an immediate threat to military operations, not to displace American workers or reward foreign operators. Every vessel movement under this waiver must be publicly disclosed and justified according to federal law. We will be watching closely — and so will the American public.”
The statement emphasized that the waiver will not lower prices. “We also reiterate that this waiver will not reduce gas prices,” the group said. “The maximum potential impact of domestic shipping on the cost of gasoline nationwide is less than one penny per gallon.”
