U.S. Maritime Administration

US greenlights fuel transport by foreign ships

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has waived the Jones Act to allow a foreign shipping company to move domestic fuel supplies to help shore up fuel supplies on the U.S. East Coast.

“In the interest of national defense, I have approved a temporary and targeted waiver request to an individual company,” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement late Wednesday.

“This waiver will help provide for the transport of oil products between the Gulf Coast and East Coast ports to ease...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/us-greenlights-fuel-transport-by-foreign-ships

US considering foreign tankers to move domestic fuel supplies

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) is assessing whether American tankers can meet emergency fuel demands caused by the Colonial Pipeline shutdown or if foreign ships will be needed to help fill the gap.

“The Biden-Harris administration is continually assessing the impact of the ongoing Colonial Pipeline incident on fuel supplies for the East Coast and is monitoring reported shortages in parts of the Southeast,” DOT stated Tuesday. “This ongoing effort includes evaluating resources the...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/us-considering-foreign-tankers-to-move-domestic-fuel-supplies

Multibillion-dollar offshore wind plan targets US ports

The U.S. maritime sector stands to reap major benefits from an offshore wind initiative announced Monday by the White House that would jump-start billions of dollars of investment into ports and U.S.-made cargo ships.

The proposal, which involves oversight from several cabinet-level departments including the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), aims to deploy 30 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind in the United States by 2030. Meeting the target will spur more than $12 billion per year in...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/multibillion-dollar-offshore-wind-plan-targets-us-ports

Power index: Top 10 Biden appointments affecting freight markets

While almost every cabinet department and a host of federal agencies within the executive branch touch freight and supply chains in some way, these 10 recent appointees by President Joe Biden will likely figure most prominently in steering freight transportation policy as Biden’s administration gets underway. The list is in alphabetical order by last name.

Pete Buttigieg, secretary, U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT)
(Credit: U.S. DOT)

Background: Buttigieg began campaigning for Biden...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/power-index:-top-10-biden-appointments-affecting-freight-markets

Maritime sector nervous about chances for COVID-19 relief

U.S. ports and terminal operators hope a last-ditch effort on Capitol Hill will send emergency funding their way as lawmakers put the final touches on the next COVID-19 relief package.

Such relief has so far eluded the maritime sector, which has been frustrated watching other transportation modes such as public transit and the airlines get billions of dollars from the previous two COVID-19 relief bills signed during the Trump administration.

“The port industry has yet to receive any relief in...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/maritime-sector-nervous-about-chances-for-covid-19-relief

Biden underscores support for Jones Act

President Joe Biden asserted “strong support” for the Jones Act as part of a “Made in America” executive order he plans to sign on Monday.

“The President will continue to be a strong advocate for the Jones Act and its mandate that only U.S.-flag vessels carry cargo between U.S. ports, which supports American production and America’s workers,” according to a summary of the order.

“With the signing of the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), the Jones Act has also been affirmed as an...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/biden-underscores-support-for-jones-act

Transportation consultant Joshi named FMCSA deputy administrator

Meera Joshi, a transportation consultant who is an advocate for “data-driven policy and urban planning” according to her LinkedIn profile, has been named deputy administrator at the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announced Thursday.

Joshi takes the reins from Wiley Deck, who had been FMCSA’s Deputy Administrator since Acting Administrator Jim Mullen left the agency in August.

Joshi, who most recently worked as the New York general...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/transportation-consultant-joshi-named-fmcsa-deputy-administrator

US Maritime Administration chief resigns post after Capitol riots

U.S. Maritime Administrator Mark Buzby left his position last week in the wake of the riots at the U.S. Capitol.

Buzby was nominated to lead the U.S. Maritime Administration (MarAd), the agency within the U.S. Department of Transportation responsible for the country’s waterborne transportation system, by President Donald Trump in 2017. He became the second leader within the department to resign as a result of the riots after DOT Secretary Elaine Chao resigned last week.

“I no longer believe that...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/us-maritime-administration-chief-leaves-post-after-capitol-riots

FMC commissioners want maritime workers on COVID-19 vaccine priority list

Two high-ranking maritime officials are warning the Trump administration that the U.S. economy could be in danger if efforts are not made to prioritize COVID-19 testing and vaccines for maritime workers.

Carl Bentzel and Daniel Maffei, commissioners at the Federal Maritime Commission, said in a letter to Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and U.S. Maritime Administrator Mark Buzby that if priority is not provided to the workforce at U.S. ports, it...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/fmc-commissioners-want-maritime-workers-on-covid-19-vaccine-priority-list

Growing truck parking shortages emerge in latest survey

Despite a major awareness campaign following the 2009 murder of Jason Rivenburg while he slept in his cab at an abandoned gas station after being unable to find safe parking, the shortage of safe truck parking spaces in the country continues to grow.

That was the primary takeaway from the Jason’s Law Truck Parking Survey and Assessment released Tuesday by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). The assessment, based on a survey that concluded in 2019, was a long-awaited update to the first...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/growing-truck-parking-shortages-emerge-in-latest-survey

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