U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson

Lawmaker introduces bill to allow purchase of Panama Canal

WASHINGTON — Legislation introduced in Congress on Thursday would open the door to allowing incoming President Donald Trump to buy back the Panama Canal.

The Panama Canal Repurchase Act of 2025, introduced by U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., and referred to the House Foreign Affairs Committee, would authorize the president, in coordination with the secretary of state, “to initiate and conduct negotiations with appropriate counterparts of the Government of the Republic of Panama to reacquire the...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/lawmaker-introduces-bill-to-allow-purchase-of-panama-canal

Bill gives states new power to waive truck weight limits

WASHINGTON — Legislation being promoted for giving states more flexibility to waive truck weight limits in an emergency would also give state authorities broad new power to raise weight limits for all kinds of freight, according to a lobby group that opposes overweight trucks.

The legislation, Modernizing Operations for Vehicles in Emergencies (MOVE) Act, introduced last month by U.S. Reps. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., and Jim Costa, D-Calif., is a way to “remove unnecessary roadblocks and red tape”...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/bill-gives-states-new-power-to-waive-truck-weight-limits

House passes defense bill with ban on Chinese shipping platform

The U.S. House of Representatives approved a defense spending bill on Friday that included a provision limiting China’s ability to monitor the flow of ocean containers into and out of the U.S.

The provision, backed by Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., prohibits U.S. ports that take federal grant money from using China’s state-supported National Public Information Platform for Transportation and Logistics, known as LOGINK.

The provision was included as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/house-passes-defense-bill-with-ban-on-chinese-shipping-platform

Ports call out ‘sensationalized’ targeting of foreign container cranes

WASHINGTON — Legislation that could shut down a port’s container operations for an alleged security risk is misleading and misguided, according to the American Association of Port Authorities.

The Port Crane Security and Inspection Act of 2023, introduced Wednesday by U.S. Reps. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., and John Garamendi, D-Calif., would require federal authorities to inspect cranes and the software used to operate them if they were manufactured in countries considered adversaries of the U.S. —...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/ports-call-out-sensationalized-targeting-of-foreign-container-cranes

China in crosshairs of new ocean shipping reforms

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WASHINGTON — Add container shipping software — along with weather balloons and TikTok — to the list...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/headline-china-in-crosshairs-of-new-ocean-shipping-reforms

House passes bill expanding powers of maritime regulators

By a vote of 364 to 60, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2021 (OSRA) on Wednesday. The bipartisan legislation moves to the U.S. Senate, where lawmakers are preparing a companion bill they say will be introduced soon.

Spearheaded by Rep. John Garamendi, D-Calif., and Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., the bill gives the Federal Maritime Commission the power to impose minimum requirements on ocean carrier service contracts, and shifts the burden of proof...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/house-passes-bill-expanding-powers-of-maritime-regulators

Exporters ratchet pressure on Biden to take on shipping challenges

A historic peak shipping season with significant container ship backlogs is being used by a coalition of U.S. agricultural exporters to promote regulatory changes attempting to rein in alleged abuses by container carriers.

In a letter sent to the White House on Monday, 76 groups representing various agricultural export commodities warned that steps taken so far by the Biden administration to address the problem are not enough. They claim that operational tactics that carriers continue to employ...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/exporters-ratchet-pressure-on-biden-to-take-on-shipping-challenges

Ocean carriers: Shipping reform act ‘doomed to fail’

Container carrier representatives in Washington are pushing back hard against legislation introduced Tuesday aimed at addressing yearlong complaints against carriers by their customers alleging service failures and unfair pricing they say would have disastrous consequences for container markets.

The Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2021, spearheaded by Reps. John Garamendi, D-Calif., and Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., imposes minimum requirements on ocean carrier service contracts and shifts the burden of...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/ocean-carriers-shipping-reform-act-doomed-to-fail

Vessel group rejects allegations of threats against US exporters

U.S. exporters should not fear payback from container lines if they complain to the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) about excessive cargo fees or canceled contracts, according to the carriers’ representative in Washington.

“I categorically reject the idea that shippers are being threatened with retaliation for bringing complaints — I don’t buy that,” John Butler, president and CEO of the World Shipping Council, which represents most of the world’s container ship fleet, told lawmakers.

Testifying...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/vessel-group-rejects-allegations-of-threats-against-us-exporters

Congress drafting law barring ocean carriers from refusing US exports

Bipartisan legislation being drafted by members of the U.S. House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee (House T&I) would require ocean carriers to accept all U.S. export container bookings.

The legislation, to be proposed by John Garamendi, D-Calif., and Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., is in response to mounting complaints by U.S. agricultural shippers that unscrupulous business practices by foreign container ship operators are causing them to lose money and market share overseas.

“We’ve got a...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/congress-drafting-law-barring-ocean-carriers-from-refusing-u-s-exports