(FOX 9) – The U.S. Senate has unanimously approved a bill that obliges ocean liners to prioritize U.S. products sitting in U.S. ports. The Ocean Shipping Reform Act funded by Minnesota Democrat Amy Klobuchar and South Dakota John Thune received rare support from any member of the Senate. “This is really a shot against heterogeneous shipping groups,” Senator Klobuchar said in an interview with FOX 9. ” in these supply chain problems “. “I am pleased that the Senate has unanimously passed this important piece of legislation that will level the playing field for American farmers, exporters and consumers, making it harder for air carriers to refuse unwarranted goods ready to be exported to US ports,” he said. Sen. Thune in a statement. Lawmakers have accused foreign shipping companies during the pandemic of sailing in U.S. ports with container licenses. The Senate bill gives the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) more powers to oversee freight and forces shipping companies to prioritize the transportation of U.S. goods when they leave U.S. ports. “What they did was leave American-made products on the dock,” Klobuchar said. “They could have loaded it on the ship, but they would not even grab the minute to do it because they wanted to travel to China as soon as possible and then return with boxes full of Chinese products. And what Restoration is now a rule that says they can not do that. “ Klobuchar said the effort to give the FMC more enforcement power had the support of every major US port, including the twin ports of Duluth and Superior. “If you are going to come to our ports, you have to take our goods as you take foreign goods and you have to charge fair prices, which means significantly lower prices for containers than you do now,” Klobuchar said. The US House of Representatives has already passed a similar bill with overwhelming bipartisan support, and Klobuchar believes both parliaments will quickly resolve the dispute and send the bill to President Joe Biden. While it may take a while for the FMC to draft and enforce enforcement rules, Klobuchar says almost full congressional support should send a strong message to the shipping industry. “I do not think they will use this pending year to tear more people apart. I think they should get along and put our things in the containers,” Klobuchar said.
