NEW ORLEANS, March 18, 2026 -- The Offshore Marine Service Association (OMSA) said the Trump Administration’s temporary 60-day waiver of the Jones Act now forces foreign shippers and long-time opponents of the law to prove their repeated claims that outsourcing American maritime workers from domestic jobs will meaningfully lower costs for American consumers.
“The United States has spent generations building a maritime industrial base that supports national security, homeland security, domestic energy production, and good-paying American jobs,” said Aaron Smith, President of OMSA. “As this temporary waiver moves forward, policymakers and the public will be able to see firsthand whether replacing American workers with foreign crews delivers the benefits critics of the Jones Act have long promised. Those of us in the domestic offshore maritime industry know these promises will be proven false.”
Similar claims have been made in other areas of the offshore energy sector where foreign vessels already take jobs from U.S. vessels. In our markets, these foreign operators have not translated into meaningful savings for consumers.
“In parts of the offshore energy market where foreign vessels already participate, replacing American workers with lower-cost foreign labor has not delivered the dramatic consumer savings critics promise,” Smith added.
OMSA also called on federal agencies to ensure foreign vessels operating under the waiver meet the same standards and obligations required of the U.S.-flag vessels.
“As foreign vessels are allowed to operate in domestic trade during this period, they should be held to the same level of oversight that American vessels meet every day,” Smith said. “We expect the U.S. Coast Guard to inspect and regulate these vessels with the same scrutiny applied to U.S. operators, and the Internal Revenue Service to ensure that companies benefiting from this waiver meet the same tax obligations as American companies.”
About The Offshore Marine Service Association (OMSA)
The Offshore Marine Service Association (OMSA) OMSA is the advocate for the offshore marine transportation service industry in the United States. The Association represents 170-member companies and their 12,000 U.S. employees based throughout the U.S.
Media Contact
Anna Stallmann
omsa@ascentcomms.com
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