HR0480 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0480 LRB101 12876 ALS 62004 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are supportive of federal statutes that ensure that vessels engaged in the coastwise and inland trades are built and crewed by American workers; the Jones Act, the Maritime Security Program, the Passenger Vessel Services Act, and U.S. cargo preference laws are critical in maintaining a viable American Merchant Marine; and

WHEREAS, Without the Jones Act, the American Merchant Marine and its well-paying jobs would be destroyed, and the domestic waterborne commerce of the U.S. would be controlled by foreign interests; and

WHEREAS, The Maritime Security Program ensures that 60 American vessels are engaged in the foreign commerce of the U.S.; the program requires that the vessels, crews, and participating companies' intermodal assets are immediately available to the Department of Defense in times of crisis; military experts have said it would literally cost tens of billions of dollars to replicate the program's assets, which currently are delivered for a few hundred million dollars per year; and

WHEREAS, The Passenger Vessel Services Act provides the same requirement for passenger vessels, for example, ferry boats, that the Jones Act stipulates for cargo vessels; like the Jones Act, it is considered vital to homeland security; and

WHEREAS, A key element of U.S. cargo preference laws is the Food for Peace Program, whose purpose is to promote the food security of developing countries; food aid is grown by American farmers, processed by American workers, and transported on board U.S. vessels to countries in need; since the program's inception in 1954, more than three billion people in 150 countries have benefited directly from U.S. food aid that was delivered by the U.S. Merchant Marine; and

WHEREAS, The development and expansion of America's marine highway system is an ongoing, joint government-private industry effort; the resultant increase in the coastwise waterborne transportation of cargo will help to significantly alleviate congestion on our nation's highways and rails, achieve a greater measure of energy efficiency in the transportation of domestic cargo, and create jobs for American workers in the maritime industry and its related service and supply industries; and

WHEREAS, The so-called "flag of convenience" system in which avaricious shipowners around the world register their vessels in phony flag states to evade labor, safety, environmental, and tax laws deserves condemnation; this system has resulted in the global exploitation of seagoing maritime labor and the reduction of international commercial cargo carried by U.S. vessels to less than 2 percent; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we support the U.S. Merchant Marine as America's fourth arm of defense and recognize that the American maritime industry is critical for U.S. national, economic, and homeland security and that our mariners and our maritime industry deserve our full support.