The Ocean Shipping Reform 2.0 legislation recently garnered overwhelming support in the House of Representatives, passing a bill that restricts U.S. ports from utilizing LOGINK software, a product developed and sponsored by China.
Moreover, the bill empowers the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) to scrutinize foreign shipping exchanges to prevent any untoward business practices. According to a press release on Representative Dusty Johnson's website, this legislation was initially introduced as the Ocean Shipping Reform Implementation Act in March 2023. It is an extension of the original Ocean Shipping Reform Act, enacted in June 2022.
U.S. Representatives Dusty Johnson, a Republican from South Dakota, and John Garamendi, a Democrat from California, were instrumental in crafting this comprehensive legislation. The increasing influence of China on United States ports has become a significant concern for the U.S. Government. On February 29th, President Biden issued a warning to Congress about China's growing influence at critical U.S ports. As reported by CNBC, over 80% of cranes operating at United States ports are manufactured in China - raising concerns about potential data tracking by the Chinese government through this technology.
Congressman Garamendi (D-CA) voiced his stance on foreign businesses' access to American markets: "Foreign businesses' access to the American market and its consumers is a privilege, not a right," he said. "In 2022, Congress passed our landmark reform to the nation’s ocean shipping laws for the first time in nearly a quarter century to protect American businesses and consumers from price gouging by foreign-flagged ocean liners." He further stated that he and Congressman Johnson are committed to fully implementing this bipartisan law passed in 2022 with an aim to support American exporters and rectify longstanding trade imbalances with countries like China. "We are finally making free trade fair trade and stopping Chinese state-controlled companies from ripping off our country and gutting our manufacturing jobs. Our implementation bill introduced today will finish the job."
