Lawmakers make renewed push to build more American ships

WASHINGTON (Gray DC) - Some lawmakers in Washington are making a renewed push to pass a bill that would revitalize American shipbuilding.

Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.) said on Thursday that he is working to pass the Shipbuilding and Harbor Infrastructure for Prosperity and Security (SHIPS) for America Act. He reintroduced the bill in April after it failed to pass last year.

“The SHIPS Act responds to our lack of shipbuilding capacity in this country and our over-reliance on Chinese shipping in particular,” said Sen. Young. “We don’t build many ships in this country anymore.”

The U.S. has been lagging behind China in shipbuilding for several years. According to a press release from Sen. Young’s office, there are 80 U.S.-flagged commercial ships while China has 5,500.

“What we lost track of is the fact that this is a national security issue,” said Sen. Young. “It’s an issue of economic security and now we have a near pure rival in China that actually is prepared to weaponize our dependance on them and nearby countries for shipbuilding capacity.”

The bill would establish a goal of building 250 new U.S. ships over ten years. It would also cut red tape, provide tax incentives for shipbuilding and make new investments in the maritime workforce.

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) is the other lead sponsor of the bill in the Senate.

“Building and staffing more U.S.-flagged ships will create good-paying American jobs, make our supply chains more resilient, lower costs, and strengthen our ability to resupply our military at times of war,” said Sen. Kelly, in a statement in April. “We’ll keep working with our colleagues in Congress, this administration, and our partners in the industry to make our country safer and competitive by passing the SHIPS for America Act.”

President Donald Trump has also been pushing for more U.S. “maritime dominance.” In April, the president issued an executive order that would “revitalize and rebuild domestic maritime industries and workforce to promote national security and economic prosperity.”

Young said he is very optimistic about getting the bill to the president‘s desk.

“There’s been a lot of support for this effort and my constituents are excited about making American ships again,” he said.