Press Releases

Washington, D.C. – Opening remarks, as prepared, of Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Subcommittee Chairman Daniel Webster (R-FL) from today’s roundtable, entitled “Reinvigorating the U.S.-Flag Fleet and Shipbuilding Industry”:

Thank you everyone for joining the Subcommittee today for a roundtable to discuss potential options to help reinvigorate our critical domestic maritime industry.

During World War II, the mobilization of the United States shipbuilding industrial base allowed our country to produce vessels at a stunning rate, building over 5,000 ships that helped deliver Allied troops and supplies needed in both the Atlantic and Pacific theaters. This rate of production was crucial given the dangers these vessels and the mariners onboard faced from enemy attacks.

The Merchant Marines experienced the highest proportion of casualties relative to any other branch of the United States military during the War. The strength and efficiency of our country’s maritime industry ultimately was a key factor in the Allied victory, and at the conclusion of World War II, the United States possessed the largest merchant fleet in the world.

However, the maritime industry both domestically and internationally has changed dramatically since that time. The closure and consolidation of shipyards across the country has left us only a handful of domestic facilities capable of producing large oceangoing vessels, while China has grown their shipbuilding capacity exponentially in the last two decades through deep government support. 

The United States-flag fleet, which once accounted for half of the world’s cargo shipping capacity in 1950, has dwindled to account for less than one percent of tonnage today. Many companies have chosen to register their vessels with foreign countries to take advantage of less stringent regulations.

As the number of United States-flagged vessels has declined, so too have the mariners needed to crew our ships. In 2017, the Maritime Administration estimated that we faced a shortfall of about 1,800 qualified licensed and unlicensed mariners to crew our sealift vessels for a prolonged period.

Looking back at our history, it is vital that we find a way now to strengthen our maritime industry and ensure it can deliver the assets and trained mariners we need both in times of peace and war.

I appreciate all of you for being here to talk about ways we can do this.

Click here for more information from today’s roundtable, including video and list of participants.