The Jones Act restricts the transportation of merchandise between coastwise points to vessels that are owned, operated and controlled by US citizens. The purpose of the Jones Act is to ensure that US domestic trade is carried out by US built, manned, flagged and controlled ships. The Jones Act has a dual purpose which is to ensure that the nation maintains a sizable fleet of US owned and crewed commercial vessels, which are available for military use in national emergencies.

Originally published in the June 2018 edition of the US bulletin.