Last week, a few colleagues and I attended the Transportation Infrastructure Summit in Philadelphia. There, we learned about a variety of innovations in the horizontal infrastructure sector as we prepare for future development and investment projects. Something very evident is that we, as a country, do not invest or consider our inland river system as the superhighway it can be.
Out of the $1.2 trillion investment by Congress, only 1.72% of it is allocated to our ports industry.
While the United States grapples with the economic aftershocks of rising tariffs and an increasingly unpredictable global trade environment, a quiet but powerful solution may lie in the heartland—along the banks of America’s inland river system. Here, far from coastal ports and international headlines, a new strategy is emerging that could reshape the economic landscape: the strategic pairing of Foreign Trade Zones (FTZs) and Opportunity Zones (OZs).
Foreign Trade Zones are designated areas where goods can be imported, stored, manufactured, and re-exported without the immediate burden of customs duties. These zones, long used near major ports and airports, offer a compelling advantage in today’s tariff-heavy climate. By deferring or even eliminating customs duties, FTZs provide businesses with a financial cushion against the volatility of international trade policy. For manufacturers and distributors, this can mean the difference between profit and loss, and expansion and contraction. While on the surface the FTZ concept makes sense, based on several factors, the benefits have not been as effective as originally envisaged. For example, on the import side, the United States tariffs have been relatively low, so that the savings of using them (unless they are used as “value-added centers” where products are assembled, finished, and prepared for re-export) are not significant. However, under the current economic landscape, there are several converging conditions that have the great potential of making FTZs more relevant and productive.
The potential of FTZs extends beyond mere cost savings. When located along the inland river system—America’s often-overlooked commercial arteries—they offer a logistical advantage that is both strategic and sustainable. Barges can move goods more efficiently and with a lower carbon footprint than trucks or trains, making river-based FTZs a smart play for companies looking to streamline operations while meeting environmental goals. As mentioned above, the reshoring of industry and increase in manufacturing could result in, for example, FTZs being developed as manufacturing centers where components arrive from several sources and are assembled to produce a finished product for export.
Layered atop this trade infrastructure is another powerful tool: the Opportunity Zone. Created under the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, OZs are designed to spur investment in economically distressed communities by offering significant tax incentives to investors. Capital gains can be deferred, reduced, or even eliminated entirely if investments are held long enough. The result is a magnet for private capital, directed not toward speculative bubbles, but toward real, tangible development in places that need it most.
The synergy between FTZs and OZs is where the real magic could happen. Imagine a riverfront industrial park where goods flow in and out of the new OZ and FTZ, potentially tariff-free (depending upon certain analyses and other factors), and where investors reap tax benefits for building factories, warehouses, and tech hubs. This isn’t just economic theory—it’s a blueprint for revitalization. It’s a way to bring jobs, infrastructure, and innovation to communities that have long been left behind.
But if one considers the recent Executive Order 14269 of April 9, 2025, more specifically, Section 11, which states,
“Sec. 11. Establish Maritime Prosperity Zones (MPZ). Within 90 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of Commerce, in coordination with the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Transportation, and the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall deliver a plan to the President through the APNSA for inclusion in the MAP that identifies opportunities to incentivize and facilitate domestic and allied investment in United States maritime industries and waterfront communities through establishment of maritime prosperity zones. The proposal shall: (a) model these maritime prosperity zones on the opportunity zones established pursuant to section 13823 of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (Public Law 115-97, 131 Stat. 2054), which I signed into law during my first Administration;
(b) include stipulations for appropriate regulatory relief in the establishment of such zones; and
(c) provide for zones that are outside of traditional coastal shipbuilding and ship repair centers and are geographically diverse, including river regions as well as the Great Lakes.”
This order adds a decidedly maritime element to a potential maritime-focused FTZ, and could result in a higher probability of success, along with the ability to develop land banks that would ensure port-related activities and build more robust port-centric logistics platforms.
Implementing this vision requires coordination and foresight. State, local governments, and economic development agencies must work together in a more seamless and integrated fashion to identify promising sites along the river system, prepare detailed applications for federal designation, and invest in the infrastructure—roads, utilities, broadband—those modern businesses demand, as well as make the respective supply chains more efficient and effective. Once established, these zones must be marketed aggressively to investors and companies with a clear message: here is a place where you can grow your business with less red tape, your capital can grow, your costs can shrink, and your impact can be profound.
The potential beneficiaries are several. Manufacturers can reduce input and production costs and hedge against tariff risks and access more sophisticated supply chains. Logistics firms gain access to efficient transportation routes. Tech startups find affordable space and tax-friendly conditions to scale. Even agriculture stands to gain, as food processors and agribusinesses tap into nearby farmland and a considerably more efficient river transport system to export larger quantities of products at more attractive prices to reach even more national and global markets.
In a time when economic policy often feels reactive and fragmented, the MPZ-FTZ-OZ strategy offers a rare opportunity for proactive, place-based development. It’s a chance to turn policy into progress—not just for investors and corporations, but for the communities that line our inland rivers, waiting for a new chapter of prosperity.
As the nation looks for ways to stabilize and grow its economy, it may find that the answer isn’t just in the headlines or on the coasts, but in the quiet current of the rivers that have always carried America’s bounty forward and fed a significant part of the world.
