AWO criticizes Trump’s Jones Act Waiver

The decision by the Trump administration to allow a waiver of the Jones Act so that foreign-flag, manned vessels can transport cargoes, including oil and gas, between US ports has drawn criticism from the American Waterways Operators (AWO), which represents tug and barge carriers on the U.S. inland and coastal waterways.

The Jones Act has been a target of Trump supporters among ultra-conservative groups, including the Cato Institute and the Heritage Foundation, which see the Jones Act as a regressive measure that protects US shipbuilders and mariners in the inland waterway and coastal trades. They argue that lower-cost foreign-built and foreign-manned vessels could do the same job at far lower cost and wages than those paid to American mariners and workers.

When he returned to the presidency in 2025, President Trump insisted that he did not agree with this analysis, yet he had supported an unnecessary Jones Act waiver in his first term, according to AWO.

Trump’s Déjà Vu All Over Again in 2026?

The issue highlights an incongruity in President Trump’s assertion that he supports American jobs and workers and pushed for high tariffs on foreign imports to protect American jobs and Make America Great Again. But to paraphrase, as the Yankees’ great Yogi Berra, is this Trump’s “déjà vu all over again?

In 2026, after the Iran war caused a spike in fuel prices that benefited US oil and gas producers, Trump is now allowing these producers to utilize the Jones Act waiver so as to capitalize on high prices and transport fuels on lower-cost foreign-flagged and manned vessels. A significant departure from the administration’s stated US-first domestic goals.

That is the gist of the critique of Trump’s action by the US tug and barge industry and AWO, who include many supporters of the President, but who nevertheless issued the following statement:

“The Jones Act is fundamental to America’s supply chain reliability and national security, and this broad 60-day waiver of this vital law puts both at risk. The breadth of this waiver is especially concerning, as it will unnecessarily impact transportation markets where domestic vessel capacity is not lacking. Allowing foreign vessels to transport cargo on US waterways will introduce the price volatility of today’s international market into our domestic commerce, creating instability in our thriving domestic supply chain and undermining American jobs while having no appreciable effect on the price of gasoline.”

The AWO statement goes on to say: “At a time of heightened concern about terrorist threats on American soil, the Jones Act also serves as a security bulwark against foreign-flag vessels with foreign crews transporting critical cargo between America’s inland and coastal ports, and ensures that American mariners remain the indispensable eyes and ears supporting the U.S. Coast Guard’s homeland security mission. Our nation counts on the Jones Act mariners of the American tugboat, towboat, and barge industry to power the American economy and help keep our communities and waterways safe. Waiving the Jones Act does not serve those interests.”

American Maritime Partnership

And the AWO isn’t alone in its criticism of the move, as the American Maritime Partnership issued its own statement on the 60-day waiver: "We are deeply concerned about this 60-day, broad waiver being abused and unnecessarily displacing American workers and American companies. The law sets a high bar: this waiver exists solely to address an immediate threat to military operations, not to displace American workers or reward foreign operators. Every vessel movement under this waiver must be publicly disclosed and justified in accordance with federal law. We will be watching closely — and so will the American public.

We also reiterate that this waiver will not reduce gas prices. The maximum potential impact of domestic shipping on the cost of gasoline nationwide is less than one penny per gallon.”

The Jones Act waiver has appeal to many agricultural shippers, but it clearly bumps up against the domestic maritime interests whose favor the administration has been trying to curry.