US DHS: Puerto Rico not in need of extended Jones Act waiver

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said on Thursday it believes that extending the 10-day waiver of Jones Act to Puerto Rico is unnecessary to enhance relief efforts for the island, on the aftermath of Maria hurricane.

According to Reuters, the 10-day waiver of the strict shipping limitations was granted on 28 September, so it expires on Sunday, 8 October. The decision was taken after a push by politicians and lawmakers and in response to a strong public critic that the restrictive shipping regulations had delayed recovery efforts on the island.

The Jones Act is a law requiring that all goods shipped between US ports be carried by US owned-and-operated vessels.

However, David Lapan, a DHS spokesman, was quoted by Reuters as saying that Homeland has not received any requests from commercial interests to waive the Jones Act and that the Department of Defense has not requested an extension of the waiver.

Further, he added that there is sufficient number of Jones Act-qualified vessels to ensure that cargo is able to reach Puerto Rico, but the US DHS will review requests if a non-Jones Act ship is needed to support Puerto Rico.