Johnson’s bipartisan bill to reform ocean shipping advances to Senate

A bipartisan bill sponsored by U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) to expand the authority of the Federal Maritime Commission to regulate technology and anticompetitive practices within the international ocean transportation system on March 21 passed the U.S. House of Representatives on a 393-24 vote.

The Ocean Shipping Reform Implementation Act of 2023, H.R. 1836, which Rep. Johnson introduced on March 28, 2023, with lead original cosponsor U.S. Rep. John Garamendi (D-CA), would build upon the Ocean Shipping Reform Act (OSRA), which became law in June 2022.

“House passage of OSRA 2.0 gets us one step closer to further securing our ocean shipping supply chains,” Rep. Johnson said. “The FMC needs authority to crack down on China’s unfair shipping practices. I hope the Senate considers our bill soon.”

The U.S. Senate on March 22 received H.R. 1836 and referred it to the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee for consideration. 

If enacted, the bill would prohibit U.S. ports from using Chinese state-sponsored LOGINK software, allow the FMC to investigate foreign shipping exchanges like the Shanghai Shipping Exchange to preempt improper business practices, and authorize the FMC to streamline data standards for maritime freight logistics, according to a summary provided by Rep. Johnson’s staff.

“Foreign businesses’ access to the American market and its consumers is a privilege, not a right,” said Rep. Garamendi. “We are finally making free trade fair trade and stopping Chinese state-controlled companies from ripping off our country and gutting our manufacturing jobs.”

The American Trucking Associations, the National Retail Federation, the National Association of Manufacturers, the Agriculture Transportation Coalition, the National Milk Producers Federation, and the U.S. Dairy Export Council support the measure.