Bill Text: VA HJR128 | 2022 | Regular Session | Enrolled


Bill Title: Jones Act; expresses sense of the General Assembly to support Act.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 16-0)

Status: (Passed) 2022-03-01 - Bill text as passed House and Senate (HJ128ER) [HJR128 Detail]

Download: Virginia-2022-HJR128-Enrolled.html

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 128
Expressing the sense of the General Assembly in supporting the Jones Act.

 

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 11, 2022
Agreed to by the Senate, March 1, 2022

 

WHEREAS, Virginia's rich history of shipbuilding and maritime trade makes the Commonwealth a critical hub in the nation's transportation system and essential in the growth of offshore renewable energy development; and

WHEREAS, the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the critical importance of maintaining resilient domestic industries and transportation services for Virginia's citizens and workforce; and

WHEREAS, the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, known as the Jones Act and codified in Title 46 of the United States Code, requires that vessels carrying cargo between locations in the United States be owned by American companies, crewed by American mariners, and built in American shipyards; and

WHEREAS, America's ability to project and deploy forces globally and to supply and maintain military installations domestically depends on the civilian fleet of Jones Act vessels and mariners; and

WHEREAS, mariners aboard Jones Act vessels strengthen America's homeland security as additional eyes and ears to monitor the nation's 95,000 miles of shoreline and 25,000 miles of navigable inland waterways; and

WHEREAS, Virginia is home to over 19,280 maritime jobs supported by the Jones Act that generate $1.3 billion in labor income; and

WHEREAS, maritime industry jobs create ladders of opportunity through high-paying, family-wage careers that offer significant career advancement without generally necessitating advanced formal education and extensive student loans; and

WHEREAS, the Jones Act fleet, more than 40,000 vessels strong, supports nearly 650,000 family-wage jobs and over $154 billion in economic output nationally, including more than $4 billion in the Virginia economy; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby express its support for the Jones Act. In affirming its resolute support for the Jones Act, the General Assembly also celebrates the centennial of the Jones Act as it continues to foster a strong domestic maritime industry that is critical to Virginia's and the nation's economic prosperity and national security; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates transmit copies of this resolution to the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the President of the United States Senate, and the members of the Virginia Congressional Delegation so that they may be apprised of the sense of the General Assembly of Virginia in this matter.

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