Recent Regulatory Updates in the Maritime Industry

The regulatory landscape in the barging industry is dynamic. Older regulations are often changed or removed and new regulations are implemented. Barge companies must stay up to date with these changes to ensure they are in compliance and operations are running smoothly. Below are some recent changes and potential upcoming changes to be aware of.

Possible Changes to the Jones Act

For over a century, the Jones Act, formally the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, has imposed restrictions on the marine transport industry, requiring that the transport of cargo between U.S. ports must be performed by vessels that are U.S.-built, U.S.-owned, U.S.-flagged, and U.S.-crewed. Although the law was created to bolster the U.S. economy and support national security, much of the marine transport industry considers the Jones Act to be a burden.

One criticism of the Jones Act is that U.S.-built and crewed vessels are far more expensive than vessels built abroad. This ultimately leads to higher overall shipping costs for America and leaves barge operators struggling to find ways to cut costs. In addition, the requirements for cargo transport from only U.S.-flagged and U.S.-owned vessels have created difficulties for non-contiguous parts of the U.S., like Hawaii and Alaska, due to their isolated and distant locations. 

Although there have been many calls to repeal or reform the Jones Act, a complete repeal is unlikely. Instead, amendments or reform might look more like recently proposed bills:

• The Protecting Access to American Products Act, introduced by Senator Mike Lee (R-UT). This bill provides a framework for waiving certain Jones Act requirements under specified circumstances. For example, when no Jones Act-compliant vessel is available for transporting particular goods, the requirements can be waived, providing flexibility and ensuring continued access to essential products.
  
  
• The Noncontiguous Shipping Relief Act, introduced by U.S. Representatives Ed Case, (D-Hawaii), and James Moylan, (R-Guam), which exempts all noncontiguous U.S. locations, including Hawaii and Guam, from the Jones Act.
  
  
• The Noncontiguous Shipping Reasonable Rate Act, also by Ed Case and James Moylan, which defines a “reasonable rate” that domestic shippers can charge as no more than 10% above international shipping rates for comparable routes.
  
  
• The Noncontiguous Shipping Competition Act, also by Ed Case and James Moylan, which removes the requirements of the Jones Act where monopolies or duopolies in noncontiguous Jones Act shipping areas develop.
  
  
• The Resolution Memorializing Congress To Amend The Jones Act To Exempt The Transportation Of Domestic Liquefied Natural Gas, introduced by Connecticut Representative Chris Rosario (D-Bridgeport), which exempts the transportation of domestic liquified natural gas in order to relieve some costs associated with high energy prices.
  

Removal of LNG Bunkering Regulations

In a recent statement, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) issued an order to remove regulatory barriers for using liquefied natural gas (LNG) as marine fuel. This order removes a previous policy, implemented in December 2024, requiring additional oversight for LNG bunkering operations.

Under the Natural Gas Act (NGA), the previous order classified ship-to-ship transfers of LNG for marine fuel use as exports if the receiving vessel was foreign-registered, whether it occurred at a U.S. port, in U.S. waters, or in international waters. This order made LNG bunkering more difficult by requiring companies to obtain export authorizations from the DOE. With updated regulations, only the ship-to-ship transfer of U.S. LNG in the territorial waters of a foreign country will continue to be considered an export.

This regulatory update paves the way for growth of the LNG market. According to the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) January 2025 Quarterly Gas Report, the industry is well on its way to expansion. The report claims that the number of LNG-fueled vessels will nearly double by 2028, exceeding 1,200 ships.

Changes to Federal Employment Laws

Various employment-related regulatory updates have been made recently, mostly regarding affirmative action, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs and workforce policies. The recent TTB 2025 conference featured a presentation on how to navigate these changes in the maritime industry.

The executive order “11246,” established in 1965, prohibited federal contractors from discriminating based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, and national origin and mandating affirmative action programs. This order was recently rescinded by the Trump administration and replaced with a new executive order, titled, “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity.” 

This negates the requirement for federal contractors to implement related programs. The change will require maritime businesses to review and adjust their employment policies to fit with new standards and might affect hiring practices.

Navigating Changing Regulations in Cybersecurity

In January, the U.S. Coast Guard published a final rule titled “Cybersecurity in the Marine Transportation System,” which introduced new cybersecurity requirements for the maritime sector. These requirements will be put into effect on July 16, 2025. In general, they seek to improve cybersecurity for the industry’s increased reliance on digital systems for navigation and cargo management. Some of the more specific regulations for barge companies include:

• Companies will be required to designate a cybersecurity officer with the responsibility of having a technical understanding of cybersecurity requirements and to be the point of contact for the Coast Guard in investigating any incidents. This officer must be designated within 24 months of the rule’s effective date.
• Any incidents involving cybersecurity must be reported to the National Response Center (NRC).
• Companies are required to develop and maintain a Cybersecurity Plan and Cyber Incident Response Plan. The cybersecurity plan must include seven account security measures for owners or operators of a U.S.-flagged vessels, which include:

1. Automatic account lockouts after repeated failed login attempts on all password protected systems.
2. Changing default passwords before using any IT or operational technology (OT) systems.
3. Minimum password strength requirements.
4. Multi-factor authentication requirements.
5. Application of the principle of least privilege to administrator or otherwise privileged accounts on both IT and OT systems.
6. Maintaining separate user credentials on critical IT and OT systems.
7. Removing or revoking user credentials when a user leaves the organization.

• Two cybersecurity drills are to be required every 12 months instead of at least one cybersecurity drill every 3 months.

These new requirements may seem daunting at first, but there are effective ways to ensure compliance. For example, cybersecurity needs are often met with software that can provide automation and allow systems to be digitized safely and efficiently.