00 HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 41                                                                                           
01 Supporting an exemption from the Jones Act for the shipment of bulk                                                     
02 commodities produced in Alaska.                                                                                         
03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
04  WHEREAS 46 U.S.C. Appx. 861 - 889 (Merchant Marine Act of 1920), commonly                                              
05 known as the Jones Act, requires that seaborne shipping between United States ports be done                             
06 on vessels that have been constructed in the United States and that are crewed by United                                
07 States crews; and                                                                                                       
08  WHEREAS a number of bulk commodities are produced, extracted, and harvested in                                         
09 Alaska; and                                                                                                             
10  WHEREAS potential markets for Alaska bulk commodities, including coal, ore, and                                        
11 logs, exist on the west coast of the United States and in Hawaii; and                                                   
12  WHEREAS the Jones Act bulk carrier fleet does not provide a level of service in                                        
13 Alaska that facilitates the movement of bulk commodities at competitive prices; and                                     
14  WHEREAS non-Jones Act shipping rates are substantially lower than Jones Act rates,                                     
01 making the total delivered cost of foreign commodities significantly lower than those from                              
02 Alaska; and                                                                                                             
03  WHEREAS it is the desire of the State of Alaska under AS 44.19.035 to persuade the                                     
04 Congress to repeal the Jones Act;                                                                                       
05  BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature opposes the application of the                                        
06 Jones Act to the shipment of bulk commodities that are produced in the state, because of the                            
07 Act's detrimental effect on Alaska commerce; and be it                                                                  
08  FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature respectfully requests the                                           
09 Congress to pass legislation exempting the shipment of Alaska bulk commodities from                                     
10 provisions of the Jones Act.                                                                                            
11  COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Bill Clinton, President of the                                
12 United States; the Honorable Al Gore, Jr., Vice-President of the United States and President                            
13 of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Rodney E. Slater, Secretary of the U.S. Department of                                 
14 Transportation; the Honorable Newt Gingrich, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives;                              
15 the Honorable Trent Lott, Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate; and to the Honorable Ted                                  
16 Stevens and the Honorable Frank Murkowski, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young,                                  
17 U.S. Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in Congress.