[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 133 (Tuesday, September 6, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1194-E1195]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ``SHIPPING ACT OF 1916''

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                           HON. DUNCAN HUNTER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, September 6, 2016

  Mr. HUNTER. Mr. Speaker, this week marks the 100th anniversary of the 
``Shipping Act of 1916'' becoming law, a measure that established the 
entity that has evolved into what exists today as the Federal Maritime 
Commission.
   The impetus for this legislation was a concern among policymakers 
about the state of the American maritime industry and more 
specifically, how to deal with two key challenges: the paucity of 
shipping capacity and potential anti-competitive business practices by 
steamship lines. That latter point was of particular interest to 
Representative Joshua W. Alexander (D-MO), who was Chairman of the 
Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries from 1911 to 1919. In the 
Sixty-Third Congress, Mr. Alexander's Committee published a Report on 
Steamship Agreements and Affiliations in the American Foreign and 
Domestic Trade that found shipping companies did indeed cooperate 
formally or informally, but concluded it was more beneficial to the 
shipping

[[Page E1195]]

public for these lines and their cooperative agreements to be regulated 
than for the government to attempt to end these business practices. In 
the following Congress, Mr. Alexander introduced the Shipping Act of 
1916, which became law on September 7, 1916, when it was signed by 
President Woodrow Wilson.
   Congress achieved two key goals through this act: first, it created 
a merchant fleet capable of meeting the defense and trade requirements 
of the United States; and second, it regulated the industry to ensure 
competitiveness and protect the interests of shippers and consumers. 
Both of these objectives were to be achieved through the work of the 
five-member United States Shipping Board created via the bill.
   This legislation was passed as armies in Europe battled each other 
from trenches and across no-man's-land. It became the law at a time 
before the United States was a combatant in the First World War, and 
the intent of the act was not to prepare for conflict. Nevertheless, 
this measure had the fortunate effect of taking the first steps toward 
remedying the serious issue of the lack of sufficient transport ships 
available to our military.
   Today, international trade is an integral and critical part of the 
American economy. More than one-third of our Nation's Gross Domestic 
Product is tied to global commerce, and this figure is only predicted 
to become more significant in the coming years. Ocean transportation of 
goods and commodities is the backbone of our trading system, and the 
Federal Maritime Commission ensures that export and import shippers 
enjoy access to international maritime carriage services that are fair, 
reliable, and efficient. Each of us, as consumers, benefits from the 
competitive marketplace the Commission works to maintain.
   Mr. Speaker, much like our predecessors who served in this very body 
100 years ago, I want to guarantee the men and women of our armed 
services possess the resources they require to achieve their mission. 
As the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime 
Transportation, it is frustrating that, while history has repeatedly 
demonstrated the need for the United States to maintain a vibrant 
merchant fleet and to have the vessels required for the transportation 
of troops and materials, we do not always heed the lessons of the past. 
While we should follow the example of what Congress did in 1916 and 
find ways to reinvigorate the U.S. Merchant Fleet in the international 
trades, it is reassuring to know that the Federal Maritime Commission 
monitors the global shipping market for predatory and anticompetitive 
practices. The work of the Commission is little known, but critical.

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