[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 127 (Monday, July 24, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E705-E706]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           FAIR SHIPPING FOR NON-CONTIGUOUS AREAS ACT OF 2023

                                 ______
                                 

                              HON. ED CASE

                               of hawaii

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, July 24, 2023

  Mr. CASE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce a bill to end the 
exclusionary and discriminatory practices of private shipping services 
to Hawaii and the other non-contiguous parts of our country.
  My home state of Hawaii is located almost 2,500 miles off the West 
Coast. We depend on shipping more than many other locations in our 
country, importing well over 90 percent of our life necessities, yet 
people living in Hawaii have encountered 3 unfair shipping practices.
  First, when ordering essentials online, we often learn that a 
particular online store or item doesn't even ship to Hawaii at all. The 
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reviewed this issue and confirmed that 
``some companies . . . are unwilling to ship products to Alaska, 
Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the other territories.'' This exclusion 
prevents a few million Americans in the non-contiguous states from 
obtaining key products that should be available to them.
  Second, as many of my constituents know, those who live in Hawaii are 
often denied free shipping options from online retailers. It is so 
painful when a website advertises free shipping and you fill up your 
shopping cart and input your address only for a red error message to 
pop up with the news that Hawaii, Alaska, Guam and elsewhere are not 
included in the free shipping deal.
  Third, even when companies do ship to Hawaii, the prices bears no 
reasonable relationship to the distances involved. The cost to ship to 
and from anywhere in the United States depends on several factors, 
including the weight and size of your package and service class. 
However, according to the FTC, private shipping companies' delivery 
options may cost considerably more for a destination in Alaska, Hawaii, 
Puerto Rico and the other U.S. territories than for the contiguous 
states. For example, a 2-pound package sent from Los Angeles to Hawaii 
costs $45.33, but the same shipment from Los Angeles to New York is 
just $14.28. This outrageous price is from a private shipping company 
that categorizes shipping to Hawaii as an international shipment. It is 
hard to believe that over 60 years after becoming a state and over 120 
years after becoming part of America, Hawaii is still treated as a 
foreign country.
  These price discrepancies also bear no relation to the product and 
are included regardless of the distance between the sender and the 
recipient. For example, 1 private shipping company charges 
approximately $150 to ship a small package from Seattle to Juneau in 2 
days, whereas the same package would cost approximately $65 to ship a 
much greater distance from Seattle to Washington, D.C. in 2 days.
  We--the non-contiguous areas of our country--are bearing the burden 
of these 3 discriminatory shipping practices. My bill, the Fair 
Shipping for Non-Contiguous Areas Act, addresses all 3 problems. It 
would require shippers to support all locations within our country. It 
would also end the exclusionary and discriminatory pricing practices of 
private shipping companies to and from my home state of Hawaii and 
elsewhere--excluding them from free shipping or charging exorbitated 
rates. In doing so, we will break these shipping companies' 
stranglehold on exposed communities and address another contributor to 
the sky-high living costs in Hawaii and other noncontiguous locations. 
I urge my colleagues to support this bill as a matter of fairness for 
the people of Hawaii and all other Americans who do not live in the 
continental United States.

[[Page E706]]

  

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