This is the Cato Daily Podcast for Monday, August 13th, 2018. I'm Caleb Brown.

When Puerto Rico estimated what would help the territory rebuild after hurricane devastation,

the government there mentioned the costs imposed by the Jones Act, a law that limits how places like

Puerto Rico may receive shipments from other parts of the U.S.

So why did Congress ask Puerto Rico to explain itself?

Cato Policy analyst Colin Grabo comments.

The United States Congress instructed the government of Puerto Rico to put together a report which would basically be an economic recovery plan and the necessary steps to help the island in its recovery.

In this draft report, which was released on July 9th,

the government of Puerto Rico mentioned the Jones Act

and mentioned that the burden that it imposes on the island, it did not provide exact numbers,

but it noted evidence from various other reports indicating that there was a premium paid

for transport to the island from the United States due to the Jones Act.

So a representative Duncan Hunter of California chairs a subcommittee in the House, the House

Maritime Transport Committee, and he took exception

to this draft report.

He sent a letter to the government of Puerto Rico, asking them to explain themselves.

And he also directed them to a report published also in July

by the American Maritime Partnership.

This is a Pro JonesJones Act special interest group and the report claimed

that there is no impact of the Jones Act to the people of Puerto Rico.

All right and Puerto Rico feels fairly strongly that that is not the case.

Yes.

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