Ranking Member Krishnamoorthi Leads Bicameral, Bipartisan Group to Introduce SHIPS for America Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Ranking Member Raja Krishnamoorthi of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) joined a bipartisan, bicameral coalition to introduce the Shipbuilding and Harbor Infrastructure for Prosperity and Security (SHIPS) for America Act, legislation that will rebuild America’s commercial shipbuilding capacity, strengthen the U.S. maritime workforce, and reduce our dependence on Chinese-controlled global shipping networks.

“For too long, the Chinese Communist Party has exploited its dominance of global shipbuilding to project power, undercut American workers, and threaten American supply chains,” said Ranking Member Krishnamoorthi. “The SHIPS for America Act marks a sea change—rebuilding our domestic shipbuilding base, boosting our merchant marine, and lessening our dependence on foreign adversaries for the vessels that carry our goods and support our military power. This bipartisan, bicameral legislation will ensure that the United States can chart its own course in building a robust maritime fleet that is both an economic and a national security imperative.”

The legislation is a direct response to decades of disinvestment in our nation’s shipbuilding capacity and the growing threat posed by the CCP’s outsized control of global maritime infrastructure, including China’s construction of the vast majority of the world’s commercial vessels and its ownership stakes in critical ports and logistics hubs. The bill would invest billions of dollars in U.S. shipbuilding infrastructure, expand workforce training for American mariners, and restore the country’s ability to build and operate the large cargo and auxiliary vessels necessary to maintain economic security and military readiness.

Key provisions of the SHIPS for America Act include:

• Investing in domestic shipbuilding capacity through grants, loan guarantees, and tax credits targeted at commercial shipyards.
• Creating a strategic sealift capacity to ensure the Department of Defense can access a robust and reliable fleet of American-built cargo vessels.
• Expanding the U.S. maritime workforce by supporting training and credentialing programs for merchant mariners and shipbuilders.
• Modernizing federal procurement to prioritize American-built vessels and reduce reliance on foreign shipyards—particularly those tied to the CCP.

The SHIPS for America Act has broad support from national security experts, labor unions, and industry leaders. The bill’s introduction comes amid rising bipartisan concern over the CCP’s use of economic leverage to coerce trading partners and threaten U.S. military logistics.

Ranking Member Krishnamoorthi provided testimony during a public hearing hosted by the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on their investigation into the PRC’s unfair policies and practices in the shipbuilding sector. The Ranking Member also issued a supportive statement of USTR’s proposed actions under that investigation.

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