Port Group Sends Congress Ideas for Jobs Bill

The head of the American Association of Port Authorities urged leaders of the Senate and House of Representatives to help boost industry jobs by bolstering some ongoing federal programs and tackling a few key tax concerns.

AAPA Chief Executive Kurt Nagle sent his suggestions as Congress works on a set of job-creation measures, after President Obama offered a new jobs plan. In the days before his Dec. 8 speech outlining that plan, Obama cited the need to invest in ports along with other types of transportation infrastructure.

"By providing additional funds for port-related and freight transportation infrastructure, we can modernize maritime transportation and provide jobs for both today and tomorrow," Nagle said in his letter to the congressional leadership.

He told lawmakers that ports particularly benefit from work by the Army Corps of Engineers to maintain and improve navigation channels, policies and construction projects out of the Department of Transportation to move freight more efficiently, efforts by other agencies to fund emission reduction and energy efficiency investments and from federal port security grants.

Nagle said tax issues important to ports would be eliminating the harbor maintenance tax on domestic cargoes moving between ports, and ending the alternative minimum tax for government-issued private equity bonds that fund infrastructure work.

The association leader said ports would gain as well from congressional passage of more free trade agreements that could spur U.S. exports.

See also “Obama Plans $50 Billion for Transport”

Contact John D. Boyd at jboyd@joc.com.