The Trump administration will not grant a Jones Act waiver for oil , refined products and other commodities being shipped into Puerto Rico as the island works to rebuild following Hurricane Maria, the Department of Homeland Security said Tuesday. In a statement, DHS said that it had consulted with other federal agencies and determined there was “sufficient capacity” of US-flagged vessels to move commodities to Puerto Rico and that a Jones Act waiver was unnecessary. “The limitation is going to be port capacity to offload and transit, not vessel availability,” the agency said. “Most of the humanitarian shipments will be through barges, which make up a significant portion (along with tugs) of the US-flagged cargo fleet.” On Monday, eight House Democrats, led by New York Representative Nydia Velazquez, sent a letter to DHS Secretary Elaine Duke, asking for a one-year Jones Act waiver for Puerto Rico, which is an […]