Politicians love to talk about supporting blue-collar jobs for their working-class constituents. Here comes a real opportunity to do so: a bill in Congress that would give the American shipbuilding industry a serious shot in the arm. It could really use one.

Several decades ago, 180,000 people worked in shipbuilding, and U.S. shipyards secured more than 70 annual orders for large oceangoing vessels such as tankers and cargo ships. Today, there are 70,000 fewer shipbuilding jobs across the country; dozens of major shipyards have closed; and more than 20,000 suppliers that once serviced this industry have shut down. The number of vessels our country produces each year is in the single digits, accounting for less than 1% of global output.

The global shipbuilding industry is now heavily dominated by China, whose shipbuilders produce hundreds of oceangoing vessels annually and will account for roughly two-thirds of global orders in the coming years. It’s deeply concerning that our country is increasingly reliant on Chinese shipbuilding and related maritime infrastructure — from dry docks to ship-to-shore cranes.

This hasn’t happened because the free market is at work. China’s shipbuilding industry is heavily subsidized, full of state-owned enterprises, and built on unfair trade and economic practices. The U.S. Navy estimates China’s shipbuilding capacity is 232 times greater than our own. While there are many reasons for the decline of shipbuilding in the United States, let’s not fool ourselves: China’s immense effort to dominate this industry is the primary one. We’ll never get back any of it without addressing the 800-pound gorilla on the ocean.

There’s also a clear national security argument for countering Beijing’s attempts to crowd out global competition. Having robust shipbuilding capacity for all types of vessels is how a nation maintains a navy and stays prepared to scale production in times of conflict. America still builds plenty of smaller ships — tugs, workboats and barges — and our destroyers remain world-class. But we simply don’t have the capacity to build large commercial ships anymore, and that’s a strategic vulnerability.

The economic argument is just as strong. Producing a single commercial oceangoing ship can require tens of thousands of tons of structural steel, thousands of gallons of paint, and hundreds of miles of electrical cable. Building more ships in the United States would create good, family-sustaining jobs and strengthen the supply chains that support them.

So, what are we going to do about it? Some think the way to fix our shipbuilding deficit is to offshore even more — sending work to allies such as Japan and South Korea, both of which maintain strong shipbuilding capabilities. But outsourcing our shipbuilding needs to China’s backyard makes no sense. That’s a short-term fix that only deepens the long-term problem. We need to invest here at home, and we need to get started now.

The good news is that efforts are already underway, backed by industry, labor, Democrats and Republicans alike. Last year, the United Steelworkers and other labor unions petitioned the federal government to investigate China’s shipbuilding practices and the barriers it has created to reviving our own industry. The investigation confirmed those concerns, and the Trump administration responded by creating remedies such as docking fees for every large Chinese-built ship that visits a U.S. port. Those fees, set to take effect later this year, will discourage shippers from sourcing large oceangoing vessels from China.

Congress is also stepping up, and Virginia’s entire congressional delegation should get on board. The SHIPS for America Act (HR3151) would funnel those collected port fees from Chinese vessels into U.S. shipyards, workers and other maritime infrastructure so we can begin rebuilding this industry here at home.

Its passage would mean more American-made ships built with American-made materials, more shipyards, stronger supply chains and a revitalized shipbuilding industry our country desperately needs.

Larry Ray of Frankfort, Kentucky, is a second-generation steelworker and the director of United Steel Workers District 8, serving members in Kentucky, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and Washington D.C.

https://www.dailypress.com/2025/11/01/column-federal-bill-would-give-shipbuilding-a-needed-boost/