Rep. Dusty Johnson Says Asian Shippers are leaving South Dakota products behind at US ports

But it's what happening after those ships dock, unload and return to sea that's more harmful to Americans and the U.S. economy, according to a bipartisan group of Congressional lawmakers in Washington D.C. that includes South Dakota's lone U.S. Representative, Dusty Johnson.

The second term Republican Congressman, from Mitchell, last week in an interview with the Argus Leader said legislation he's introduced alongside California Democrat John Garamendi attempts to reform U.S. shipping regulations in a way they say will better ensure American exports are treated fairly by international ocean carriers, including billions worth of agricultural products grown and raised in South Dakota

Right now, Johnson says the demand for Asian imports has created an uneven playing field, causing American goods slated to be shipped across the Pacific Ocean to be stranded for days and, sometimes weeks, longer than anticipated because shippers have determined its more cost effective not to load up before deporting from U.S. ports.

"They can make more money getting an empty over to Asia, filling it up with Asian goods and bringing it back to America," Johnson said.

According global container freight indexes, carriers are charge thousands per container to deliver cargo to U.S. coastal ports. But the routes from the U.S. to China are a fraction of the cost.

And a recent analysis by CNBC, the economics and finance cable news network, showed the United States saw at least $1.3 billion in potential agricultural exports rejected at major ports in the last half of 2020.

"I think that is clearly discriminatory, and I think if you're going to use American ports, you've got to play by some pretty basic rules," Johnson said as he advocated for his Ocean Shipping Reform Act, which would be the first major overhaul of U.S. maritime laws in more than three decades.

Backed by more than 200 trade associations and ag coalitions, Johnson's bill would require ocean carriers to adhere to minimum service standards, establish penalties for carriers who leave U.S. ports with empty loads when American products are ready to be shipped and require enhanced annual reporting requirements.

Johnson said he's optimistic the Ocean Shipping Reform Act could end up on President Joe Biden's desk by year's end.