Question:   I've been browsing around, mostly looking into cruising by freighter, and keep coming across The Jones Act which appears to prohibit ships taking passengers between US ports unless the ships are US-flagged.... Can someone perhaps explain The Jones Act in plain words (as opposed to legalese!)?
(courtesy of Steve Read)

Answer: OK...there are actually TWO pieces of legislation involved. The First and main one is the The Passenger Vessel Services Act (PVSA) and the second the Jones Act. The Jones Act really brought together bits of legislation, some going way back, and it covers all Domestic marine trade, whereas the PVSA is, as the name implies, concerned with passengers.

Enacted in 1886 the PVSA essentially prohibits a foreign or non US built crewed and Registered vessel from picking up passengers in one US port and disembarking them in another US port.

The PVSA does however, allow ships to pick up and return passengers to the same US port providing they call at a foreign port in the course of the voyage. It may also pick up passengers at a US port and disembark them at another US port providing it calls at a port deemed to be 'distant' by the Government. i.e. from Miami to LA and calling at Curacao. It doesn't matter how many US ports it stops at on that voyage. i.e. Seattle, inside passage to Alaska, 4 ports, outside to Victoria.B.C. and back to Seattle. (an NCL route).

It is protectionist and this 'cabotage' as it is called is common in many countries including the EC and is not restricted to shipping..it is rife in the airline industry too..look at the so-called fifth freedoms and the current disagreement between the US and Brits over landing rights at Heathrow. If it wasn't there then anyone could come in and undercut all the domestic traffic, the ferries, tugs, charter boats, whatever.