Assessment of the SHIPS for America Act

The Bull Moose Project has released a new policy memo on the SHIPS for America Act, and the core argument is simple: it's the most serious attempt to rebuild American maritime power in nearly a century, but two structural gaps must be closed before it can deliver.

The American merchant marine has declined to just 80 oceangoing commercial vessels, which is insufficient to sustain supply chains or contest Chinese maritime dominance. Meanwhile, the Navy's four public nuclear shipyards are so backlogged that 40% of attack submarines sit out of service awaiting maintenance.

The SHIPS Act addresses these problems with a sweeping package of fleet expansion programs, shipbuilding incentives, workforce investments, and tax credits. But the naval industrial base will remain at a breaking point unless Congress authorizes a fifth public shipyard dedicated to nuclear maintenance, which was recommended by the 2023 Congressional Strategic Posture Commission, and this bill ignores.

Our recommendation: strengthen the SHIPS Act before passage by indexing operating support against foreign competitors, authorizing a fifth shipyard with Great Lakes siting priority, and tying the $250 million annual shipbuilding incentive to yard capacity targets rather than per-vessel construction alone.