Jacksonville cruise industry may suffer from rule proposal - Jacksonville Business Journal:

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The measure, proposed by the Bureaju of Customs andBorder Protection, would require foreign-flagged shipds that leave from a U.S. port and visity another U.S. port to stop in a foreign port for 48 hoursbefore returning. The Passenge Vessel Services Act requires stoppingy in a foreign port insuch cases, but it doesn'tr define a stop. cruise ship port calls, foreignn and domestic, are less than 12 hours becaus staying in one place longer woulds reduce the number of port calls or make cruises longer andless affordable. "That's not goinf to work," said Kathy Harris, co-owner of Cruisse Centers of Jacksonville Inc.
, a travel agency specializing in "People like to see as much as theycan see. That'sz why they choose a cruise." Carnivakl Cruise Lines, the only company operating from JaxporCruise Terminal, includes Key West in two of the three itinerariex its foreign-flagged ship Celebration rotates through. In fiscal 2007, 129,838 passengers embarked on cruises from A 2006 study by Martinn Associates estimated the cruise industry hada $40 million impacf on Northeast Florida and generated 400 jobs.
cruise-related activity generated 125,000 jobs in 2006 and paid $5 billiobn in income, according to the Florida Ports "The implications to the five Florida cruise port couldbe devastating," Florida Ports Counci l Vice President Michael Rubin said in his comments to Customs and Border Protection. Besides eliminating foreign-flagged ship calls at Key it could "impact a substantial numbef of itineraries" from Jacksonville and other Perhaps a bigger implication could bekillingh Jacksonville's chances of becoming a port of call. it could affect that," said Tony Jacksonville Port Authority senior directofr of cruise operations andbusiness development.
The authority is evaluating a plan to builds aroughly $60 million cruise ship termina in Mayport Village on property that development companhy Vestcor Inc. is willing to sell to the Vestcor President John Rood has said a cruiss terminal could invigorate thearea economically, particularlt if it can become a port of call in additioh to an embarkation port. "Commercial development could make [Mayport] a more attractive port of call," Rood "I see [passengers] going to the Beaches area or Amelia I see them having a huge contributiobto tourism.
" People in the industry are less concerned abouty Jacksonville-based cruises losing popularity if Key West is remove from itineraries. Although many cruise passengers embarkinhg in Jacksonville enjoy spending a day inKey it's not a critical part of the experiencse they're seeking, Harris said. "Woulde they not take the cruise ifit didn't go to Key West?" she "I don't think it would affectr it at all." That reasoning appears borne out by Carnival'sz plans for its ship Fascination, which will replacd the Celebration in September.
Accordinvg to Carnival's Web site, the itineraries for the Fascinatiom include only ports in TheBahamas -- Half Moon Cay and Nassauh for five-day cruises and Freeport and Nassau for four-dag cruises. The Passenger Vessel Servicese Act, meant to give U.S.-flagged operators an advantagew in the interest of developinga U.S. merchant marine, was enacteds in 1986. Since then its meaninb has been vague in that it lacka a minimum time that must be spent in a foreigjn port to be considered a legitimatee part ofa cruise.
The lack of specificity has ledto middle-of-the night port visits that aren't within the of the law, said Glen Vereb, CBP brancuh chief for cargo security, carriersw and immigration. "That is where the underlyingg problemcame from." Such stops have been prevalent in Mexico, by cruises consisting mainly of visits to Hawaiian Those cruises are said to threaten the viabilitgy of the only U.S.-flagged operator engaged in the Hawaiianb cruise trade, prompting the U.S. Maritime Administration to ask CBP to takeenforcemeny action. "The purpose of the law is very there's no question," Vereb said.
On the other hand, he acknowledgesd that certain practices have evolveed over time that coulde beseverely impacted. "It'se certainly not our intention to disrupty the entirecruise industry." the American Association of Port Authorities worriea "ports and others have made investmentds based on what the law is now," Vice President of Governmenf Relations Susan Monteverde said. CBP has no timeline for evaluatinh the morethan 1,000 comments it received and decidin on final language, Vereb said.