The US Maritime Administration (MarAd) has received $1bn in government funding for 2020 through the National Defense Authorization Act, but it is still not enough, according to a naval expert.
The amount is $67.5m less than the 2019 appropriation but still $390m more than that proposed by President Donald Trump, who signed the $738bn spending bill in December.
MarAd will spend $300m to subsidise 60 out of 80 US-flagged merchant vessels sail in international waters as part of its Maritime Security Program.
The US needs many more such ships, however, for wartime defense, says John Kaskin, retired director of the US Navy's strategic mobility and combat logistics division.
"It's inadequate," he told TradeWinds.
He is currently national vice president of the Navy League of the United States.
The allocation also includes $300m for the national security multi-mission vessel —or schoolship — programme and another $225m for the port infrastructure development programme.
"The Maritime Administration recognizes the critical contribution our Nation’s maritime industry makes to our continued economic prosperity and robust national defense," a MarAd spokesperson told TradeWinds.
"The funding provided will help strengthen the United States marine transportation system, including infrastructure, education, industry, and labor, to meet the economic and security needs of the nation."
Another $20m is earmarked for assistance to small shipyards, but that falls short in effectively helping US shipbuilding, Kaskin said.
"Philadelphia Shipyard is on life support and no longer building ships," he said.
"The government is doing nothing for shipbuilding."
The Oslo-listed shipyard recorded a net loss of $9m for the third quarter and a loss of $15.2m for the first nine months of 2019.
Kaskin said the US Navy has given MarAd $330m for its Ready Reserve Force of 72 mothballed ships that can be sent into combat within 20 days.
The US Coast Guard (USCG), which protects and provides emergency services to US merchant vessels, has received $12bn in funding through the Department of Homeland Security.
The amount, which is $49.8m below the 2019 appropriation, includes $1.77bn for new investments in USCG's air and marine fleet.
Calls to USCG were not immediately returned.
