Gov. DeSantis: Florida's Ports Are Open, Could Help With The Supply Chain Problem

JACKSONVILLE (CBSMiami) - Governor Ron DeSantis said ports in the state are open for business and could be part of the solution to the supply chain problem.

DeSantis made those remarks during a visit to JaxPort in Jacksonville on Tuesday.

"You've seen these images of ships docked off the coast of various cities of the United States where there's a big logjam, that, of course, is impacting what we see on our store shelves, we see more empty shelves than you're used to seeing," he said.

Ships have been anchored off the coast of California slowing the movement of goods to stores. President Joe Biden announced last week that the California ports in Los Angeles and Long Beach would be shifting to 24-hour operations seven days a week to help alleviate the problem.

DeSantis noted that Florida's ports have always worked 24 hours a day.

"We in Florida have the ability to help alleviate these log jams and help to ameliorate the problems with the supply chain. And part of the reason is because we've long been committed to reliable, modern and accessible port facilities. Since I've been Governor in 2019 we've allocated almost a billion dollars to over 70 Florida seaport projects," he said.

DeSantis says the state is offering incentives to companies who bring their business to Florida's ports.

"Florida is here, we have the capacity and we also have incentive packages that will make it worth your while to be able to bring your business to our ports," he said.

"We have to make sure that people can go Christmas shopping as normal. We have to make sure that all the necessities are there. If it's because ships are sitting off the coast somewhere else and they can be rerouted here and we can get all those shelves stocked, then we want to be part of that solution," he added.