Michael Rubin, President & CEO, Florida Ports Council

In an interview with Invest:, Michael Rubin, President and CEO of the Florida Ports Council, talked about the need to build the capacity of Florida’s seaports. He also discussed how changes in international trade routes have allowed Florida seaports to reach new markets and grow, and the advantages that mechanisms like free-trade zones offer to businesses.

What have been the main highlights and milestones for the Florida Ports Council in the past 12 months?

We continue to share that Florida is the place to do business. We use the term “Seas The Opportunity,” as there has been lots of growth in our seaports in terms of capacity building over the past five years. That growth has occurred to take advantage of shifting trade routes.

The supply chain crisis demonstrated that it is impossible to just stuff everything through inefficient ports on the West Coast. Those ports are inefficient because they are at capacity, so it is difficult to get products in and through them. On the other hand, Florida ports, such as JAXPORT, have demonstrated that we can move product not only to the third-largest state in the country, but also to Puerto Rico, the Caribbean, and elsewhere. Our ports’ efforts demonstrate that they are a place to do business. 

How do Florida’s location and its port infrastructure extend global and national trade routes?

The reason that California has been a dominant port is that it is a short trip from a lot of Asian markets to the United States. On the other hand, people have historically seen Florida as a place for tourism, so it took us a while to demonstrate that we are pivotal not only for the United States but for the world. We have always been a dominant port location for the Caribbean and Latin America, but we have demonstrated that we can also bring that cargo into Florida. Moreover, Florida offers great road connections, and our rail connections are getting better. We currently have a class-one rail network, CSX, but Norfolk Southern also does a lot of service in Jacksonville.

We have also seen a lot of growth in Mexican trade. That trade had traditionally been over the road, but Mexico has made some investments in its ports on the Gulf and Pacific coasts as well as in a rail network to take cargo from the Pacific to the Gulf side. Some ports like SeaPort Manatee, Port of Palm Beach, and Port Panama City have seen significant growth in Mexican trade. Our location has helped as we are the only state with ports on both the Gulf and the Atlantic trade lanes.

What are the main markets of the Florida Ports Council, and which are you looking to expand?

We are looking for anybody who is either shipping product out of or into the United States, and see ourselves as a seaport system that can efficiently handle cargo. In terms of continents and countries, the Americas have always been our major markets. We have ongoing trade missions in Brazil, Argentina, and Chile. If you are a Puerto Rican citizen, you would want JAXPORT to stay efficient because all your critical commodities come from that port. Additionally, Port of Palm Beach provides export services to the Caribbean, including major markets like the Bahamas and Dominican Republic.

Nevertheless, there is interesting growth in European trade, including incoming or outgoing commodities and goods such as citrus. Everybody also continues to look at the Middle East, where Turkey has become a major exporter of concrete. Some Asian markets that are using the California route, such as Vietnam, may use the Suez Canal, go to Europe, and then come to the United States. We also have several service vessel calls coming into Port Everglades and PortMiami. Finally, JAXPORT has now secured cargo coming in from Africa. 

How is Florida’s port system driving forward the region’s economic development?

We have the largest coastline of any U.S. state besides Alaska as well as seaports on two major trade lines. Any business in Florida that is exporting or bringing in goods is directly impacted as they have a seaport close that can handle that. Additionally, some of our bigger ports like JAXPORT, Port Everglades, PortMiami, and Port Tampa Bay have a significant impact on the state as well as nationally. Some ports like Port Panama City or Port Canaveral are probably the major economic engines in their areas, and, in the case of Port Canaveral, the space industry further relies on shipping out rockets.

If you look at those critical commodities like fuel, food, and medicine, Floridians, our businesses, and our tourists are dependent upon seaports bringing in those critical commodities. We aim to ensure that Florida has the capacity to handle those critical commodities. Additionally, the average salary for the blue-collar jobs in our ports is around $60,000 to $70,000 where an efficient crane operator is earning in the six digits. Our ports also have an impact on the tourism industry with cruises and other things. 

What are the main benefits and advantages that free-trade zones in the Florida port system offer the state?

The primary benefit of FTZs is that incoming products are duty free. For instance, in the case of the satellites that Elon Musk is putting in orbit for the Starlink internet service, parts of those satellites coming in from other nations are duty free as long as they are packaged together. There are some engineering and manufacturing companies that send those satellites to Cape Kennedy for launch. There are also many automobiles coming in from abroad whose last parts are put together at ports like JAXPORT. 

The FTZs are also a benefit for the businesses, for the product, and for consumers since the individual ultimately paying for that product is either a resident or a business in Florida. Businesses want to locate in them because they do not need to pay extra for it, and multinational businesses prefer to send goods into areas where they do not have to pay extra. The more we can reduce the impact on Floridians and businesses in this time of inflation, the better it will be for the state of Florida. 

What are the most important challenges that the Florida Ports Council faces while running its large-scale port operations?

Capacity issues are a big challenge. All our ports are local government seaports, so they depend on a good relationship not only with their governing boards and local governments but also with the local communities. Ports are always looking for ways to build that interaction and support because it helps with investments into capacity projects. For instance, JAXPORT has done significant investments over the past decade and continues to grow thanks to the support of the local community. It has become one of the fastest-growing container ports in the United States and made it to the Top 10 nationally and the Top 100 globally.

We are constantly looking for ways to maximize port capacity in Florida, but Florida’s limited footprint will always press up against people who want to build condos and homes on the water. The case of Miami is illustrative of that phenomenon as the Miami Heat basketball stadium and other facilities are right next to the seaport. Miami is the cruise capital of the world and brings over a million containers per year. 

What are the outlook and main priorities for the Florida Ports Council in the short term?

Mainly capacity and critical commodities. We have a supportive legislature and governor’s office. Nevertheless, the budget of the Florida Department of Transportation prioritizes reducing congestion on Florida roadways, which does not always mean help with capacity projects at our seaports. We must find a way to invest in priority capacity-building projects at seaports, especially those that move critical commodities to Floridians. Anyone going to the grocery store has seen how prices keep going up, and reducing transportation costs is a way to prevent those prices from going up as much. We want to ensure that we can get critical commodities, such as fuel, food, and medicine.