Harbor pilots make Florida’s ports safer

While Tony Villamil is a noted economist, his Feb. 27 opinion in the Sun Sentinel regarding Florida’s harbor pilot system warrants a response. He did not articulate that his study was conducted on behalf of a foreign group of ship owners that has relentlessly targeted the private harbor pilot profession in Florida. Further, I believe that he mischaracterized the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability’s findings, pulling from bits and pieces of information and weaving them into a misleading and inaccurate conclusion that solely benefits his client.