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USA TODAY has an interesting article today entitled "Titans of the Cruise Industry See Net Worth Rise."

Forbes' annual ranking of the world's billionaires for 2013 lists Carnival mogul Micky Arison at No. 211 with a net worth of $5.7 billion, up from $4.7 billion a year ago.  Arison's net worth has nearly doubled from four years ago.

Another Carnival heir, Shari Arison, is now worth $4.2 billion, up from $3.4 billion just three years ago, according to Forbes.

Carnival operates over 100 cruise ship among 10 brands including Carnival, P&O Cruises, Princess Cruises, Holland America Line and Cunard.

How does cruise tycoon Arison get so rich?  

Registering his cruise lines in foreign countries (like Panama) to avoid U.S. corporate taxes, operating foreign-flagged cruise ships filled with employees from around the world who will work long hours for low wages, not reimbursing the U.S. government for millions incurred by federal agencies like the Coast Guard, Navy, etc., and offering peanut settlements to tax-paying U.S. citizens when his cruise ships sink or catch on fire may be part of the explanation. 

Art Credit:  Nickolay Lamm from MyVoucherCodes.co.uk

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Over the past week, CNN has aired a number of special programs about the cruise industry, revealing a number of things that the industry would prefer you not know.

The segment below focuses on the cruise lines' efforts to avoid U.S  taxes,

By registering their cruise ships in foreign countries, cruise lines avoid most U.S. regulations and virtually all U.S. taxes. The CNN program points out that Carnival is registered in Panama; Royal Caribbean in Liberia; and Princess in Bermuda. Why? Primarily to avoid U.S. taxes.

Last year Carnival paid no U.S. taxes.  None.  Over the last seven years Carnival netted profits of over 11 billion dollars and paid a measly amount in taxes of barely over 1%.

The video shows some interesting comments by Senator Rockefeller (D - WVA) who presided over the hearing in the U.S. Senate about the Costa Concordia disaster. He stated that cruise ships are "getting away with alot."  They register overseas to avoid taxes; they hire cheap labor; they don't reimburse some 20 U.S. federal agencies for services rendered to the foreign cruise ships; and they pay the absolute minimum to passengers who are seriously injured or killed due to their negligence and recklessness.

There is a direct correlation between registering cruise lines in places like Africa or Central America and few safety regulations and lackluster regulatory bodies.      

CNN interviewed me for a short segment of the program where I discuss the extraordinary efforts cruise lines go to limit their liability by inserting onerous terms and conditions filled with legal "mumbo jumbo" to avoid paying fair compensation to injuries passengers and the families of the dead.      

The cruise industry may say that its priority is the safety of passengers, but as Senator Rockefeller said: the cruise lines' financial "bottom line" is the cruise lines' true emphasis.  

Watch the CNN video below:

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