NEMWI and AMCC To Co-Host Briefing on Sustainable Manufacturing On Thursday, June 23, at 2:00 P.M.
The Northeast-Midwest Institute and its partner the American Manufacturing Communities Collaborative (AMCC), in conjunction with the Center for Regional Economic Competitiveness (CREC), will host a policy briefing on Sustainable Manufacturing on Thursday, June 23, from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. (EDT).
The briefing is an opportunity to learn from national experts about what sustainable manufacturing means and how it can keep America at the forefront of innovation and lead the way to address climate change and other threats. The briefing also will feature regional leaders illustrating what sustainable manufacturing means in different parts of the country.
The agenda and participants in the briefing include:
2:00-2:10 p.m.: Introduction.
2:10-2:30 p.m.: Framing -- What Is Sustainable Manufacturing and Why Is It Important?:
Matt Bogoshian, Executive Director AMCC, former U.S. EPA.
Pete Langlois, Senior Policy Counsel, Energy Efficiency and Sustainability Program Manager, U.S. Department of Energy.
Kimberley Gibson, Ecosystem Director, America Makes.
With support from a grant by the Economic Development Administration to CREC, AMCC gathered stakeholders on March 30 to focus on one of the key components of sustainable manufacturing: the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion in manufacturing ownership and its workforce. The June 23 briefing is the second briefing in this series, focusing on sustainable manufacturing.
Congress at Work on Crucial Great Lakes and Water Legislation
Congress is active on crucial Great Lakes and water quality legislation in recent months. The U.S. House on June 8 passed the Water Resources and Development Act of 2022 (WRDA) (H.R. 7776) which would improve U.S. harbors and rivers. The bill is now in the U.S. Senate. The House also passed the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act of 2021 (RAWA) (H.R. 2773) on June 14. The bill would amend the Pittman-Robertson Act to make funds available for the management of fish and wildlife of the greatest conservation need.
In addition, the Ocean Shipping Reform Act (S. 3580) passed both chambers of Congress and was presented to President Biden on June 14. The bill makes certain acts undertaken by common carriers or marine terminal operators prohibited. The House on June 8 also introduced the Great Lakes Restoration Semipostal Stamp Act of 2022 (H.R 7975). The bill would create a Great Lakes Restoration Stamp for issuance.
For a more complete update on pending Great Lakes and water legislation, using NEMWI’s Great Lakes and Water Legislative Tracker, visit here
House-Senate Conference Committee Works on America Competes Act
The House-Senate Conference Committee on the America Competes Act, which is charged with reconciling differences between this major manufacturing legislation that passed the House and Senate earlier this year, has been at work since its first hearing on May 12.
The Conference Committee consists of 107 House and Senate members, making it the largest conference committee in the last ten years for a bill that is not annual legislation that must be passed. Commenting at the first Conference Committee hearing, House members stressed the importance of their bill’s inclusion of refugee support for Uyghurs, officially recognizing China’s human rights violations, and supply chain strengthening solutions, all of which are not included in the Senate bill. Senate members of the committee emphasized how the Senate version of the Competes Act garnered bipartisan support compared to the House Competes Act and stressed the importance of a final bill with bipartisan support. All members of the Conference Committee agreed that one of America’s biggest foreign affairs challenges is to compete with China’s expanding influence.
The latest updates on the negotiations report that House and Senate leadership have decided to narrow the scope of the package in order to pass the bill before the July 4th Recess. Items being dropped from the bill could include labor and climate provisions, and trade language, which represent parts of the bill without bipartisan support. The consensus is that as elections loom over legislators’ minds, getting a final bill that is signed into law before August is critical.
In February, the House passed The America COMPETES act of 2022 or the America Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Preeminence in Technology, and Economic Strength Act of 2022, sweeping legislation strengthening America’s ability to compete with global superpowers such as China in manufacturing, cyber security, and global supply chains. The more than two thousand page act would allocate two billion dollars to manufacturing of critical products such as semiconductor chips which have faced colossal supply chain shortages. Made of silicon, semiconductor chips are the backbone of the global economy as they are used in computers, smartphones, appliances, data centers, gaming hardware, and medical equipment. Additionally, the America COMPETES Act would pour 45 billion dollars into bolstering and remedying American supply chain problems caused by the pandemic.
In March, the Senate passed a similar but separate bill titled the United States Innovation and Competition Act of 2021 which passed with a vote of 68-28. Now the Conference Committee is tasked with reconciling differences between the two bills before sending a final bill to President Biden’s desk.
To learn more about the latest on other manufacturing bills in the northeast and midwest, view NEMWI's updated manufacturing bill tracker.
Senate Committee Holds Hearing on Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Authorization Act
The Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works(EPW) held a legislative hearing last week to discuss various conservation bills including the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act (S.3069). The Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act, which is sponsored by Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Co-Sponsored by Sens. Ron Portman (R-OH), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), and Todd Young (R-IN), reauthorizesthe U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to work with states and other agencies to develop and execute proposals to conserve, restore,and manage fish and wildlife populations and their habitats.Early this spring the House of Representatives passed a companion bill (H.R. 5973) by a voice vote. The Senate has yet to schedule a potential vote on the House-passed bill.
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Tuesday, June 21st | 5:30 PM | 2359 Rayburn HOB | Host: Committee on Appropriations | Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, and Related Agencies
