NEMWI To Co-Host Briefing with House Manufacturing Caucus and AMCC on Tactics for Regions To Strengthen Research & Innovation for American Manufacturing
The Northeast-Midwest Institute is partnering with the House Manufacturing Caucus and the American Manufacturing Communities Collaborative (AMCC) for a virtual briefing titled Tactics for Regions To Strengthen Research & Innovation for American Manufacturing on Tuesday, August 16, from 2:00-3:00 p.m. EDT.
The briefing will present national and regional leaders engaged in cutting edge manufacturing research to learn how it can spur innovation, good jobs, and sustainable development. With technology changing rapidly and manufacturing job openings at record levels, the future of this sector depends on effective, synergistic strategies at the federal, state, and local levels to harness existing research and transform it into innovations that scale. National panelists from NSF, ITIFand TCF will provide a landscape view on the topic followed by examples and perspectives from regional leaders.
Stakeholders in regional manufacturing communities that have been or want to be federally designated in programs like IMCP,DMCSP,LEAP, NSF Engines and the Tech Hubs program in the recently passed Chips and Science Act may be especially interested in this briefing. These federal programs recognize that unless investments are effectively utilized by regional stakeholders in ways that leverage regional advantages and efforts by public and private state, regional, and local entities, they are less likely to produce desired outcomes.
Panelists at the briefing include:
Rebecca Shearman, NSF Engines Program Manager, National Science Foundation (NSF).
Stephen Ezell, Director, Global Innovation Policy, Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF).
Andy Stettner, Senior Fellow, The Century Foundation (TCF).
Paul Lavoie, State of Connecticut, Chief Manufacturing Officer.
Elena Crete, Sustainable Development Solutions Network.
To register for this virtual briefing, click here.
U.S. House Passes the Inflation Reduction Act
The House of Representatives approved the Senate passed Inflation Reduction Act late last week. The bill, which aims to tackle climate change, lower prescription drug prices, and reduce the national budget deficit through measures that include a 15 percent minimum corporate tax rate, will now head to President Biden for his signature.
According to a fact sheet released by Senate Democrats, key provisions of the bill include:
Expands Medicare benefits: free vaccines (2023), $35/month insulin (2023) and caps out-of-pocket drug costs to an estimated $4,000 or less in 2024 and settling at $2,000 in 2025;
Lowers energy bills: cuts energy bills by $500 to $1,000 per year;
Makes historic climate investment: reduces carbon emissions by roughly 40% by 2030;
Lowers health care costs: saves the average enrollee $800/year in the ACA marketplace, allows Medicare to negotiate 100 drugs over the next decade, and requires drug companies to rebate back price increases higher than inflation;
Creates manufacturing jobs: more than $60 billion investment will create millions of new domestic clean manufacturing jobs;
Invests in disadvantaged communities: cleaning up pollution and taking steps to reduce environmental injustice with $60 billion for environmental justice;
Closes tax loopholes used by the wealthy: a 15% corporate minimum tax, a 1% fee on stock buybacks, and enhanced IRS enforcement; and
Protects families and small businesses making $400,000 or less.
NEMWI Releases Report on Congressional Oversight of New Infrastructure Law
A new report released by the Northeast-Midwest Institute on Congressional oversight of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) examines the committees in Congress that have conducted oversight of the IIJA to date in 2022. Through observation of various Congressional committee hearings conducted in fiscal year 2022, the report lays out the work Congress has done thus far on IIJA implementation.
As Congress works on spending for fiscal year 2023, key committees are engaged in oversight of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) that was passed into law last November. Since this historic bill was signed nine months ago, various Congressional committees have examined how the 350+ programs provided with funding under the IIJA are spending federal funds to serve communities around the nation. During a total of ten Congressional hearings to date, Congressmen and Senators have taken the opportunity to both praise and question many of the programs funded in the IIJA.
Congress has taken two approaches to overseeingimplementation of IIJA funds: expressing informed criticism, and voicing significant concerns over the investments to date. House members have been especially critical of IIJA as many members of Congress have had problems in infrastructure delivery around transportation and broadband for years that have not been addressed. Members are especially critical of the arduous rules limiting the ability to get funds to communities with a limited federal affairs team.
Many of the members of the House have been concerned that the funding provided in the IIJA is not relevant or is inadequate to solve the problems with transportation systems and are especially concerned with the highway trust fund to which $350 billion is to be provided during the next five years.
The report also quantifies general aspects of the Congressional oversight to date:
Seven of the ten hearings to date were in March, June, and July, with three in March, two in June, and two in July.
In five of the hearings, state and local leaders provided their perspectives on the IIJA's implementation.
In four of the hearings, various outside organizations spoke of the difficulties that their constituents face, emphasizing transportation and natural fuel reclamation.
Three committees lead the oversight: Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs; House Natural Resources; andHouse Transportation and Infrastructure. Two other committees have held one hearing each: Senate Environmental and Public Works; and Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation.
To read the full NEMWI report on Congressional oversight of the IIJA, go here.
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This Week in Washington
In the House:
No relevant committee hearings this week due to August recess.
In the Senate:
No relevant committee hearings this week due to August recess.
