Washington, DC – NACFAM Chairman and CEO Robert “Rusty” Patterson announced today major manufacturing-related policy priorities that NACFAM is recommending to President-elect Donald Trump and the members of the new Congress that will be sworn in next January.
If enacted and signed into law, these policies will go a long way in strengthening the nation’s advanced manufacturing sector by stimulating greater innovation, increasing productivity and expanding the competitiveness of American companies in ever-changing markets, both domestic and foreign.
NACFAM members and friends call on policymakers to take action next year on bills that will:
- Accelerate the development and deployment of innovative manufacturing technologies to SMEs by providing additional resources to federal agencies such as the National Network for Manufacturing Innovation (now Manufacturing USA), NIST’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership program and the National Science Foundation.
- Enact training tax credits for employers who provide new and incumbent workers with the more technical skills needed to utilize advanced manufacturing process technologies.
- Incentivize the use of industry-recognized certification and apprenticeship training programs to build a more qualified advanced manufacturing workforce.
- Provide federal education funding for state programs that enable secondary schools to hire additional career counselors to help students learn more about industry certifications, local job markets and specific jobs/careers in those markets, especially in advanced manufacturing.
- Require rigorous and periodic review by federal agencies of the cost and impact of their regulations on advanced manufacturers experiencing ever-increasing market changes.
- Reduce the federal corporate income tax rate to 20% to stimulate greater innovation.
- Expand basic and applied R&D by federal agencies working with advanced manufacturers, research universities and public/private partnerships.
- Broaden the use of Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADAs) between federal labs and advanced manufacturers.
In commenting on these recommendations, Patterson noted, “These policy improvements are especially important as U.S. advanced manufacturers face increased competition from foreign companies and governments that make it more difficult to service customers in those countries.”
He added, “Policymakers must move now before American manufacturers are no longer able to compete with off-shore companies, especially in engineering-oriented pursuits such as electronics, robotics, 3-D printing, composites and the use of Computer Numeric Control tools.”
For information, contact: Fred Wentzel (703) 455-3461
