Timmons Talks Immigration in Minnesota
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Manufacturing in the U.S. is advancing, but to grow it needs more workers—including via immigration. That’s why immigration reform is one of the NAM’s key policy priorities to boost the industry’s competitiveness, as NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons told the Minnesota Manufacturers’ Summit yesterday in Minneapolis. The event was hosted by the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce.
- This week, the NAM released an updated version of its immigration policy blueprint “A Way Forward,” which Timmons highlighted in his speech.
What our immigration system needs: “Despite all the overheated rhetoric, one thing we can agree on is this: the United States has a broken and unreliable immigration system—and it is harming manufacturers’ competitiveness,” said Timmons.
- He cited the need for more employment-based H-1B visas; more temporary H-2B visas; more programs for foreign-born U.S. students in STEM fields; a new visa category to address temporary economic needs in the U.S.; and protection for Dreamers along with a pathway to legal status for unauthorized U.S. residents.
Other priorities: Timmons also covered other key manufacturing priorities, including energy policy fixes.
- “Congress can deliver sustainable permitting improvements that can fast-track critical infrastructure projects and speed up the construction of new manufacturing facilities,” he said.
- “The situation in Europe and the actions of OPEC show us this isn’t just an issue of economic competitiveness. It’s also an issue of national security.”
Reducing the burden: “Policymakers can also help by streamlining regulatory policy in general,” Timmons added. “The annual regulatory cost burden for an average U.S. firm represents 21% of its payroll.”
- “Manufacturers support smart, sensible regulation to protect our health, our workplaces and the environment. But the more time and resources manufacturers spend on their compliance burden every year, the less we can spend solving our greatest challenges.”
The bottom line: “Whether it’s permitting reform or immigration reform, building on tax reform or advancing workforce solutions, manufacturers are positioned to lead,” said Timmons. “So, our role is to be true to the values that have made America exceptional and kept manufacturing strong: free enterprise, competitiveness, individual liberty and equal opportunity.”
Further reading: Timmons has been hitting the road this week to promote manufacturers’ priorities to leaders across the country. If you missed it, catch up on his earlier speech in Phoenix, Arizona.
Related
Manufacturers Unveil Competitiveness Agenda Ahead of Midterm Elections
“Competing to Win” offers a path for bringing the country together around policies, shared values and a unified purpose
Washington, D.C. – Ahead of the midterm elections, the National Association of Manufacturers released its policy roadmap, “Competing to Win,” a comprehensive blueprint featuring immediate solutions for bolstering manufacturers’ competitiveness. It is also a roadmap for policymakers on the laws and regulations needed to strengthen the manufacturing industry in the months and years ahead.
With the country facing rising prices, snarled supply chains and geopolitical turmoil, manufacturers are outlining an actionable competitiveness agenda that Americans across the political spectrum can support. “Competing to Win” includes the policies manufacturers in America will need in place to continue driving the country forward.
“‘Competing to Win’ offers a path for bringing our country together around policies, shared values and a unified purpose,” said NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons. “The NAM is putting forward a plan filled with ideas that policymakers could pursue immediately, including solutions to urgent problems, such as energy security, immigration reform, supply chain disruptions, the ongoing workforce shortage and more. Manufacturers have shown incredible resilience through difficult times, employing more workers now than before the pandemic, but continued resilience is not guaranteed without the policies that are critical to the state of manufacturing in America.”
The NAM and its members will leverage “Competing to Win” to shape policy debates ahead of the midterm elections, in the remainder of the 117th Congress and at the start of the 118th Congress—including in direct engagement with lawmakers, for grassroots activity, across traditional and digital media and through events in key states and districts as we did following the initial rollout of the roadmap in 2016.
The document focuses on 12 areas of action, and all policies are rooted in the values that have made America exceptional and keep manufacturing strong: free enterprise, competitiveness, individual liberty and equal opportunity.
Learn more about how manufacturers are leading and about the industry’s competitiveness agenda at nam.org/competing-to-win.
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The National Association of Manufacturers is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs more than 12.8 million men and women, contributes $2.77 trillion to the U.S. economy annually and accounts for 58% of private-sector research and development. The NAM is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the NAM or to follow us on Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.nam.org
