Make It In America
In 2022, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and House Democrats unveiled the new Make It In America plan to create jobs and expand economic opportunity. With too many Americans only getting by instead of getting ahead, the plan focuses on four key areas where Congress can be a partner in creating the best conditions for the growth of jobs and opportunities. They are: education, entrepreneurship, infrastructure, and supply chain resilience. Twenty-two bipartisan Make It In America bills have now been enacted into law, including the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in 2021 and the CHIPS and Science Act in 2022.
To read Leader Hoyer’s remarks on the updated Make It In America plan, click here. For more information on the goals and policy recommendations included in the Make It In America plan, click here.
First launched by Leader Hoyer in 2010 when our economic recovery from the 2008 global financial crisis was just beginning, the Make It In America plan has been focused on gathering the best ideas and transforming them into policies that Congress can enact to help workers and businesses succeed. The plan has brought together bipartisan policies and legislation aimed at promoting economic growth, the creation of jobs that won’t be outsourced, and building a competitive workforce that can access opportunities in today’s changing global economy.
Recognizing the many changes that took place during our recovery, House Democrats held a series of hearings in 2015 called “Make It In America: What’s Next?” to explore new challenges and new opportunities in our economy. During the hearing series, seventy-seven House Democrats heard testimony from innovators, entrepreneurs, economists, Members of Congress, and others about how the Make It In America plan should be updated to address new challenges and take advantage of new opportunities. Click here for a look at testimony from the hearings. It was in these hearings that House Democrats identified the three original areas on which Congress ought to focus: education, entrepreneurship, and infrastructure.
Understanding that the best ideas would come from outside of Washington, Leader Hoyer and House Democrats embarked on the Make It In America Listening Tour starting in 2017, visiting nine cities across the country to hear directly from Americans about the challenges they face and identifying best practices in meeting them. The ideas shared on this tour informed the 2018 update to the Make It In America plan.
As we continue our financial recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Make It In America agenda is responding to the challenges of today’s economy with the inclusion of a fourth pillar, supply chain resilience, which joins MIIA’s existing pillars of education, entrepreneurship, and infrastructure to serve as an effective playbook to expand American families’ and businesses’ access to the tools they need to succeed in our twenty-first century global economy
“Good afternoon, and congratulations on reaching your eighty-fifth anniversary. I want to extend those congratulations as well to Senator Wendy Davis, who continues to make waves standing up – literally! – for justice, equality, and the rights of every individual in Texas and across our country. And I want to applaud my colleague in the House, Rep. George Miller, for his lifetime of service, especially as an advocate for a public education system that can prepare every student – regardless of background – for an equal chance to make it in America.
“I welcome the executive actions taken today by President Obama to make it easier for businesses and entrepreneurs to innovate in our country.
“Today, the President took another important step to enhance our economic recovery and help more of our businesses succeed by making it easier for U.S. goods to reach overseas markets.
“The January jobs report released this morning, which shows that our economy added 142,000 private sector jobs last month and brought the unemployment rate down to its lowest since October 2008 at 6.6%, is a reminder that our economic recovery continues to move forward.
“Today’s announcement by the Commerce Department that 2013 was a record year for U.S. exports is a strong indicator that if Congress were to move forward with Make It In America legislation, the benefits to our economy and job creation would be tremendous.
“Tonight, House Democrats had the privilege of sitting down with President Obama for a productive discussion of Democrats’ shared agenda for the year ahead.
“For the eighth consecutive month our manufacturing sector continues to expand, in spite of the effects of the Republican-led government shutdown in October and the economic uncertainty caused by the looming deadline for our government to pay its bills and avoid default.
“I am pleased that the President is continuing to make investments that support our manufacturing sector a priority.
“Our manufacturing sector continues to grow in spite of a lack of serious action by Congress to provide certainty and invest in competitiveness, and today’s report by the Institute for Supply Management ought to be taken as a call to action.
But the fact of the matter is, Chris Van Hollen is Ranking Member of the Budget Committee on our side - he has not been in any of these negotiations, nor have any of the other [members of the budget conference].