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
Unemployment hovers above 9 percent. Foreign competition has thrown many out of work. It is a platitude that this industrial hub, like the country itself, needs more manufacturing work.
Today marks the two-year anniversary of the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act being signed into law by President Obama. This law, passed by a Democratic-led Congress, makes higher education more accessible and affordable:
Today, Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member George Miller, Rep. Ruben Hinojosa, and Rep. John Tierney introduced the Workforce Investment Act of 2012.
President Obama’s announcement today of a National Network for Manufacturing Innovation represents a major step in our efforts to revitalize manufacturing in this country and remain the world’s innovation leader.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Report out today, February marked two years of consecutive month-to-month growth in private sector employment. This is a strong sign that our economy is recovering and that our country is on the right path forward. Last month the American economy added 233,000 private sector jobs. This is progress, but as long as millions of Americans remain out of work we cannot afford to let our focus shift away from those still out of work and trying hard to find jobs.
Our budgets reflect our values and the direction we want for this country in the year ahead – and for several years beyond. With our economic recovery gathering momentum, we ought to ensure that our budget for Fiscal Year 2013 strengthens that recovery and helps American businesses create jobs that grow our middle class.
Today the President announced measures to help businesses and consumers upgrade to advanced vehicles, moving us closer to energy independence and economic security. This initiative is one step our nation can take to maintain our edge in innovation, which is a key part of House Democrats’ Make It In America plan to create jobs and strengthen American manufacturing. Innovation, especially in clean energy technologies, will help fuel our long-term economic competitiveness and add jobs in new and expanding sectors. It is an essential component of the all-of-the-above energy strategy being pursued by the President and Democrats in Congress to ensure that this nation has sufficient energy available to meet its needs today and for many years to come.
Right now, Congress ought to be doing everything it can to help our businesses compete in the global marketplace so they can create jobs here in America. A big part of that is making sure they can also compete domestically. I have always believed that our workers create the best products, which will always do well when there is a level playing field, and when countries unfairly subsidize their companies exports, we must use all the WTO-consistent tools at our disposal to level that playing field.
Sustaining our economic recovery depends on American businesses, especially manufacturers, remaining globally competitive and able to continue investing in innovation and job growth. The President's proposal would lower the business tax rate by broadening the base through elimination of those loopholes that distort business decision making. It also goes hand in hand with House Democrats' Make It In America comprehensive jobs plan by providing incentives for manufacturing and research that will help us retain our role as the world's innovation leader. When we help manufacturers make their products here in America, it in turn helps create opportunities for more of our people to Make It In America.
Yesterday, President Obama unveiled his budget for fiscal year 2013, which builds on the Blueprint for an America Built to Last that he laid out in his State of the Union address. This Blueprint aims to strengthen the economy and create middle class jobs by bolstering the manufacturing sector, a bright spot in our economic recovery. This focus on manufacturing complements House Democrats’ Make It In America plan – a plan to create jobs by cultivating an encouraging environment for businesses to innovate and make products here in the U.S.