9.21.05
HOUSE PASSES COMMITTEE LEGISLATION TO STRENGTHEN MANUFACTURING SECTOR Amendment to Assist Manufacturers Impacted by Katrina is Adopted

WASHINGTON, D.C., September 21, 2005 - By a vote of 394 to 24, the House of Representatives today passed Science Committee legislation that would strengthen the nation's manufacturing sector, helping keep good paying manufacturing jobs here in the U.S. The House also voted to adopt an amendment, offered by Science Committee Chairman Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY) that would provide direct assistance to manufacturers affected by Hurricane Katrina.

The bill, H.R. 250, Manufacturing Technology Competitiveness Act of 2005, would help improve the competitiveness of U.S. manufacturers by providing grants to help develop new manufacturing technologies; establishing a fellowship program for manufacturing sciences postdoctoral and senior research fellows; reauthorizing the Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program at the National Science Foundation (NSF); and reauthorizing and strengthening the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) program at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), which helps small and medium-sized manufacturers respond to the extraordinary challenges they face from globalization. MEP has been credited with saving and creating thousands of jobs nationally.

The legislation, which was introduced by Environment, Technology, and Standards Subcommittee Chairman Vernon Ehlers (R-MI), passed the House last year by voice vote. The current version of the bill was approved by the Science Committee on May 4.

Ehlers said, "Globalization is rapidly changing the way business is done, and our small and medium-sized firms in particular are at the mercy of this process and the exposure to increased competition it brings. For our firms to compete today and in the future, I have been told we need more research and development into how to manufacture things better, faster, and cheaper. This legislation will increase our capacity to create jobs in the U.S."

"It's easy to see why this bill has garnered such overwhelming support. It deals with a real problem by bolstering successful programs and authorizing innovative new approaches based on those programs," said Science Committee Chairman Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY). "The problem the bill addresses is the decline of U.S. manufacturing. Our nation needs a diverse economy, and that economy must include manufacturing. We can't be wholly dependent on others for the goods that enable American families and American businesses to function. Manufacturing provides high paying jobs and helps us hone our technical edge. Yet the signs of manufacturing decline are all around us."

H.R. 250 was considered under a rule that made five amendments in order. Three of the amendments were agreed to and two were defeated. The House also defeated a Democratic motion to recommit.

By voice vote, the House agreed to a Boehlert amendment that would require the MEP program to assist small and medium-sized manufacturing firms affected by Hurricane Katrina. The amendment, which was based on a proposal by Representative Charlie Melancon (D-LA), would also require NIST to study the effects of Katrina on buildings to determine if changes to building codes should be recommended. "In short, this amendment instructs NIST to take reasonable, affordable steps to help the victims of Katrina and to prevent losses from future storms," Boehlert said.

Also by voice vote, the House agreed to an amendment offered by Science Committee Ranking Minority Member Bart Gordon (D-TN) that would require NIST to develop a three-year programmatic and operation plan for MEP.

The House passed by a vote of 416 to 8, an amendment offered by Representative Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX) that would require ATE funding to be made available to minority-serving institutions.

By a vote of 210 to 213, the House defeated an amendment by Representative John Larson (D-CT) that would have created two new positions at the Department of Commerce: an Undersecretary and an Assistant Secretary for Manufacturing and Technology.

Urging the amendment's defeat, Boehlert said, "The way to help manufacturers isn't by creating more bureaucracy in downtown Washington; what we need to do is to fund programs that help manufacturers. That's what this bill would do by aiding the successful programs at NIST." Moreover, Boehlert said, the Administration had already created a new Assistant Secretary for Manufacturing.

The House also defeated, by a vote of 210 to 212, an amendment by Representative Mark Udall (D-CO) that would have increased the bill's authorization for the ATE program by 70 percent above current funding levels. Boehlert pointed out during floor debate that the legislation already increased funding for ATE by 33 percent over current levels, adding, "In the current budget climate, I think 33 percent is quite generous."

By a vote of 196 to 226, the House also rejected a motion to recommit offered by Representative Mike Honda (D-CA) that would have sent H.R. 250 back to the Science Committee with instructions to include authorizing language for ATP. "The vote on this motion is not a vote for ATP, it's a vote to kill a bill that will help American manufacturers," Boehlert said, adding that he personally supports ATP. "Now, when we're on the verge of accomplishing our mutual goal of helping manufacturers, we have before us a motion that would kill this bill. That's not speculation. We know that disputes over ATP are why this bill died in the Senate in the last Congress. We know that the Administration adamantly opposes ATP and will block the progress of this bill if ATP is included."