NEMWI Releases Manufacturing Legislative Tracker As Part of Manufacturing Week

NEMWI today released its Manufacturing Legislative Tracker updated to September 2023 as it marks Manufacturing Week.

Since Congress reconvened following its August recess, there has been some progress with currently pending bills relating to the manufacturing sector, as well as the introduction of three pertinent new bills. 

The Securing Semiconductor Supply Chains Act passed in the House. This bill, along with the CHIPS Act of 2022, would serve to bolster U.S. semiconductor manufacturing capabilities and to better compete with the behemoth production capabilities in Asia. 

The Global Investment in American Jobs Act passed the House as well and was received on the Senate floor at the end of July. This bill would create a review process to analyze critical sectors of the economy and their attractiveness to foreign direct investments. 

Among the new bills introduced is the Agriculture Right to Repair Act. This represents a longstanding battle to grant consumers more rights in servicing and maintaining their agriculture equipment by making replacement parts accessible, affordable, and compatible with self-assembly. Historically, manufacturer-imposed repair restrictions led to costly delays, exorbitant repair bills, and unnecessary frustrations for farmers. This bill represents a big step forward in reducing arbitrary costs and promoting consumer rights. 

Also among the newly introduced bills is the Critical Infrastructure Manufacturing Feasibility Act which would seek high-demand products in critical infrastructure sectors and evaluate if domestic manufacturing would be a viable alternative to importing foreign products. This self-check is a healthy step in bolstering U.S. industry and in eliminating inefficiencies in the supply chain. 

Another newly introduced bill is the REDUCE Act of 2023 which would implement an excise tax on nonrecycled, virgin plastics imported into the U.S. This bill demonstrates a commitment to reducing the introduction of new plastics into the ecosystem and would incentivize companies to prioritize recycled materials or alternative solutions to plastic needs. 

A link to the updated Manufacturing Legislative Tracker is here.

White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council Issues Recommendations on Carbon

Management Technology

The White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council (WHEJAC) met Tuesday, September 26, to discuss the environmental justice implications of carbon management technologies and voted to issue a set of precautionary recommendations consistent with the Biden administration’s “whole-of-government” approach to environmental justice issues. 

White House advisory councils are groups of experts that provide advice and guidance to the President on a wide range of policy issues, from healthcare to manufacturing and everything in between. The WHEJAC was established in January 2021 by Executive Order 14008 and is charged with “provid[ing] advice and recommendations to the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) and the White House Environmental Justice Interagency Council on how to address current and historic environmental injustices.” 

WHEJAC’s carbon management work-group, chaired by Dr. Beverly White and Latricia Adams, presented its findings to the Council and members of the general public, emphasizing that the development of carbon management technology (including sequestration, direct air capture, CCS, CCUS, and others) presents disproportionate harm for Black, Brown, and environmental justice communities. The work-group proposed five recommendations to curtail this harm, and all five recommendations were approved unanimously by the Council. These policy recommendations include: 1) encourage the Biden administration to halt development of this technology; 2) clarify language used to describe individual technologies; 3) instruct federal agencies to conduct a thorough review of the scientific literature; 4) improve language used to convey the known and unknown risks of carbon management; and 5) solicit informed consent from affected communities. 

While WHEJAC members acknowledged the sweeping nature of their first recommendation, the Council maintains that experimental carbon management technology is hazardous and serves only to “reinforce the cycle of dependency on the fossil fuels industry.” 

Meetings like these constitute an important step in separating carbon management fact from fiction, but reports issued by WHEJAC and other White House advisory councils are merely suggestive and do not always correlate to concrete policy change. WHEJAC is finalizing the language used in its report to the President and the agenda for a public meeting in December. 

Reported by NEMWI Intern Ethan Groboski, Brown University

House Committee Holds Hearing on Clean Water Infrastructure Funding

The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure’s Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment held a hearing last Thursday, September 28, to evaluate clean water financing for state and local communities. The purpose of the hearing, as highlighted by Subcommittee Chairman David Rouzer (R-NC), was to better understand how to protect clean water and wastewater infrastructure, while being better able to assess the effect of current legislation regarding Clean Water State Revolving Funds (SRFs)—low-interest and federally-subsidized loans provided for investments in water infrastructure. 

Among the panelists testifying was Lori Johnson, who serves as the Assistant Chief of the Financial Assistance Division for the Oklahoma Water Resources Board, and testified on behalf of the Council of Infrastructure Financing Authorities. Johnson emphasized how the SRF program has generated over $160 billion in financial assistance, funding over 46,000 clean water projects. However, she expressed her concerns with recent developments such as Congressional earmark programs that divert funding away from base Clean Water SRF funding that would otherwise go directly to the states. Johnson concludes that Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) provisions have provided supplemental funding for SRFs, but more needs to be done to ensure the safety of this program. 

Todd Swingle, who serves as the CEO of Toho Water Facilities, testified on behalf of the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA), corroborated the claim that the SRF program is crucial to maintaining critical infrastructure, but that the IIJA’s $11.7 billion investment to that program, while instrumental in helping states upgrade facilities, was just a one-time infusion. He called for further annual appropriations that would ensure the long-term viability of the SRFs.

James Proctor II, who serves as Senior Vice President at McWane, Inc., testified on behalf of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, brought a new perspective, arguing that existing regulations like the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law—which authorizes the SRF funding for five years—imposes short deadlines that jeopardize the ability for states to fully utilize the funding resources which Congress has made available. Additionally, he contended that vague environmental regulations from the EPA regarding PFAS create delays that endanger the financial stability of clean water infrastructure. 

Rebecca Hammer, Deputy Director at the National Resources Defense Council, provided a list of recommendations to the subcommittee, echoing the sentiments of the other panelists. She underscored the importance of maintaining SRF funding levels, creating a direct channel between the EPA and Clean Water SRF managers to ensure compliance, and providing a permanent federal water and sewer assistance program on top of additional funding for the existing Low-Income Housing Water Assistance Program.  

To watch a recording of the hearing, please visit here.  

Reported by NEMWI Intern James Li, Brown University

Senate Committee Holds Hearing on Addressing Beverage Container Waste

The U.S. Senate Committee on the Environment and Public Works (EPW) Subcommittee on Chemical Safety, Waste Management, Environmental Justice, and Regulatory Oversight held a hearing last Thursday, September 28, on establishing a national deposit return system for beverages. The purpose of the hearing, as highlighted by Subcommittee Chairman Jeff Merkley (D-OR), was to evaluate the effect of a national deposit return system (DRS) on increasing recycling rates, creating jobs, and reducing costs associated with litter and environmental cleanup. 

Among the panelists testifying was Susan Collins, President of the Container Recycling Institute, who emphasized the decades of data demonstrating that deposit return systems are the single most effective solution to increasing recycling rates, reducing marine debris, and decreasing landfill costs. Beverage container sales have grown dramatically over the past decade, while recycling rates have remained stagnant over the same time. A DRS would create redemption centers where customers would return beverage containers for a refund on a deposit paid during the initial purchase. This system is unique in that there is no comingling of different materials or contamination with nonrecyclable items that plague conventional recycling methods. Most importantly, the costs associated with a DRS are not supported by taxes, like traditional municipal recycling, but by retailers upon returning the recyclable containers.  

Jules Bailey, President of the Oregon Beverage Recycling Cooperative, also weighed in on the innovative system of DRS. He said that DRS would incentivize industries to promote recycling programs, while not relying on taxpayer funding. Furthermore, stores could take the unclaimed refunds and use the funds to finance expansions and improvements of such a system. He cited Oregon where a curbside recycling program often returns less than 40 percent of beverage material, while DRS has demonstrated a greater than 90 percent redemption rate. 

Steve Alexander, President of the Association of Plastic Recyclers, presented an alternative view. He argued that curbside recycling works but more needs to be done to bolster traditional systems. He listed three priorities: 1) plastics must be better designed to be recycled; 2) recycling needs to be convenient and accessible; and 3) manufacturing needs to adhere to greater standards regarding materials used and recyclability. According to Alexander, focusing on the recycling systems that most Americans already use is the more effective way to increase recycling rates. 

You can watch a recording of the video here. 

Reported by NEMWI Intern James Li, Brown University

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