NEMWI Logo

             WEEKLY UPDATE April 28, 2014  

In This Issue
Briefing: Why America Needs the Revitalize American Manufacturing and Innovation Act, April 29
NEMWI's Elin Betanzo Appointed to Federal Advisory Committee on Water Information
Briefing: Trade Adjustment Assistance for Firms, May 1
Great Lakes Governors Announce Efforts to Improve Economy and Environment



QUICK LINKS 
 
Northeast-Midwest Institute

Mississippi River Basin Blog

News



Join Our Mailing List

Briefing: Why America Needs the "Revitalize American Manufacturing and Innovation Act," April 29

 

The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation--a non-partisan, non-profit technology and economic policy think tank--will host a briefing on the bipartisan Revitalize American Manufacturing and Innovation (RAMI) Act (H.R. 2996) on Tuesday, April 29 at 1pm in the Cannon House Office Building (402). The RAMI legislation, co-sponsored by NEMW Congressional Coalition Co-Chairs Reps. Mike Kelly (PA-3) and Jim McGovern (MA-2), supports public-private partnerships between the federal government, local governments, universities, research institutes, and industry to accelerate manufacturing innovation in technologies with commercial applications by leveraging resources to bridge the gap between basic research performed at U.S. universities and research laboratories and product development by U.S. manufacturers. The briefing will feature three private-sector speakers presenting about the important role RAMI is poised to play in enhancing U.S. industrial competitiveness by supporting development of technologies that will enable U.S. manufacturers to develop the cutting edge technologies needed to compete in the global marketplace. Register here

NEMW Senate Coalition Co-Chair Sen. Sherrod Brown (OH) introduced RAMI's companion bill (S.1468), which passed out of the Senate Commerce Committee earlier this month. 

 

For more information, contact Colleen Cain, Senior Policy Analyst at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.

NEMWI's Elin Betanzo Appointed to Federal Advisory Committee on Water Information 

 

NEMWI Senior Policy Analyst Elin Betanzo was appointed to the Advisory Committee on Water Information (ACWI) for a four year term. The ACWI is an active partnership to assist all levels of government to meet water resources information requirements effectively and economically. Water information is essential to effective natural resources management and environmental protection. Elin leads the project "Toward Sustainable Water Information" for NEMWI, investigating the ability of the region's water monitoring systems to support policy decisions on emerging water quality issues. Elin will use these complimentary roles to shine a light on water data availability and utility within the region and bring suggestions to the national stage for implementation.

 

For more information, contact Elin Betanzo, Senior Policy Analyst at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.

Briefing: Trade Adjustment Assistance for Firms, May 1

 

The American Business Council, Inc., in coordination with the NEMW Congressional Manufacturing Task Force, will host a briefing on the Trade Adjustment Assistance for Firms (TAAF) program this Thursday, May 1 at 1:30pm in Rayburn House Office Building (B-318). The federal TAAF program within the U.S. Department of Commerce provides financial assistance to manufacturers affected by import competition by covering half the cost of consultants or industry-specific experts for projects that improve a manufacturer's competitiveness. Briefing speakers include representatives from: the American Business Council; two Trade Adjustment Assistance Centers (Midwest and MidAtlantic), and two NEMW region businesses (C. Cretors and Company, and Wendell August Forge).

 

For more information and to RSVP, contact Sam Breene, Legislative Director of the Northeast-Midwest Congressional Coalition.

Great Lakes Governors Announce Efforts to Improve Economy and Environment

 

At the annual executive meeting of the Council of Great Lakes Governors (Chicago, April 25-26), the Great Lakes Governors and Premiers of Ontario and Quebec continued progress on commitments from a 2013 meeting on Mackinac Island focused on restoring the Great Lakes environment and economy. On Mackinac Island, Co-Chairs Govs. Pat Quinn (IL) and Rick Snyder (MI) recommitted to restore, revitalize and protect the economy and the environment,noting there is no trade-off between the two in the Great Lakes region. At the meeting, the governors and premiers announced a comprehensive strategy to improve maritime and multi-model transportation, an initiative to bring direct investment to the Great Lakes region from China and other foreign countries, a mutual aid agreement to assist in combating the introduction and spread of aquatic invasive species, and improving water monitoring across the basin. These efforts follow on the eight resolutions adopted at the 2013 meeting on Mackinac Island, highlighting the region's need to work together to enhance the region's competitiveness in the global economy in terms of economic opportunity and quality of life. 

NEMWI work supports many of the governors' and premiers' efforts, including: the Great Lakes Washington Program, which works to highlight federal policy opportunities to support the region; the Great Ships Initiative, which performs ballast water testing to prevent invasive species introductions; and the Toward Sustainable Water Information program, which reviews the status of water monitoring data and infrastructure in the region and assesses whether it is sufficient to answer policy questions on nutrient loading and oil and gas exploration.


For more information, contact Danielle Chesky, Director of the Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.


The Northeast-Midwest Institute: 
Taking the Rust out of the Rust Belt!