EAST GREENBUSH, N.Y. – Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Congressman Paul Tonko have announced new federal legislation on Monday, aimed at helping increase high-tech firms manufacturing in the Capital Region, called the "Made in America Manufacturing Act."
The event, held at X-Ray Optical Systems in East Greenbush, Sen. Gillibrand introduced her first bill in the new Congress. She said this legislation would create a federal funding competition that encourages regional public–private partnerships to develop strategies that spur growth for local manufacturing industries, particularly in the fields of clean-tech and high-tech manufacturing, and train workers with the skills that businesses need.
Gillibrand says New York
State has been crippled by manufacturing employment loss, with over 123,000
manufacturing jobs lost since 2005. In the Capital Region, an estimated 5,599
manufacturing jobs were lost from 2005 to 2010. However, high-tech manufacturing
in the Capital Region increased by over 9 percent from 2004 to
2008.
To bolster more
growth in New York manufacturing, the bill would create a competitive program that awards
states and regions with funding to support local manufacturers to build new facilities and upgrade equipment, funding for job training, access to
capital and technical assistance to develop exporting opportunities, and to
connect innovative small suppliers with larger companies.
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