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JOHN KERRY’S PLAN TO REVIVE THE MANUFACTURING SECTOR
(1) TAX BREAKS TO ENCOURAGE MANUFACTURERS TO STAY IN THE U.S. AND TO CREATE NEW JOBS. The Bush Administration has done nothing to end incentives that encourage manufacturers to move their jobs overseas. John Kerry believes that we should not only get rid of these incentives, but that we should give new tax breaks to companies that stay in the U.S. and create new jobs. He would:
• Stop Incentives to Move American Jobs Abroad. John Kerry will save jobs by ending the unpatriotic practice of U.S. corporations moving jobs offshore (known as inversions) to avoid paying their fair share of taxes. He also believes that these inverters should not get government contracts or any other perks or incentives from the government.
• Give Tax Breaks to Manufacturers in America. John Kerry supports efforts to promote manufacturing and provide incentives to keep manufacturing in the U.S. That’s why he supports the Crane-Rangel-Hollings legislation, which provides a corporate rate reduction to manufacturers who produce goods in the U.S.
• A New Manufacturing Jobs Credit. John Kerry has proposed a new jobs tax credit to encourage manufacturing companies to stay and expand in America. When a manufacturing company creates jobs above their 12 month employment average, the payroll taxes of the new employees will be refunded for two years.
(2) STRONG ENFORCEABLE TRADE THAT WORKS FOR AMERICA. The Bush Administration has not cracked down on countries that are avoiding trade laws or manipulating currency. President Bush has supported cutting funds for trade enforcement, despite the fact that we need more enforcement of trade laws to stop the manufacturing job drain. Some Democrats pretend that we can close our doors to the global economy. John Kerry believes we need strong leadership to assure that the global economy works for America.
• Assure Trading Partners Play by the Rules. Some nations have consistently violated agreements by the World Trade Organization. They have taken unfair actions to block U.S auto companies from selling in their markets. Many products from China are counterfeit or don’t meet industry standards. While this Administration has not used the remedies available under the World Trade Organization to crack down on these violations and help U.S industries, John Kerry would.
• Stop Countries from Manipulating Currency. China, Japan and other nations have purposely kept their currency undervalued relative to the U.S. dollar to promote exports in the United States and undermine U.S. products abroad. John Kerry believes we must use the full force of the World Trade Organization to take on countries that are manipulating their currency to undermine U.S. exports.
• Enforce and Strengthen Intellectual Property Protections. In the 21st economy, the U.S. relies more heavily on international partnerships and joint ventures. Intellectual property protections are essential in this environment so that companies can share their technology without losing control of it.
• Break Down Barriers in Key Export Markets.This Administration has done little to open key export markets in places like Japan and Korea. Some countries use non-tariff barriers, such as making it difficult to access finance or have obscure investment requirements, to undermine U.S. exports. For example, auto exports to Japan are still essentially blocked by complicated rules. John Kerry would use all the available tools, including Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act, WTO remedies, and diplomatic measures to open these markets.
• Review Existing Trade Agreements. John Kerry will also order an immediate 120 day review of all existing trade agreements to ensure that our trade partners are living up to their labor and environment obligations and that trade agreements are enforceable and are balanced for America’s workers. He will consider necessary steps if they are not. And John Kerry will not sign any new trade agreements until the review is complete and its recommendations put in place. He believes all new trade agreements must have strong labor and environmental standards.
(3) ASSURE A STRONG MANUFACTURING SECTOR FOR THE FUTURE. John Kerry believes we must keep manufacturing strong, as it is one of our most productive sectors and it is critical to the U.S. economy. In fact, every $1.00 in final demand for manufacturing products creates $2.43 in output, including demand for intermediate goods and services in other sectors.
• Tax Incentives and Subsidies to Develop Energy Efficient Products: Kerry will create hundreds of thousands of manufacturing jobs by investing in the new energy opportunities of the future. Kerry has a plan to provide tax credits and subsidies to manufacturers to develop the next generation of automobiles and new energy efficient appliances for homes and businesses.
• Double the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP). We know that the MEP helps make American manufacturers competitive. Yet this Administration has proposed to cut it nearly 90 percent. John Kerry believes we should invest in things that work, and has proposed to double funding for the MEP. John Kerry would also create Manufacturing Development Centers to help improve manufacturing. Finally, he would make it easier for small manufacturers to get loans and encourage investment by getting rid of capital gains tax for equity investments in small businesses.
• Assure Better Training and Retraining Programs for Manufacturing Workers. To keep the manufacturing sector healthy and strong, America needs a workforce with cutting edge skills, training, and knowledge. Kerry would: (1) in order to assure that are sufficient numbers of highly skilled workers, Kerry supports providing assistance for workers in declining industries to upgrade or develop necessary skills, and providing community-based grants to help train or retrain workers; (2) assure adequate Trade Adjustment Assistance to help workers transition; (3) encourage students studying engineering, computers, and other high-tech fields to work in the manufacturing sector by repaying a portion of student loans if they do; and (4) encourage better math and science instruction in our schools to assure more students have the skills to help the manufacturing sector grow.
(4) RELIEF FOR MANUFACTURERS THAT PROVIDE QUALITY HEALTH CARE AND RETIREMENT. Simply having employers absorb rising health care costs puts U.S. manufacturers at an impossible competitive disadvantage with overseas producers. General Motors estimated that as much as $1200 of each car sold goes towards health care costs and often labor negotiations are consumed by just maintaining health care coverage. John Kerry’s health care plan takes on the cost of health care by:
• Supporting a Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit That Rewards Retiree Coverage. Prescription drugs coverage consumes about 40% to 60% of the cost of retiree coverage. But under the drug benefit plan before Congress, employer coverage would not count towards the expenditures needed to reach the catastrophic cap. CBO has estimated that will cause about one-third of beneficiaries who would otherwise have coverage to lose it. John Kerry believes we need a quality affordable prescription drug benefit to relieve employers and employees from high drug costs by counting retiree coverage toward any cost-sharing.
• Controlling the Cost of Health Care - Saving Workers Up to $1,000 on Health Care. John Kerry believes that we need to stop the spiraling cost of health care to assure our employers can stay competitive in the global economy and so our families can afford health care. Four-tenths of one percent of claims accounted for nearly 20 percent of expenses private insurers. John Kerry has proposed a new 'premium rebate' pool that will give companies and insurers that guarantee a pass-through of the savings to their workers through reduced premiums, a reimbursement for 75 percent of catastrophic costs above $50,000. This would save up to $1000 for a family premium.
• Cutting Greed to Bring Down Rx Prices. Pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) process hundreds of millions of pharmaceutical claims per year, giving them a great deal of leverage in the market. They often get financial rebates or other savings they do not pass on to consumers. John Kerry’s plan would require transparency rules for PBMs that do business with the Federal government to clearly show what savings they are receiving from the industry and from bulk purchasing.
• Don’t Penalize Manufacturers With Pension Laws. Many manufacturers provide their employees with defined benefit pension plans – which assures workers dependable predictable income at retirement. However, under current law, manufacturers are required to set aside unrealistically high reserves to meet future obligations to their workers. These are resources that manufacturers could use to invest in new technologies, new plants, and hiring or advanced training for workers. John Kerry supports basing the law on a realistic long-term rate.
http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/releases/pr_2003_1021.html |
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