SOURCE: Center for American Progress
CAP Senior Economist Heather Boushey testifies before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means. Read the full testimony (CAP Action)
Thank you Chairman Camp and Ranking Member Levin for inviting me here today to testify on the effects of tax policy on the U.S. manufacturing sector. My name is Heather Boushey and I’m a Senior Economist at the Center for American Progress Action Fund.
The U.S. manufacturing sector is and will remain vital to our nation’s economic prosperity. The rise of American industry made the United States the wealthiest and strongest nation on earth, provided the foundation for a strong middle class, and fueled critical breakthroughs in innovation and technology that transformed our lives and produced previously unimaginable achievements, from the invention of Henry Ford’s assembly line to the landing of a man on the moon.
I want to make a two key points in my testimony today:
First, manufacturing is not only a key part of our economy, but moving forward it will remain critical to our nation’s economic vitality. A strong manufacturing industry supports solid, middle-class jobs; enables our nation to be a leader in technology and innovation; and can help us address our trade deficit. Economic research is showing that manufacturing is critical to our economic future.
Second, there are a variety of ways that policymakers can support manufacturing, of which reforming the corporate tax code is one piece of the puzzle. Manufacturers make their investment decisions based on a variety of factors, not only the level of taxation. The research is clear that any set of policies aimed at supporting U.S. manufacturing should include investments in education and training, infrastructure, basic and applied research and development, and improvements to basic data collection.
CAP Senior Economist Heather Boushey testifies before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means. Read the full testimony (CAP Action)