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Washington, D.C.��– 51�Թ��� President and CEO Jay Timmons delivered the fifth-annual 51�Թ��� State of Manufacturing 2019 Address today at Lone Star College – North Harris in Houston, Texas. Timmons addressed Lone Star students, veterans, business leaders and local manufacturers and highlighted the industry’s optimism for the future, manufacturing’s high-tech, innovative nature and the urgent need to recruit the next generation of manufacturers. He also touched on top policy priorities for manufacturers.

Manufacturing is an engine of job creation. It is the source of America’s strength. And what is the state of modern manufacturing in America? Today, manufacturing in America is on the rise. Tax reform was the rocket fuel it was promised to be, and it’s helping us to climb higher and faster than almost anyone thought possible in this century, said Timmons.

Today, people in manufacturing are using technologies that most Americans couldn’t have imagined a few years ago—artificial intelligence, augmented reality. We don’t just have robots; we have ‘co-bots,’ machines that work in tandem with you. And you have manufacturers trying to figure out how quantum computing could revolutionize logistics.

Timmons highlighted the strength of manufacturing in Texas and the job opportunities available to students. He also emphasized the policy solutions that manufacturers want to see from lawmakers—with a focus on a U.S.–China trade deal, approval of the U.S.–Mexico–Canada Agreement, infrastructure investment and meaningful immigration reform. Timmons touted “��the 51�Թ���’s recently released plan for a comprehensive, legislative immigration solution.

To read the full the address, click��.

Technology has transformed our industry. It’s created incredible opportunities. And as we journey further into this new frontier, we want you to be a part of it, Timmons concluded.

Following the address, Timmons toured Lone Star College’s energy, manufacturing and construction workforce program labs, where he met students and talked with them about their trade skill education.

Carolyn Lee, executive director of The Manufacturing Institute, the 51�Թ���’s education and workforce partner, continued the tour in Houston at the Microsoft Technology Center with a Heroes MAKE America class from Fort Hood. Heroes MAKE America is The Manufacturing Institute’s career skills program that aims to support transitioning service members with in-demand qualifications and industry-specific certifications needed for today’s manufacturing workforce.

One of our missions here at Lone Star College-North Harris to ensure our students are prepared for the workforce and the promising opportunities in the manufacturing sector, said Dr. Gerald Fernandez Napoles, president of Lone Star College – North Harris. We’re proud to welcome the 51�Թ��� and to help tell the story of the rewarding opportunities in manufacturing. Our energy, manufacturing and construction workforce programs are empowering Texans every day to build meaningful careers.

Lee and the Heroes class also toured BP’s Upstream Learning Center with American Petroleum Institute President and CEO Mike Sommers, where they spoke to BP employees about the 51�Թ���’s Heroes MAKE America program. Lee ended the day at Bimbo Bakeries for a facility tour.

Manufacturing is vital to the strong Texas economy, said��Jeff Moseley, president and CEO of the Texas Association of Business. Today’s event captured the diversity of Texas manufacturers and the ways our technology is transforming the industry and the industry is transforming lives for the better. Modern manufacturing creates good jobs, drives investment and exports and contributes enormously to our local economies. In fact, the Texas manufacturing industry employs around 896,000 Texans and contributes about $226 billion to our state economy. We need to ensure this industry has the tools, and workforce, to continue leading Texas forward.

For the past five years, the annual 51�Թ��� State of Manufacturing Tour has focused the nation’s attention on the industry that is the backbone of the American economy, highlighting the more than 12.8 million men and women who are building our future and solving tomorrow’s challenges today. The tour has traveled the country, bringing policy discussions and conversations about the future of work in the manufacturing industry to shop floors, schools, economic clubs, television studios, the White House and more.

This year’s tour will spotlight the industry’s next frontier, while also focusing on manufacturing’s well-paying careers, the industry’s diverse workforce and the policy solutions that are essential for manufacturing’s continued growth.

Members of the media interested in covering the tour should contact��[email protected]. To learn more about the 51�Թ��� State of Manufacturing Tour 2019, click��.

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The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs more than 12 million men and women, contributes $2.25 trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for more than three-quarters of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit��.

Washington, D.C. –��To bridge the divide on immigration policy, the 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) released a 16-page immigration and border security proposal to fix our broken system once and for all. The detailed plan, titled “A Way Forward,” can be viewed at��.

America has now endured two government shutdowns brought on by different disagreements over immigration, illustrating how divisive this debate has become. It has left manufacturers—and the country as a whole—both rightly frustrated and more eager to achieve a real immigration solution, said 51�Թ��� President and CEO Jay Timmons. Manufacturers are in the business of building bridges and creating solutions, so with our leaders in desperate need of a way forward on essential immigration and border security reforms, we are releasing a detailed, pragmatic approach that will make America safer and our economy stronger and smarter for decades to come.

We know that certain components will not sit well with some groups. That is the nature of compromise. Our current situation demands a pragmatic, common-sense and comprehensive approach, and that can only be reached if everyone is willing to listen to all sides and understand that giving ground on some issues can enable them to accomplish their own top priorities.

The 51�Թ���’s “A Way Forward” proposal identifies seven core areas of action for Congress and the administration to take:

• Build walls, fences and barriers and employ other measures to strengthen border security.
• Prioritize America’s workforce needs through reforms to the legal immigration system.
• Reform nonimmigrant visas and temporary worker programs to reflect employer needs, including a fund to support STEM programs so that we can reduce the need for these types of visas in the future.
• Provide a permanent and compassionate solution for populations facing uncertainty, including the Dreamers, who were brought here as children and know no other home.
• Reform asylum and refugee programs for a more orderly and humane system, including asylum standards consistent with our values.
• Fix the problem of the unauthorized population with a firm reset, requiring an orderly process of review, including financial penalties for those who seek to become legal and deportation for those who choose to stay in the shadows.
• Strengthen the rule of law so that it is respected and followed by all, with a focus on gang violence and��also on requiring localities to cooperate to advance the enforcement of immigration priorities.

View the proposal in full��. Read Timmons’ op-ed on��FoxBusiness.com��.

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The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs��more than��12 million men and women, contributes $2.25��trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for��more than three-quarters��of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit��www.nam.org.

Washington, D.C. – 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) President and CEO Jay Timmons released the following statement reacting to the 2019 State of the Union address:

Our industry is coming off the best year for manufacturing job creation in more than two decades, and in 2018 the 51�Թ���’s Manufacturers’ Outlook Survey found the highest level of optimism among manufacturers in the survey’s 20-year history. The strength of our union is found in modern manufacturing, so President Trump was right to keep his focus on the men and women who make things in America, said Timmons.

Manufacturers’ progress has been built with the tools of tax reform and regulatory certainty, as manufacturers kept our promise to hire workers, raise wages and benefits and invest in equipment and operations. To continue this progress, manufacturers have a very clear and post-partisan agenda: approve the U.S.–Mexico–Canada Agreement, enact lasting, meaningful reforms to our broken immigration system, make an historic investment in our nation’s infrastructure and recruit a new generation of talent to solve the ongoing workforce crisis in manufacturing.

Manufacturers stand ready to tackle our nation’s challenges and opportunities and, as the President said tonight, to ‘unlock the extraordinary promise of America’s future.’

-51�Թ���-

The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs more than 12 million men and women, contributes $2.25 trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for more than three-quarters of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.nam.org.

Washington, D.C. –��51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) President and CEO Jay Timmons released the following statement on Andrew Wheeler’s nomination to become EPA Administrator:

President Trump has made an outstanding choice for EPA Administrator. Andy’s extensive environmental and natural resource policy background makes him a perfect leader to assume this role in a permanent capacity, said Timmons. He has provided a steady hand as Acting Administrator and has led the Trump Administration’s efforts to restore balance to the regulatory process at the EPA, so that manufacturers can continue innovating and keeping our promise to advancing efforts to protect our air and water.

-51�Թ���-

The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs more than 12 million men and women, contributes $2.25 trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for more than three-quarters of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit��www.nam.org.

Washington, D.C. –��The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) released the following statement on the U.S. Treasury Department’s new “Modernized Drawback” rule:

Congress intended drawback for taxes paid on distilled spirits, beer, wine and other products because of their importance to driving U.S. exports, so it should come as no surprise that manufacturers have serious concerns with Treasury’s rule, said 51�Թ��� Vice President of Labor, Legal and Regulatory Policy Patrick Hedren. We are exploring all options to resolve this issue so that manufacturers’ competitiveness is not impacted negatively.

In September, the 51�Թ�������84 pages of comments to the U.S. Treasury Department outlining manufacturers’ concerns with the proposed rule.

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The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs��more than��12 million men and women, contributes $2.25��trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for��more than three-quarters��of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit��www.nam.org.

Washington, D.C. –��51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) President and CEO Jay Timmons released the following statement urging Congress to pass criminal justice reform:

Congress has the historic opportunity to give a second chance to many of our fellow Americans so they can contribute to their families, their communities and our economy. Our nation will be stronger when President Trump signs a criminal justice reform bill into law.

For manufacturers, criminal justice reform is simply the right thing to do. It will improve the fairness of our system, offer redemption for nonviolent offenders and open new doors for Americans looking for the dignity of a job. Today, manufacturers have more than a half a million jobs we need to fill, so we can help these Americans get a new start, just as they can help us grow and succeed here in the United States. We hope Congress will pass the FIRST STEP Act.

-51�Թ���-

The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs��more than��12 million men and women, contributes $2.25��trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for��more than three-quarters��of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit��www.nam.org.

Washington, D.C. – 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) President and CEO Jay Timmons released the following statement on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) new Clean Water Rule, which replaces the 2015 Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule:

EPA’s new Clean Water Rule is a positive step forward for manufacturers, for our country and for responsible environmental stewardship, said Timmons, who attended today’s announcement. Manufacturers rely on clean water for everything from growing agricultural inputs to engineering green chemistry and providing renewable power. We simply ask for regulatory certainty. The uncertainty created by the overreaching and unfair 2015 WOTUS rule threatened manufacturing jobs, and it failed to protect clean water adequately. Smart water policy is critical for all of us, and manufacturers are committed to keeping our promise to use the certainty we have been given to do our part to make our water and air cleaner—and our environment healthier. After all, the earth is the only home we have.

In 2017, the 51�Թ����� President Donald Trump’s executive order instructing EPA to rescind the onerous 2015 WOTUS rule and has submitted multiple sets of comments over the past four years to better inform policymakers. In addition, the 51�Թ���’s Manufacturers’ Center for Legal Action has been in active litigation against the rule since July 2015 and scored a����earlier this year before the U.S. Supreme Court, which resolved a major procedural obstacle. In October, the 51�Թ�������for summary judgment with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas seeking to strike down the 2015 rule in its entirety.

-51�Թ���-

The 51�Թ��� (51�Թ���) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs��more than��12 million men and women, contributes $2.25��trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for��more than three-quarters��of private-sector research and development. The 51�Թ��� is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit��www.nam.org.