Manufacturers Day at the Capitol Rooted in Principles to Protect Jobs
Texas Insider Report: AUSTIN Texas The long-term viability of the Texas economy depends on manufacturers ability to continue to invest here & grow jobs" said Luke Bellsnyder executive director of the Texas Association of Manufacturers (TAM) urging lawmakers to think long-term when addressing the budget shortfallm while maintaining an environment to anchor the Texas economy.
TAM also announced its 2011 legislative priorities which are rooted in the Associations policy principles designed to protect and grow high quality manufacturing jobs.
We need sound public policy designed to fortify our economy attract new opportunities and protect high quality manufacturing jobs" Bellsnyder said.
TAM urges lawmakers to embrace future-minded policy that maintains our competitive edge sustains a broad-based low-rate tax system and supports a predictable regulatory environment."
Bellsnyder described a manufacturing industry under duress.
More than 100000 Texas manufacturing workers have lost their jobs since the last legislative session. While manufacturing is showing signs of a rebound
adding more jobs than other sectors the state of our recovery is tenuous at best. Its more important than ever for lawmakers to do no harm to the economic drivers in the state" he said.
We look forward to working with lawmakers to develop innovative ideas to help keep Texas strong. Together we must see around corners ferret out opportunity and avoid unintended consequences that could threaten jobs and stifle economic growth" he said. (TAMs complete policy principles are listed below.)
Bellsnyder noted that Texas is attractive to new investment because of several successful economic development initiatives like the High Cost Gas Tax Credit and the Texas Economic Development Act (also known as Chapter 313).
TAM is urging lawmakers to protect the High Cost Gas Investment Tax Credit which generates four dollars of economic growth for every dollar invested and creates nearly 40000 direct jobs a year.
Investments in advanced technologies have opened vast natural gas reserves in Texas creating thousands of jobs" he said. In fact the Comptrollers Biennial Revenue Estimate recently cited the oil and gas sector among the few bright spots in the Texas economy. We need to be mindful of initiatives like the High Cost Gas Tax Credit that are encouraging growth in an otherwise down economy."
Chapter 313 which allows school districts to offer tax incentives to attract economic development projects was part of the economic development packages that attracted the likes of Toyota in San Antonio. The Chapter 313 program includes 90 projects involving $40 billion of new investment and an estimated 5600 high-paying jobs.
With regard to energy TAM has long supported the development of market-based and cost effective generation sources. Carefully crafted fuel diversity is
necessary for Texas future and weve been encouraged by promising proposals at the Capitol" said Bellsnyder.
However as Texas lawmakers investigate ways to diversify our fuel mix we urge them to keep reliability and affordability at the forefront of their discussions. Increasing energy costs in the current economic climate would siphon away scarce resources and threaten job creation."
TAM also supports maintaining the structural integrity of the new margins tax while seeking some technical clarifications.
The existing broad-based low-rate tax out-performs the previous Franchise Tax and brought in revenues closer to projections than did property or sales taxes over the current biennium" said Bellsnyder.
We urge the Legislature to resist changing fundamental components of the margins tax."
In describing TAMs environmental priorities Bellsnyder observed that The State of Texas particularly the manufacturing and energy sectors is under assault by the Environmental Protection Agency. Texas lawmakers can do their part to keep Texas attractive to new investment and jobs by ensuring that our regulatory structure is predictable reasonable and stable."
Lawmakers should be prepared this session to fend off efforts to codify in Texas law overreaches by the federal government and proposals that include mandates that demand technologies that do not yet exist. Similar mandates that have served to cripple economies in other states like California" he said.
TAM has also taken a policy position on workforce development issues. Even in a down economy manufacturing jobs for skilled workers go unfilled because of a lack of qualified candidates" said Bellsnyder.
Lawmakers can help Texas manufacturers by maintaining and implementing programs that increase flexibility for students best served by a career and technology graduation plan. Rigorous career and technology education - with dual credit availability and continued focus on Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) - will prepare todays students to become tomorrows manufacturing workers."
Finally TAM supports the establishment of a sales tax exemption on research and development (R&D) materials and equipment. Manufacturers are responsible for half of all private sector research and development and an R&D sales tax exemption would make Texas even more attractive to new employers" said Bellsnyder.
TAMs complete policy principles are listed below and are available online at
www.manufacturetexas.org.
Texas Association of Manufacturers Policy Principles
ENERGY
Manufacturers are by far the largest consumers of electricity in the State of Texas. The rising cost of energy continues to play a pivotal role in capital investment location decisions across the nation and the globe.
TAM supports policy initiatives that:
- Encourage the development of market-based and cost effective generation sources that will provide Texas with greater fuel diversity; including market-based cost-effective renewable sources.
- Expand Texas natural gas supplies through exploration and other means (such as liquefied natural gas).
- Require an appropriate sharing of transmission infrastructure costs between producers and consumers of electricity. TAM will seek limits to or cap the current scope of the Competitive Renewable Energy Zones (CREZ) transmission line costs.
- Streamline the generation facility permit processes to encourage more timely expansion of cost-effective energy supplies.
- Remove barriers for and encourage the development of market-based cost-effective load response programs.
- Rededicate the System Benefit Fund" for its statutory purpose.
- Provide accurate consumer cost fiscal notes for all energy related initiatives and proposals.
ENVIRONMENT
Texas manufacturers have been working diligently over several decades to improve air quality in Texas and are leading innovators in technologies to protect and improve the environment.
AIR
TAM supports policy initiatives that:
- Maintain current ongoing initiatives which have dramatically improved air quality in Texas and do not interfere with enforcement of existing effective state and federal air quality standards.
- Encourage continued industry investment in technologically and economically feasible emission reduction solutions through market-driven measures rather than mandates.
- Maintain automobile fleet turnover programs such as Low-Income Repair Assistance Program (LIRAP) that promote cleaner automotive usage and dramatically reduce mobile emissions.
- Maintain cost-effective programs like Texas Emissions Reduction Plan (TERP) that are critical to reduce air emissions.
- Make air quality attainment requirements feasible to avoid unrealistic plans that risk Texas transportation funding halt road construction and accelerate manufacturing job loss and relocation.
- Promote market-driven efforts and incentives to sequester CO2.
WATER
TAM supports policy initiatives that:
- Promote cost-effective solutions to meet the states water needs by proportionally distributing any costs in developing water infrastructure statewide among all users.
- Promote water reuse incentives and sustainability initiatives developed in collaboration with innovative manufacturing partners to reduce the burden on the proposed water infrastructure.
CLIMATE CHANGE
TAM supports policy initiatives that:
- In the event of federal climate change legislation support a uniform approach and avoid an inefficient hodge-podge of state-by-state regulations.
- Embrace the twin goals of protecting the environment and safeguarding the driving forces of the economy.
- Encourage investments in long-term innovations to increase energy efficiency which will reduce green house gases rather than diverting resources in the near-term toward demands for technologies that do not yet exist.
TAXES
Manufacturing has been an important contributor to economic growth and tax receipts at all levels of government contributing one-third of all corporate taxes collected by state and local governments.
TAM supports policy initiatives that:
- Maintain the structural integrity of Texas margins tax while seeking legislative and administrative technical changes and/or clarifications to create greater clarity and fairness in the new business tax.
- Establish a sales tax exemption on research and development (R&D) materials and equipment.
- Oppose attempts to further distinguish tax roles of residential and commercial entities such as appraisal caps.
- Oppose increases in local option sales taxes beyond the current cap.
TRANSPORTATION
The manufacturing sector depends on a reliable and efficient multi-modal transportation system in order to move goods.
TAM supports policy initiatives that:
Promote a market-driven cost-effective transportation infrastructure that allows efficient and competitive transport through seaports land ports roads railroads and pipelines of Texas.
- Expedite the permitting process to include timely response to permitting requests so manufacturing construction and investment can move forward in a reasonable and timely manner.
- Encourage expeditious flow which improves the environment promotes efficiency and benefits consumers through reduced costs.
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
The manufacturing sector has historically been a primary source for middle-class jobs especially for workers without a college degree; while also employing an extremely large number of highly educated workers in engineering chemistry high-tech and aerospace fields. Even in a down economy manufacturers are struggling to find skilled workers to meet their workforce needs.
TAM supports policy initiatives that:
- Foster an effective efficient and standards-based education system that meets the needs of the Texas manufacturing industry and its wide array of employment opportunities.
- Provide an incentive to public school districts public and private universities community colleges and technical schools to increase the number of graduates in critical fields such as engineering math science and career and technologies.
- Encourage rigorous yet flexible high school graduation pathways that lead to post-secondary success; including accountable and relevant programs to meet diverse manufacturing workforce needs.
- Directly attempt to address the drop-out rate by providing relevant and meaningful secondary opportunities for high school students who are disinclined to attend a four year university.
- Ensure that the state public education system supports and rewards local school districts wishing to offer career and technology courses that help meet their local employment demands.
- Ensure that career and technology courses offered by school districts contain applied math and/or science components and qualify for credit for math and/or science toward flexible degree plans.
- Ensure that career and technology courses offered by school districts with applied math and/or science components are offered as an alternative course to the existing 4x4 plan and not as enrichment" electives.
LAWSUIT REFORM AND EMPLOYER ISSUES
Texas Association of Manufacturers and its members are committed to sustaining economic growth and defending against attempts to rollback more than two decades of landmark legal reform.
TAM supports policy initiatives that:
- Support a fair and equitable civil justice system that promotes a sound business environment capable of attracting and retaining manufacturing jobs.
- Ensure that Texas manufacturers continue to have the right as employers to set terms of employment and rules for their workplace related to prohibition of firearms on their private property or other safety measures.
