Gillibrand Announces ‘Made in America Manufacturing Act’

New Berlin, NY – Standing at Golden Artist Colors over the weekend, a Chenango County manufacturer of paint, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand announced that the first piece of legislation she introduced in the 113th Congress is a federal funding competition that encourages states and regional public-private partnerships to design and implement comprehensive strategies.

Gillibrand says this is intended to spur growth for local manufacturing industries, particularly in the thriving fields of clean-tech and high-tech manufacturing, and that train workers with the skills that businesses need.

New York State has been crippled by manufacturing employment loss, with over 123,000 manufacturing jobs lost since 2005. In the Southern Tier, an estimated 5,000 manufacturing jobs were lost from 2005 to 2010, including more than 170 from Chenango County.

To bolster more growth in New York manufacturing, Gillibrand’s bill, called the Made in America Manufacturing Act, would create a competitive program that awards states and regions with funding to support local manufacturers through low-interest loans to build new facilities and upgrade equipment, and access to capital and technical assistance.