A new report from the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI)’s Innovation Frontier Project, calls for United States policymakers to revamp our manufacturing sector to ensure the U.S. remains a leader in the global economy.
The report, authored by Keith Belton titled “Building a Stronger (More Complex) U.S. Manufacturing Sector,” provides policy recommendations, compares complexity in exports across several countries, and dives deep into theories behind manufacturing complexity, trade and competition.
“American manufacturing is on the decline, but we have a unique opportunity to kick this vital sector into high gear by making it more complex and diverse. We can strengthen it now with pragmatic legislation and look to our international competitors for a blueprint. With Keith Belton’s smart roadmap, our next generation of manufacturers could be working in a more secure, advanced and competitive manufacturing sector,” said Jack Karsten, Managing Director of the Innovation Frontier Project at PPI.
Belton argues that there are three public policy areas in which we can leverage complexity theory, including revising the national strategic plan for manufacturing at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, reviewing domestic supply chains, and establishing new statutory programs to strengthen the defense industrial base.
He also points to the need for the government to drive private sector investment in more complex manufacturing, which is being considered by Congressional leadership as the House and Senate reconcile the House-passed COMPETES Act with the Senate-passed United States Innovation and Competition Act (USICA). Global examples may be a launching point for the government as we look to replicate manufacturing competitiveness expansion in the next decade.
Read the report and expanded policy recommendations here:
Based in Washington, D.C., and housed in the Progressive Policy Institute, the Innovation Frontier Project explores the role of public policy in science, technology and innovation. The project is managed by Jack Karsten. Learn more by visiting innovationfrontier.org.
The Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) is a catalyst for policy innovation and political reform based in Washington, D.C. Its mission is to create radically pragmatic ideas for moving America beyond ideological and partisan deadlock. Learn more about PPI by visiting progressivepolicy.org.
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Media Contact: Aaron White; awhite@ppionline.org
