Letter Archives - RSI

RSI Joins 460 Manufacturing Organizations in Opposing Tax Increases for Manufacturers

John Hebert — Thu, 14 Oct 2021 15:26:32 +0000

On October 13, RSI joined 460 manufacturers and manufacturing organizations from all 50 states in a letter to congressional leadership warning that rolling back tax reform’s pro-growth provisions would undermine manufacturers and harm job creation.

Download the letter here.

October, 13 2021

Dear Speaker Pelosi, Minority Leader McCarthy, Majority Leader Schumer and Minority Leader McConnell:

We are leaders in manufacturing, a sector critical to the U.S. economy and America’s ongoing recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. The industry employs more than 12 million people, contributes more than $2.44 trillion to the U.S. economy annually, pays workers nearly 24% more than the average for all businesses, and has the largest economic impact of any major sector.

As part of the 98% of the industry comprised of small and medium-sized firms that form the backbone of communities around the country, we write to express our grave concerns with the significant and damaging tax increases currently being considered in Congress. Increasing taxes on manufacturers is a surefire way to harm the economy and hamper job creation. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act included a wide range of important reforms, including a lower corporate tax rate, a reduced tax burden on pass-through income, and a modern international tax system. Together, these changes helped drive historic growth in the manufacturing sector. Following tax reform’s passage in 2017, manufacturers kept their promises to create jobs, increase wages and benefits, and invest in their communities. Consider the following:

• In 2018, manufacturers added 263,000 new jobs—the best year for job creation in manufacturing in 21 years.
• Manufacturing wages increased by 3% in 2018, 2.8% in 2019, and 3% in 2020. These year-over year increases were the fastest rates of annual growth since 2003.
• Manufacturing capital spending grew by 4.5% and 5.7% in 2018 and 2019, respectively.
• Overall, manufacturing production grew 2.7% in 2018, with December 2018 being the best month for manufacturing output since May 2008.

The tax increases under consideration would make it harder for manufacturers to continue this growth in the following ways: higher individual and corporate tax rates would reduce capital that small manufacturers could reinvest in their firms; changes to the international tax system would negatively impact globally-engaged companies by undermining their ability to successfully compete in foreign markets and thus directly harming U.S. job creation and investment; limits on deductions (such as deductions for income earned by pass-through entities and interest on business loans) would make it more difficult to fund new equipment purchases; and proposals to tax the transfer of firms to the next generation of manufacturing leaders—such as repealing stepped-up basis, taxing unrealized capital gains at death, increasing capital gains taxes, and expanding the reach of the estate tax—would harm family owned businesses.

These changes pose a significant threat to the U.S. economy and millions of manufacturing jobs. A recent study published by the National Association of Manufacturers found that increasing corporate and individual taxes, repealing the pass-through deduction and making other tax changes would cost the U.S. 1 million jobs in just the first two years after enactment. A separate NAM analysis found that changes to the international tax system would result in 1 million jobs lost. Another study found that repealing stepped up basis would cost America 80,000 jobs per year over the next decade.

Put simply, rolling back tax reform’s pro-growth provisions would undermine manufacturers and harm job creation. We respectfully encourage you to reverse course and refrain from increasing taxes on the creators and innovators who make things in America.

Sincerely,

View the full list of signers here.

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RSI Letter to Congress Supporting the Passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act

John Hebert — Fri, 01 Oct 2021 18:54:38 +0000

Download the letter here.

Dear Representatives:

On behalf of the Railway Supply Institute (RSI), I am writing to ask for your support for the Senate amendment to H.R.3684, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).

The IIJA would provide $66 billion in new funding for intercity rail and more than $39 billion for public transit, allowing Amtrak, freight railroads, and transit agencies around the country to rebuild core infrastructure, update and replace aging fleets, and improve safety and accessibility. It also provides a five-year authorization of essential federal highway and public transportation programs that communities and businesses cannot afford to see lapse.

As way of background, RSI is an international trade association representing more than 175 companies involved in the manufacture of goods and services in the locomotive, freight car, maintenance of way, communications and signaling, and passenger rail industries. RSI members provide critical products to Class I and short line freight railroads, shippers, Amtrak, and transit authorities nationwide and work with these customers to create new products or services that drive enhancements in safety and efficiency across their networks. These systems are supported by an extensive, domestic railway supply industry that has been a dynamic and vital part of the U.S. economy for over 200 years, encompassing 125,000 jobs across all 50 states and paying an average wage 40 percent higher than the national average.

As you know, current funding for key federal highway and public transportation programs expired on September 30. The IIJA contains a much-needed five-year reauthorization of these programs, which hundreds of businesses in the railway supply industry depend on.

We encourage you to please vote “YES” on this legislation when it comes to the floor of the House. With your support, the U.S. can create and sustain thousands of good domestic jobs, strengthen manufacturers’ ability to compete, and expand transportation systems across the nation.

Thank you for considering our positions. We would be happy to answer any questions or discuss the rail supply industry in greater detail with you.

Sincerely,

Nicole Brewin
Senior Vice President, Government and Public Affairs
Railway Supply Institute

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RSI Urges the White House and Congress to Provide an Additional $10 Billion in Public Transit Funding in Build Back Better Act

John Hebert — Tue, 31 Aug 2021 15:04:00 +0000

This week, RSI joined a broad coalition of industry associations and partners in sending a letter to Congressional leadership and Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg urging Congress and the Administration to provide at least $10 billion of additional public transit funding in the reconciliation bill, the Build Back Better Act. The letter also urges Congress to provide a source of dedicated high-speed rail funding in the bill.

Click here to read our letter to Congressional leaders and here to view our letter to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.

Letter to Congressional Leadership:

Dear Chairman DeFazio, Chairman Brown, and Chair Cantwell:

We write to strongly urge you to provide at least $10 billion of additional public transit investment in the reconciliation bill, the Build Back Better Act, pursuant to S. Con. Res. 14. We also urge you to provide significant, dedicated high-speed rail funding in the bill. Together, these bold investments in public transportation in the Build Back Better Act will enable us to tackle climate change, advance equity, and meet the growing and evolving mobility demands of our communities.

Providing this additional $10 billion of public transit funding will honor the commitment of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework agreed upon by President Biden and Senate Republicans on June 24, 2021. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework included an additional $49 billion of new investment for public transit. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), as passed by the Senate, includes $39 billion of new investment for public transit. We urge Congress to honor the agreed-upon Framework funding levels and provide at least $10 billion of additional public transit funding in the reconciliation bill. We also urge Congress to provide significant, dedicated funding to construct high-speed rail in the United States. Investments in both of these funding streams must include strong labor protections for the workers who will build, operate, and maintain these systems.

These bold investments in public transportation in the Build Back Better Act will enable us to tackle climate change, advance equity, and meet the growing and evolving mobility demands of our communities. Investing in public transit and high-speed rail will significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve air quality and public health, and help transform our nation’s transportation network for a sustainable future. According to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, a typical public transit trip emits 55 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions than driving alone. Moreover, public transportation creates access to opportunities, including jobs, health care, and education, which can help our communities address the equity challenges that they face.

Thank you for your long-standing leadership and commitment to investing in America’s public transportation. We look forward to working with you on the reconciliation bill and urge you to use this once-in-a-generation opportunity to provide the public transportation investments necessary to address our nation’s climate and equity challenges and build back better.

Sincerely,

American Public Transportation Association
Amalgamated Transit Union
American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy
American Institute of Steel Construction
American Planning Association
American Train Dispatchers Association
Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen
Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes
Brotherhood of Railway Signalmen
The Bus Coalition
Capital Investment Grants Working Group
Community Transportation Association of America
Environmental and Energy Study Institute
Environmental Law & Policy Center
Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute
International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers
International Brotherhood of Teamsters
International Union of Operating Engineers
League of American Bicyclists
National Association of City Transportation Officials
The National Campaign for Transit Justice
National Conference of Firemen & Oilers District of Local 32BJ/SEIU
National Precast Concrete Association
National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
National Steel Bridge Alliance
National Utility Contractors Association
Natural Resources Defense Council
New Urban Mobility Alliance
North American Bikeshare & Scootershare Association
North America’s Building Trades Unions
Portland Cement Association
Professional Aviation Safety Specialists, AFL-CIO
Rail Passengers Association
Railway Supply Institute
Safe Routes Partnership
Sierra Club
Steel Manufacturers Association
Teamsters Rail Conference
Transport Workers Union of America
Transportation for America
Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO
U.S. PIRG
United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America
The United States Conference of Mayors

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RSI Joins Group of Manufacturing, Steel Organizations to Urge Support of the Freight RAILCAR Act

John Hebert — Mon, 28 Sep 2020 18:41:00 +0000

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RSI Joins 88 Transportation Organizations in Urging Congress to Pass a One-Year FAST Act Extension

John Hebert — Wed, 09 Sep 2020 20:25:00 +0000

On September 9, RSI joined numerous industry groups in sending a letter to congressional leadership urging them to pass legislation extending the current surface transportation law, known as the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, before it is set to expire on September 30. Specifically, we urged them to pass a bill that would include:

A turn-key, one-year extension of the current surface transportation law with increased investment levels;
Emergency federal funding for state departments of transportation and public transit agencies—$37 billion and $32 billion, respectively; and
Provisions to ensure solvency of the Highway Trust Fund for the duration of the extension at a minimum.

You can find a copy of the letter here.

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