WASHINGTON (March 31, 2021) – U.S. President Biden announced his administration’s plans for rebuilding America’s infrastructure. The American Chemistry Council (ACC) is a long-time supporter of a comprehensive infrastructure package that will upgrade our nation’s transportation and energy network to help support chemical manufacturing.
The U.S. business of chemistry will also be at the center of this effort since it will provide advanced materials and techniques to make many of these upgrades possible. The chemical industry invests more in research and development than leading industries like electronics, automobiles and healthcare - investing more than $10 billion in 2019.
The following statement regarding President Biden’s announcement can be attributed to the ACC’s President & CEO, Chris Jahn:
“We welcome President Biden’s commitment to rebuild our nation’s infrastructure and support our economy. Every American depends on infrastructure and making it work better is common ground we all share. Addressing our country’s growing infrastructure problems is especially important for the U.S. business of chemistry as an efficient transportation network and robust energy infrastructure are vital to chemical manufacturing and our industry’s ability to innovate and create good paying American jobs.
“We look forward to working with the White House and Congress to upgrade our ports and shipping channels, adopt reforms to promote competitive and reliable freight rail service and bring trucking regulations into the 21st century so that our industry can deliver the essential products Americans depend on every day.
“Equally important we need a modern, resilient energy grid that communities can count on and that enables always-on power for chemical manufacturers. To support new construction projects and U.S. manufacturing, we also need to modernize the process for environmental reviews and permitting decisions.
“Just as a highly functioning infrastructure system is important to keeping chemical manufacturing strong in America, our industry is key to making America’s infrastructure better than before. That’s because our members create advanced materials that go into infrastructure upgrades to make them more sustainable and resilient in addition to helping make them lighter, stronger, and more cost effective.
“Policymakers must adopt the IMAGINE Act and the SMART Infrastructure Act as part of the comprehensive infrastructure package to support the development and use of innovative and sustainable construction materials as well as open competition, removing regulatory barriers to materials selection. We also urge the White House and Congress to include provisions that will enable much needed recycling infrastructure systems, including advance recycling, and enable the use of recycled materials in infrastructure applications.
“We do have grave concerns with tax provisions in the proposed plan that would make America less competitive, stifle innovation and interfere with our ability to invest, innovate, create jobs, and provide technologies that will be critical to infrastructure improvement, clean energy and climate solutions.
“Our industry prides itself on finding new and innovative ways to take on big challenges. We are committed to working with the Administration and leaders of both parties in Congress to enact policies that use market-based solutions to modernize our nation’s aging infrastructure.”
