News & Insights

Manufacturers support the policy recommendations laid out in the House of Representatives’ newly released report on artificial intelligence, the NAM said Tuesday.

What’s going on: The Bipartisan House Task Force Report on Artificial Intelligence contains AI-related recommendations for implementation by Congress.

• Drafted by the House AI Task Force—12 Republicans and 12 Democrats—the 273-page document “highlights America’s leadership in its approach to responsible AI innovation while considering guardrails that may be appropriate to safeguard the nation against current and emerging threats,” the task force’s co-chairs, Reps. Jay Obernolte (R-CA) and Ted Lieu (D-CA), wrote in a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) at the beginning of the report.

The details: The task force report includes many recommendations that the NAM supports, including the following:

• Promote innovation: “As the global leader in AI development and deployment, the United States is best positioned to responsibly enable the potential of this transformative technology for all. To maintain this leadership and enable the U.S. economy to harness the full benefits of AI, policymakers should continue to promote AI innovation.”
• Safeguard against harm: “A thoughtful, risk-based approach to AI governance can promote innovation rather than stifle it.”
• Plan for power needs: “Planning properly now for new power generation and transmission is critical for AI innovation and adoption.”
• Develop an AI-ready workforce: “Successful collaborations between educational institutions, government and industries should effectively align education and workforce development with market needs and emerging technologies.”
• Protect privacy: Congress should “[e]nsure privacy laws are generally applicable and technology-neutral.”
• Make compliance feasible: Lawmakers should ensure that AI regulatory compliance is not unduly burdensome for small businesses
• Increase cooperation: Bolster collaboration between the government, industry and academia to boost innovation and expand markets.

NAM alignment: In May, the NAM released “Working Smarter: How Manufacturers Are Using Artificial Intelligence,” its own report on AI’s deployment in the manufacturing sector and an accompanying list of suggested policy actions for Congress to take.

• The NAM briefed legislators on its report in September.

Next steps: The NAM will work closely with policymakers in Congress and the incoming administration to bolster AI innovation in manufacturing, based on shared policy goals.   

Additionally, manufacturers will continue to call on Congress to pass federal data privacy legislation that “preempt[s] state privacy regulations [and] resolve[s] conflicting requirements in different states”—an important issue for the use of AI where the House report does not prescribe a policy solution.

The NAM is urging President Trump to reconsider the Biden administration’s misguided findings regarding new liquefied natural gas export permits, following the release of a Department of Energy study claiming that increased permit numbers would have negative effects on the nation.
 
What’s going on: The Department of Energy’s analysis, released Tuesday, holds “that ‘unfettered’ shipments of the fuel would make domestic prices rise … [and would] displace more renewables” (E&E News).

• However, the “report from Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm is clearly a politically motivated document designed for an audience who believes no form of carbon-based energy is acceptable,” NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons said. “LNG exports play a crucial role in reducing emissions by providing cleaner energy alternatives to countries reliant on higher emission sources.”   

What the ban’s done: The result of the Biden administration’s moratorium—issued in January—on the issuance of new U.S. LNG export permits has been “chilled energy investment, costing the country manufacturing jobs and holding us back from achieving energy dominance on the world stage,” Timmons continued.

• “The DOE’s report claims to be concerned about security, but the actions of this administration on LNG only serve to incentivize Europe to purchase natural gas from Russia.”  

A popular, key energy source: U.S. LNG is far cleaner than Russian LNG (House Energy and Commerce Committee). Furthermore, an October study by the NAM and PwC found that U.S. LNG is a significant and crucial contributor to gross domestic product, as well as an important source of jobs and federal, state and local taxes.

• What’s more, Americans want to keep exporting it. In a March NAM poll of 1,000 registered voters, more than 87% said they believe the U.S. should continue to export LNG.   

The bottom line: “The data is clear: LNG exports are a driving force for economic growth and job creation in the United States,” Timmons concluded. “Halting LNG export licenses as suggested would threaten nearly a million jobs and undermine our nation’s economic stability. The NAM asks President Trump to end this political war on the energy manufacturers that power our economy, fuel job growth and help ensure America’s national security.” 

Washington, D.C. – Following the release of Congress’ year-end government funding package, National Association of Manufacturers President and CEO Jay Timmons released the following statement on the inclusion of pharmacy benefit manager reforms:

“Manufacturers commend House Speaker Mike Johnson, committee leadership and reform champions for their work on a government funding package that tackles rising health care costs via important PBM reforms. The NAM has long championed congressional efforts to rein in PBMs, underregulated middlemen that increase health care costs for manufacturers and manufacturing workers. The government funding package released today will increase transparency into these powerful actors, ensure they pass rebates on to patients and plan sponsors and delink their compensation from drug costs. These are vital steps toward lowering Americans’ health care costs—the top business challenge facing manufacturers, according to the most recent Manufacturers’ Outlook Survey—and Congress should act swiftly to pass this package of much-needed reforms.

“Although permitting reform was not included in the final package, we are confident that President Donald Trump will continue to focus on the urgent need to enact comprehensive permitting reform. We look forward to working with incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Speaker Johnson and their colleagues in congressional leadership to ensure manufacturers can build a more prosperous nation.”

-NAM-

The National Association of Manufacturers is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs nearly 13 million men and women, contributes $2.91 trillion to the U.S. economy annually and accounts for 53% of private-sector research and development. The NAM is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the NAM or to follow us on Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.nam.org.

Washington, D.C. – The National Association of Manufacturers today responded to the Department of Energy’s report on liquefied natural gas exports and highlighted the harmful impact of the DOE’s misguided attempts to restrict new LNG export terminals.

A comprehensive study conducted by the NAM, in collaboration with PwC, reveals that robust LNG export operations could support more than 900,000 jobs, contribute up to $216 billion to U.S. GDP and generate $46 billion in tax revenue by 2044. Furthermore, the LNG sector supports approximately 222,450 jobs, resulting in $23.2 billion in labor income, and contributes $43.8 billion to the national GDP.

“Today’s report from Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm is clearly a politically motivated document designed for an audience who believes no form of carbon-based energy is acceptable. LNG exports play a crucial role in reducing emissions by providing cleaner energy alternatives to countries reliant on higher emission sources,” said NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons.

“The result of the LNG export ban that has been in place since January is chilled energy investment, costing the country manufacturing jobs and holding us back from achieving energy dominance on the world stage. The DOE’s report claims to be concerned about security, but the actions of this administration on LNG only serve to incentivize Europe to purchase natural gas from Russia.

“The data is clear: LNG exports are a driving force for economic growth and job creation in the United States. Halting LNG export licenses as suggested would threaten nearly a million jobs and undermine our nation’s economic stability. The NAM asks President Trump to end this political war on the energy manufacturers that power our economy, fuel job growth and help ensure America’s national security.”

-NAM-

The National Association of Manufacturers is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs nearly 13 million men and women, contributes $2.91 trillion to the U.S. economy annually and accounts for 53% of private-sector research and development. The NAM is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the NAM or to follow us on Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.nam.org

Washington, D.C. – The National Association of Manufacturers released its Manufacturers’ Outlook Survey for Q4 2024, which illustrates that even with ongoing economic challenges, manufacturers are more optimistic post-election about potential action on expiring tax provisions and efforts to curb the regulatory onslaught. According to the latest reading, 70.9% of respondents are positive about their company’s outlook, up from 62.9% in Q3.

“Manufacturing is central to the strength of the U.S. economy, and nearly 8 out of 10 manufacturers state that restoring and protecting key provisions of the 2017 tax law will be extremely important to making manufacturers in the U.S. more competitive,” said NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons. “In this survey, manufacturers also stress the importance of strengthening energy security and reining in the regulatory onslaught that has stymied the industry, providing ample opportunity to stimulate growth in the new year.

“There are still economic headwinds that make it more difficult for manufacturers to create jobs, invest in their communities, develop new and improved products and grow the economy. Our industry will count on the next administration and Congress to prioritize policies that make America the most competitive business climate in the world.”

Key Survey Findings:

• In Q4, the top business challenge was rising health care/insurance costs (63.2%).
• The top concern in Q3 2024, a weaker domestic economy and sales for our products to U.S. customers, was the second highest concern in Q4 (58.0%).
• Trade uncertainty was the third biggest challenge in Q4 at 56.1%, soaring from the level of concern expressed in Q3 at 36.8%, and was the top challenge for large manufacturers at 68.7%.
• Attracting and retaining a quality workforce now ranks as the fourth highest concern (55.8%) after topping the list from Q4 2020 to Q2 2024.
• Next year, key provisions of tax reform are set to expire, driving up costs for businesses throughout the manufacturing supply chain. When asked how important it was that Congress and the new administration prevent these tax increases, 79% of respondents answered extremely important.

The NAM releases these results to the public each quarter. Further information on the survey is available here.

-NAM-

The National Association of Manufacturers is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs nearly 13 million men and women, contributes $2.91 trillion to the U.S. economy annually and accounts for 53% of private-sector research and development. The NAM is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the NAM or to follow us on Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.nam.org.

In its current form, the Environmental Protection Agency’s recent proposal to add specific per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances and PFAS categories to a database of toxic chemicals would place an unnecessary hardship on manufacturers, the NAM told the agency recently.
 
What’s going on: In October, the EPA published draft rules that would add 16 individual PFAS and 15 PFAS categories representing more than 100 individual PFAS to its Toxic Release Inventory, a list of potentially hazardous chemical release and waste management activities taking place in the U.S.

• Companies producing or manufacturing products with chemistries added to the TRI are required to complete and submit inventory forms each year for the chemicals they make and use over established limits.
• “The NAM believes this proposed rule will create unduly burdensome compliance requirements and increase costs for manufacturers and consumers as written,” NAM Vice President of Domestic Policy Chris Phalen said this month.

What should happen: The EPA should “adopt the following approaches to the proposed rulemaking”:

• Stay the proposal to give the public more time to comment on it.
• Revise the proposed PFAS and PFAS category additions to reflect “a meaningful baseline of scientific evidence” and ensure that “the scientific evidence justifying the listing[s] [is] supported by peer review and public comment.”
• List individually every PFAS added to the TRI and make each one identifiable.
• Narrow the group of PFAS listed as “chemicals of special concern” to reflect the scope of authority granted to the EPA by the fiscal year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act.

Why it’s important: “While the EPA estimates this proposed rule would result in up to 1,110 TRI reporting forms annually at an estimated cost of up to $6.6 million for its first year and up to $3.1 million for subsequent years, we anticipate the compliance costs to manufacturers will be significantly higher,” Phalen continued.

• If finalized as written, the rule will force manufacturers to hire additional workers and consultants, train employees on proper reporting processes, spend huge sums of money on testing and verifying results and much more.
• The result: “a costly drain on [manufacturers’] resources … [that] will lead to a rise in operational and production costs far above the EPA’s cost estimates for the proposed rule.”

U.S. import prices advanced 0.1% in November, the same as the previous month and led by higher fuel prices. Over the past year, import prices rose 1.3%, the largest year-over-year increase since July 2024. U.S. export prices were unchanged, following a 1.0% increase in October. Higher nonagricultural prices offset lower agricultural prices. Over the past year, export prices rose 0.8%.

Fuel import prices increased 1.0% in November, after declining 0.8% in October. These increases are attributed to higher prices for natural gas and petroleum in November. Nevertheless, prices for import fuel declined 8.6% over the past year. Import prices for petroleum increased 0.4% in November, after declining 11.6% from July to October. While import prices for natural gas declined 34.5% over the past year, prices increased 47.4% in November and 32.7% the previous month.

Nonfuel import prices were unchanged in November, following a 0.2% increase the two previous months. Nonfuel import prices have not declined on a monthly basis since May 2024, when they fell just 0.2%. Higher prices for foods, feeds and beverages and consumer goods offset lower prices for nonfuel industrial supplies and materials, capital goods and automotive vehicles in November. The price index for nonfuel imports increased 2.3% over the past year.

Following increases of 1.9% in October and 0.8% in September, agricultural export prices declined 0.4% in November. Over the past 12 months, agricultural export prices dropped 2.5%. On the other hand, nonagricultural export prices increased 0.1% in November, with lower prices for consumer goods offsetting higher prices for capital goods and nonagricultural foods. Prices for nonagricultural industrial supplies and materials and automotive vehicles were unchanged. Over the past year, nonagricultural export prices rose 1.2%, the largest annual increase since July 2024.

The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index rose eight points in November to 101.7, the highest rating since June 2021 and finally rising above the 50-year average of 98 after 34 consecutive months below the average. Of the 10 components included in the index, nine increased and one was unchanged. After October’s record high of 110, the Uncertainty Index declined 12 points to 98, as expected following the election.

Despite increased optimism, inflation is still the top concern for many small business owners, with 20% identifying higher input and labor costs as their primary issue, surpassing the issue of labor quality by one point. In November, 36% of small business owners reported jobs they could not fill, up 1% from October.

A net 28% of small business owners planned price hikes in November, up 2% from the month prior. A net 32% of small business owners reported raising compensation, up one point from October. Continuing the trend from October, a net 5% of owners reported paying a higher rate on their most recent loan, the lowest reading since January 2022. Profitability remained under pressure, with a net negative 26%, but was the highest (least negative) reading this year. Of those reporting lower profits, 32% claimed weaker sales.

The outlook for general business conditions had a positive reading for the first time since November 2020, jumping an incredible 41 points. While small business owners are still facing unprecedented economic adversity, owners remain hopeful for an improved political climate and as they head into the holiday season.

The Producer Price Index for final demand (also known as wholesale prices) increased 0.4% in November, after rising 0.3% in October. Over the past year, the final demand index rose 3.0% on an unadjusted basis, which is the largest increase since the year-over-year increase in February 2023 of 4.7%. Prices for final demand excluding foods, energy and trade services inched up 0.1%, after rising 0.3% in October.

In November, prices for final demand services increased 0.2%, the fourth consecutive increase, while prices for final demand goods rose just 0.7%. Much of the increase in the index can be attributed to prices for final demand of foods, which increased 3.1%. The index for final demand goods, excluding foods and energy, increased just 0.2%. More than one-third of the increase in prices for final demand services is due to margins for machinery and vehicle wholesaling, increasing 1.8%.

Processed goods for intermediate demand were unchanged. On the other hand, over the 12 months ending in November, prices for processed goods for intermediate demand fell 0.5%. Within processed goods for intermediate demand, the index for particleboard and fiberboard jumped 11.4%. Overall, in November, a 0.1% increase in prices for processed materials less foods and energy and a 0.9% increase in processed foods and feeds offset a 1.2% decrease in prices for processed energy goods.

Meanwhile, prices for unprocessed goods for intermediate demand moved up 0.6% in November, after increasing 2.4% in October. The increase was driven by a 2.9% rise in unprocessed foodstuffs and feedstuffs. Meanwhile, nonfood materials less energy prices edged up just 0.4%, and unprocessed energy materials decreased 2.0%. Over the 12 months ending in November, prices for unprocessed goods for intermediate demand fell 1.9%.

Consumer prices increased 0.3% over the month and 2.7% over the year in November, rising from the 2.6% over-the-year increase in October. Core CPI, which excludes more volatile energy and food prices, stayed the same at a 3.3% over-the-year increase and rose 0.3% over the month, which has been the monthly increase for four consecutive months.

Shelter increased 0.3% over the month and 4.7% over the year in November, the smallest 12-month increase since February 2022 but still accounted for nearly 40% of the monthly increase of the all-items index. On the other hand, food price increases have picked back up, rising 0.4% over the month and 2.4% over the year in November. Prices for transportation services leveled out over the month, not rising at all, but are still up 7.1% over the year, with motor vehicle insurance increasing 12.7% over the year.

Energy costs increased 0.2% in November but fell 3.2% over the year. While energy commodity prices are down 8.5% over the year, electricity prices are up 3.1%.

Although the over-the-year headline rate ticked up from the previous month, markets are still anticipating a 25-basis-point rate cut at the Federal Open Market Committee’s meeting this week. However, slowing progress on inflation might upend the Federal Reserve’s previous easing plans for 2025, pointing to the possibility of the FOMC’s interest rate target being cut at a slower pace, but the market still anticipates rate cuts in 2025.