US releases final guidance for America-made goods

President Biden’s Investing in America initiative is driving growth in manufacturing and clean energy, revitalising the nation’s infrastructure, reducing costs, and generating well-paying jobs. This economic strategy, known as Bidenomics, is built on the understanding that the most effective way to foster economic expansion is by empowering the middle class and lifting up underserved communities. A significant aspect of this approach involves rebuilding the nation’s roads and bridges using materials produced in America by American workers. This transformational plan is extending its positive impact to all corners of the United States, including historically marginalised communities.

In his State of the Union address, President Biden pledged to ensure that construction materials utilised in federally funded infrastructure projects are domestically sourced. Fulfilling this commitment, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has now issued final guidelines aimed at enhancing the utilisation of American-made goods in infrastructure initiatives. These guidelines will fortify American businesses, workers, and overall economic growth.

The finalised guidelines align with the requirements outlined in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), which mandates that manufactured products, construction materials, iron, and steel used in federally funded infrastructure undertakings be of American origin. Furthermore, these standards for construction materials offer a blueprint for agencies to utilise taxpayer funds to strengthen the economy by supporting job creation in construction and manufacturing through increased domestic production driven by infrastructure investments.

The signing of the BIL by President Biden marked a transformative investment in the nation’s infrastructure, presenting a historic opportunity to reinforce Made in America standards while benefiting American industries and workers. The law, encompassing the Build America, Buy America Act (BABA), significantly expanded these standards to ensure that federally funded infrastructure projects exclusively incorporate American-made iron, steel, construction materials, and manufactured goods. This approach ensures that taxpayer dollars channeled into the country’s infrastructure initiatives contribute to American job growth and manufacturing expansion.

Since the passage of the bill, the Biden-Harris Administration has achieved notable progress in the restoration of roads and bridges, enhancing accessibility to public transportation, investing in eco-friendly infrastructure, upgrading power grids to facilitate clean energy transmission, and more. With over 37,000 funded projects already in motion, the outcomes are becoming apparent. Since President Biden’s inauguration, the creation of more than 13 million new jobs has been recorded, including the addition of 800,000 new manufacturing positions nationwide. Private investments exceeding half a trillion dollars have been directed toward manufacturing and clean energy, driving economic growth. The ongoing construction of factories equates to future manufacturing jobs, and the current spending on manufacturing plant construction has nearly doubled over the past two years, following a mere two percent increase during the previous four years.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, along with the Chips and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, is stimulating investments nationwide. Thanks to the Build America Buy America Act, the focus is not just on purchasing products but on producing them domestically.