The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and Chips and Science Act have allocated billions of dollars for various projects, in areas like climate change, clean energy, and infrastructure improvement. Your headline article: “Delays hit 40% of Biden’s major IRA manufacturing projects.” – August 13, highlights the concerns and the range of lost opportunities these delays and pauses have caused.
The current state of stranded investment speaks to the complexity of navigating the application process for federal grants. Regulatory and permitting hurdles resulting in extensive reviews and environmental assessments, all while necessary for compliance and safety, significantly delay the start and implementation of projects and application of the funds.
However, beyond the delay of much needed projects, the growth of the manufacturing sector is also thwarted. Manufacturing is critical to the successful development and expansion of all the projects that the IRA and Chips acts incentivize, and which ultimately help to advance U.S. economic growth and global competitiveness.
Manufacturers are already burdened by fears of looming tax hikes and regulations which will further raise the cost of operations and lend added uncertainty as investment decisions are being made. The processes can and must be changed. Lesson learned: In the future write legislation with specific investment timelines and provisions that support accelerated environmental reviews and expedited permitting at local, state, and federal levels. That would be good for America and especially beneficial for our manufacturers.
