COLLECTION • JUNE 8, 2020
Moving the Chains
Executive Summary
Nine strategies for retaking global leadership in industry and innovation
Foreword: The Reshoring Imperative
You may not be interested in supply chains, but supply chains are interested in you.
On Research & Development
Pre-competitive research consortia are vital to sparking innovation.
On Tax Incentives
A tax credit for domestic investment is the best way to reduce production costs.
On Domestic Sourcing
Local content requirements offer a simple intervention with benefits that its prohibitionist detractors ignore.
On Workforce Investment
Reshoring strategies can only go so far without investment in America’s skilled workforce.
On Regulatory Reform
Outdated environmental regulation poses an irrational barrier to reshoring efforts.
On Agency Structure
A new task for government demands a new structure for its agencies.
On Terms of Trade
The international trading system must recover the core principles of reciprocity, security, and democracy.
On Infrastructure Financing
A national development bank could attract the private capital that America’s infrastructure needs.
Overview
After decades of looking away as America’s supply chains migrated overseas, policymakers are finally facing the reality that dependence on foreign producers has weakened the nation’s resilience, its security, and its economy. When factories leave, not only the jobs but also the suppliers, the customers, the expertise, and the innovation go too. When a crisis strikes, vital supplies are unavailable. When productivity growth and innovation are needed, they are nowhere to be found.
This symposium gathers experts in many fields; working in think tanks, universities, and industry; starting from points across the political spectrum; to delineate and describe the levers available to policymakers in pursuit of reshoring supply chains and to offer concrete policy proposals for using each lever. Some proposals emphasize investments that the United States can make to improve its competitiveness—in people, in infrastructure, and in research. Others consider how better laws could attract or even force firms toward domestic production. Still others advocate reform for institutions themselves, from the federal government to the WTO.
