Leadership

Farewell and Thank You, Rachael Carl!

Rachael Carl, the OMA’s managing director of public policy services, is concluding her time at the association. Rachael has been a dependable advocate for manufacturers at the Statehouse, while also working with the OMA’s standing policy committees and board of directors.

The OMA thanks Rachael for her service to Ohio’s manufacturing community and wishes her the best in her new role as Walmart’s director of public and government affairs for Ohio and Michigan. 7/28/2022

U.S. Senate Moves Ahead With CHIPS Act Funding

On July 19, the U.S. Senate voted 64-34 to move forward with consideration of a $52 billion bill to fund the federal CHIPS Act, which is critical to Intel’s Ohio investment. The procedural vote means a final “yes” vote could come as early as next week.

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) said he hopes the bill will be passed by the House and signed by President Joe Biden before Congress’ August recess. Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) told colleagues the bill was necessary because other nations — including China — are offering much larger financial incentives for new chip manufacturing facilities.

In an editorial published by The Wall Street Journal (subscription), Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger and Ford Motor Co. CEO Jim Farley said the funding would “boost production of leading-edge and legacy chips,” while leveling the playing field for U.S. manufacturers.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo is warning that America’s dependence on foreign computer chip fabrication puts the nation at risk of a “deep and immediate recession.” 7/21/2022

Ohio Supreme Court Rejects Congressional Map

On July 19, the Supreme Court of Ohio voted 4-3 to invalidate the latest congressional redistricting map — used for last May’s primary — saying it violates the constitutional ban on unduly favoring a political party. Justices ordered the General Assembly to adopt a new map within 30 days, even though it would not be used until the 2024 election cycle.

With fewer than two weeks remaining until Ohio’s Aug. 2 special primary for Statehouse races, check out the secretary of state’s voter toolkit, as well as the new state legislative districts. 7/20/2022

Report: GOP Insiders Concerned About Vance’s U.S. Senate Campaign

Some GOP insiders are raising concerns about JD Vance’s U.S. Senate campaign, according to a recent report. Vance’s latest fundraising report showed he entered July with $628,804 in cash on hand, far behind the $3.6 million reported by Democratic nominee and current 13th Congressional District Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH).

Real Clear Politics categorizes Ohio as “leaning Republican.” The site says there are at least seven toss-up races for U.S. Senate this year — meaning the Vance-Ryan matchup will be critical in determining which party controls the Senate in 2023 and 2024.

According to data from Sabato’s Crystal Ball — published by the University of Virginia Center for Politics — Republicans are attracting more registered voters in states where Democrats have long held a registration advantage. Overall, Republicans have made gains in 19 states since summer 2018; Democrats have made gains in 12 states. 7/21/2022

Sen. Portman Sounds Alarm on CHIPS Act Funding

U.S. Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) has told news media he’s concerned about the fate of funding for the CHIPS Act, which would provide $52 billion to boost U.S. semiconductor manufacturing. The provision is part of a broader proposal pending before a committee of more than 100 U.S. House and Senate negotiators.

The funding is considered a key factor in determining the speed with which Intel will realize its announced $20 billion investment in Ohio. Sen. Portman said, “If we don’t pass something by the August recess, my fear is we’ll see a number of these big fabs … be built somewhere else and that would be terrible for our economy” and national security.

OMA members can use this tool to contact their federal representatives to urge immediate action on the CHIPS Act funding. 7/14/2022

Ohio Drops in CNBC’s ‘Top States for Business’

Ohio is still among the best states for business, according to the CNBC’s latest “Top States for Business” ranking — but the state fell five spots to No. 15 compared to the network’s 2021 comparison.

In its analysis of 88 metrics in 10 broad categories, CNBC ranked Ohio second best for infrastructure, third best for access to capital, and fourth best for cost of doing business. But the Buckeye State struggled in the categories of workforce (No. 41) and business friendliness (No. 43). 7/13/2022

Webinars Will Spotlight Advantages of Industry 4.0

On July 19, OMA Connections Partner Plante Moran will host a webinar to help manufacturers realize competitive advantages with Industry 4.0 by sharing real-world examples of how manufacturers are using predictive capabilities and automation to enhance operations. Register here.

For manufacturers in northeast Ohio, OMA Connections Partner MAGNET will conduct a July 27 webinar featuring manufacturers that have made the technological transformation to Industry 4.0 and now serve as “lighthouses” — that is, resources for businesses that are ready to implement this technology. Learn more and register. 7/14/2022

Manufacturing’s Economic Barometer: July 2022

• Ohio manufacturing’s economic output has again surpassed its previous record high set in late 2021. According to federal data, the Buckeye State’s seasonally adjusted annual manufacturing GDP yielded nearly $128 billion in Q1 2022 — up from $112.4 billion in Q4 2019, before the start of the pandemic.
• Ohio is still down about 20,000 manufacturing jobs compared to this time in 2019, due in large part to the labor shortage. (At last check, there were more than 53,000 manufacturing-related jobs posted at Ohio Means Jobs.)
• Nationwide, the Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing index for June dropped to its lowest level in two years, but it remained in expansion territory. (Read this insight from OMA Connections Partner Plante Moran.)
• According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics and its latest report, the number of U.S. job openings in May fell for both durable goods manufacturing (-138,000) and non-durable goods manufacturing (-70,000).
• New orders for U.S. manufactured goods in May increased $8.4 billion (1.6%) to $543.4 billion, according to the the U.S. Census Bureau’s latest report.

In other developments, Creighton University economics professor Ernie Goss, who specializes in Midwest manufacturing, says the slowing U.S. economy could be tied to the steep decline in productivity in recent months. In Q1 2022, U.S. worker productivity fell 11.7% (annualized). 7/8/2022

JobsOhio Announces Records for Jobs, Payroll

JobsOhio — the state’s private economic development arm — reports that a record 29,104 new jobs and $1.6 billion in payroll were pledged in 2021. That’s up from 19,021 and $1 billion, respectively, in 2020. Moreover, JobsOhio set new records for job retention (75,416) and projects won (414) last year. See the full report.

Among JobsOhio’s 10 targeted sectors, advanced manufacturing saw the most projects at 178 and the second-highest number of jobs at 5,819. Manufacturing also saw the largest capital investment at $1.91 billion, with food and agribusiness coming in second at $1.41 billion.

According to Gongwer News Service, the 2021 report does not include Intel’s planned $20 billion facility, which was announced in January 2022. 7/6/2022

Columnist: Service Economy Hasn’t Delivered on Promises Made Decades Ago

Four decades after many U.S. economists and academics started calling for a “post-industrial” service economy, America today has 135 million service workers compared to 13 million manufacturing workers. IndustryWeek contributor Michael Collins writes that there’s growing proof the service economy “is not going to provide the wages, living standards, or economic growth” promised decades ago.

Meanwhile, this infographic shows the U.S. has seen its economic power shrink over the past two decades, while China has surged to nearly 20% of the world’s GDP — up from 8% two decades ago. 7/5/2022