As part of the one-year anniversary celebration of President Biden’s signing of an executive order to improve the nation’s supply networks in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, the White House announced initiatives aimed at improving long-term supply chain resilience.
It was one year ago today that President Biden signed an executive order that called for an all-government approach to analyzing vulnerabilities in the supply chain. According to top administration officials, supply chains have been “a personal emphasis for President Biden.”
Officials also stated that, as a result of the emphasis placed on supply chains, the United States is prepared to battle any disruptions to the American economy that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine would entail.
A study highlighting significant gaps in supply chains, as well as multi-year initiatives to overcome those deficiencies, will be published on Thursday by seven cabinet agencies. In addition, the White House will release a capstone report that will provide an overview of the most important measures accomplished by the administration.
Officials hailed the report as a “crucial milestone” and declared supply chain resilience “an ongoing national priority” in their remarks.
“We are well aware that our work is far from over,” officials stated.
Officials announced new initiatives, including the allocation of funds from the bipartisan infrastructure law to expedite the delivery of crucial items from ships to shelves at a lower cost.
Furthermore, the steps build on the American Rescue Plan’s efforts to create a more competitive and resilient meat and poultry supply chain by allocating $25 million in grants to the food processing workforce, which was announced last year.
In addition, the administration hopes to improve access to capital for smaller manufacturers, enhance technological leadership among small and large manufacturers, and invest in long-term domestic production and processing of essential minerals, among other things.
Additionally, the Export-Import Bank board of directors will decide this spring on a new domestic strategy, which will include giving preferential funding to ecologically beneficial small firms.
The administration intends to adopt a Buy American rule, which will establish a new category of important products that will be eligible for price preferences that are higher than the current market rate.
In addition, the regulation would allow the federal government to pay a higher premium for important domestic-made products that are critical to the supply chain, making it simpler for American businesses to win government contracts in the future.
It would also expand the Defense Product Act office at the Department of Health and Human Services, which will be able to provide loans and grants to ensure the timely availability of critical domestic industrial resources.
Later this year, the Energy Department will establish an Energy Supply Chains Office to ensure the security of the energy supply chains required for the modernization of the nation’s energy infrastructure. Additionally, the administration will host a Ministerial-level Summit on Global Supply Chain Resilience.