Bill Would Create New Tax Cut for PA Bio-Based Businesses
Proposal Invests in Bio-Based Research- Helps Entrepreneurs Take New Ideas to Market
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) announced the introduction of a bill that would boost Pennsylvania’s bio-based products industry. The Grow it Here, Make it Here bill, S. 2155, would help spur manufacturing and create jobs in Pennsylvania’s burgeoning bio-based sector. It would create a new tax cut for bio-based manufacturers and help Pennsylvania’s entrepreneurs take their ideas from the research lab to the marketplace.
“When we grow and manufacture bio-based products in Pennsylvania we create jobs, and that’s what this bill is about,” Senator Casey said. “Pennsylvania’s bio-based manufacturers can create thousands of jobs and grow our economy. The Grow It Here, Make It Here bill will keep our state’s manufacturers on the cutting edge and help our entrepreneurs take their ideas from the lab to the marketplace.”
The Grow it Here, Make it Here bill would:
Strengthen the Biopreferred Program which certifies and labels products so consumers can choose to purchase goods made of agricultural materials, and provides a preference for these products for government purchases. The initiative also calls for greater accountability, including auditing and compliance activities to ensure the integrity of the certified label. USDA's Biopreferred Program offers over 8,900 bio-based products.
Spur the commercialization of new agricultural innovations by streamlining and focusing resources to help new bio-based projects move from the development to the commercialization phase, also known as the "valley of death" since far too many good ideas do not make it out of this phase. The initiative focuses the USDA's Biomass Research and Development Initiative on the commercialization of bio-based products-bridging this gap to help accelerate the bio-based industry.
Increase access to capital for bio-based manufacturers by expanding the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Biorefinery Loan Guarantee Program, so bio-based manufacturers have access to loans to help finance new operations or expand existing ones.
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