Donnelly Offers Proposal to Stop Offshoring of Hoosier, American Jobs

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Joe Donnelly offered a series of policy recommendations intended to prevent the further offshoring of Hoosier and American jobs. The proposals would reward companies that invest in the U.S. and penalize those that offshore jobs to countries like Mexico and China.

Donnelly’s proposals are detailed in a white paper, “Investing in America: A Policy Framework to Stop Corporate Offshoring and Strengthen the Middle Class,” aimed at preventing and discouraging major corporations from shipping jobs to foreign countries. Donnelly sent a letter to the Senate Finance Committee, requesting that the policy recommendations be included in any tax reform effort.

His efforts come on the heels of additional evidence that the American middle class is shrinking, which has resulted in increased economic anxiety among hard-working families.

Donnelly said, “America was built on a contract between businesses and workers—a mutual understanding that the success of one contributes to the other. Our middle class is shrinking, in Indiana and across the country, and when successful, profitable companies choose to ship good, American jobs overseas our families pay the price. We have an obligation to try to prevent the next Carrier and ensure that federal policies are designed to benefit the U.S. economy and that we encourage investment in the foundation of our economy—American workers, their families, and communities.”

Donnelly’s policy recommendations announced today would do the following:

1. Deny Expensing for Offshore Moving Costs: When corporations fire American workers and send those jobs abroad, that corporation should not be permitted to write off moving costs.
2. Claw-back and Restrict Tax Incentives: When corporations offshore jobs, taxpayers should be reimbursed for the recent grants and tax breaks received at those facilities. And going forward, tax breaks should go to companies that invest here in America.
3. Consider Offshoring as a Factor when Awarding Federal Contracts: As federal contracting officers decide which goods and services to purchase with U.S. tax dollars, they currently consider a host of factors including cost, past performance, and technical quality. They should also consider whether the bidding corporation has pursued cheaper foreign labor at the expense of American workers in the past.
4. Incentives to Invest in Rural and Low-Income Communities: By offering tax breaks to companies that re-shore jobs from foreign countries to low­-income and rural communities in the U.S., we can reward companies that choose to hire American workers, while encouraging economic growth here in America. 

Donnelly’s recommendations follow the announcement from United Technologies Corporation in February that it would move 2,100 jobs from Carrier and UTEC in Indiana to Monterrey, Mexico.

For more information about Donnelly’s policy recommendations and to read his white paper on investing in America’s middle class and strengthening the U.S. economy, click here.