DeLauro Discusses Importance of Manufacturing to CT Economy

Tours Stevens Manufacturing Company in Milford, Talks with Employees

MILFORD, CT—Connecticut Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro visited Stevens Manufacturing Company today to discuss the importance of manufacturing to Connecticut’s economy and the middle class in particular. Stevens is a main supplier for Sikorsky, which recently signed a five-year contract to supply Black Hawk and Seahawk helicopters to the United States Army and Navy, respectively. Last week the House of Representatives passed the Department of Defense’s 2013 funding bill, which includes funding for over 100 Black Hawks and Seahawks

“Manufacturing has always been the lynchpin of Connecticut’s economy, the national economy and the nation’s defense industrial base,” DeLauro said. “The defense industrial base in Connecticut is not just about manufacturing, it is also about research and development jobs and workers creating the key technologies of the future. This is a critical component of rebuilding our economic capacity and Connecticut’s manufacturers. Although we have made gains over the past few years, we still need to devote more resources to getting our manufacturing sector back and thriving again. I am proud to fight to ensure companies like Stevens and Sikorsky always have the chance to further this mission.”

Stevens also has a mentoring program with Platt Technical High School where students work at the shop through the year and train for well-paying, skilled jobs after they graduate. This enables educators and businesses to create the highly skilled workforce Connecticut needs to lead the way back to a robust manufacturing economy. DeLauro has advocated and secured funding for the program, helping Connecticut meet both the educational needs of students and the skill requirements of manufacturers.

DeLauro is a longtime supporter of boosting Connecticut’s manufacturing sector to help grow the economy and ensure a supply of middle-class jobs. She has worked with the New Haven Manufacturers Association on a bill to provide a tax incentive for small manufacturers to invest in their infrastructure, machinery and job training. The broader effects of manufacturing jobs on an area’s economy are well-established. When a company like Sikorsky has more work, this not only creates jobs at their suppliers like Stevens, but boosts area businesses, like retailers and restaurants, that benefit from people having more money to put back into the economy.

Last week DeLauro won approval of an amendment to the Defense Department’s funding bill to stop them from buying additional Russian-made Mi-17 helicopters from the same state arms agency currently supporting Syria. Unbelievably, these helicopters—for the Afghan Security Forces—are also being purchased under a no-bid contract. DeLauro strongly believes that if our taxpayer dollars are going to be spent providing helicopters to the Afghans, those dollars should be spent on American systems that create jobs here at home.