Skip to main content

AF&PA Applauds the Senate for Passing Bipartisan Infrastructure Package

CONTACT: Tim Ebner

(202) 463-2587, comm@afandpa.org

WASHINGTON — The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) President and CEO Heidi Brock issued the following statement in response to Senate passage of the bipartisan infrastructure package.

“The paper and wood products industry values bipartisan leadership and we commend this historic agreement. The bipartisan infrastructure package seeks to build a more sustainable future by modernizing our nation’s infrastructure and investing in U.S. manufacturing jobs.

Sustainable practices are the foundation of our industry. AF&PA members and their employees — the approximately 950,000 individuals who make up the forest products industry — create innovative and essential products made from renewable and recyclable resources.

“Senate passage of this landmark agreement is an important step for our industry and our nation. But there is still work to do. House leaders must move the bipartisan infrastructure package over the finish line, and quickly. We need this legislation passed to strengthen American jobs and manufacturing, supply chains, as well as the broader circular economy.”

We applaud the legislation which addresses a number of key infrastructure priorities for AF&PA including:

  • Transportation: Reforms that emphasize safety, efficiency and workforce development. 
  • Energy Infrastructure: Investment in clean energy transmission to connect renewable energy resources to consumers and improve grid resilience and reliability.
  • Waste Management/Recycling Infrastructure: The RECYCLE Act, which authorizes a new grant program at the Environmental Protection Agency, providing recycling education to consumers.

The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) serves to advance public policies that foster economic growth, job creation and global competitiveness for a vital sector that makes the essential paper and packaging products Americans use every day. The U.S. forest products industry employs more than 925,000 people, largely in rural America, and is among the top 10 manufacturing sector employers in 44 states. Our industry accounts for approximately 4.7% of the total U.S. manufacturing GDP, manufacturing more than $435 billion in products annually. AF&PA member companies are significant producers and users of renewable biomass energy and are committed to making sustainable products for a sustainable future through the industry’s decades-long initiative — Better Practices, Better Planet 2030