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Welcome to the Economic Analysis and Research (EARN) Industrial Policy Resource Library. This document is maintained by Economic Policy Institute (EPI) staff who support the work of over 60 state and local research and policy organizations who make up the EARN network across 46 states and the District of Columbia.
The library consists of a curated, annotated compilation of links to practical resources of use to those working at the state and local level to leverage federal investments toward creating good union jobs, increasing worker power, and building high-road workforce training partnerships that advance racial and gender equity.
This resource library is designed for use by EARN groups and their many labor and grassroots partners, policymakers and public agency staff, and other stakeholders and allies who are working on the state and local level to maximize the long-term economic benefits of federal industrial policy investments created or expanded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and CHIPS and Science Act.
Historic federal investments in infrastructure and clean energy transition created by the BIL, IRA, and CHIPS and Science Act are providing unprecedented opportunities to advance many of the economic justice goals EARN groups and their partners have long fought for—good jobs, worker power, strong labor standards, and progress on racial, gender, and climate justice. But these outcomes are by no means automatic, and a myriad of important policy choices and challenges lie ahead for every state and local jurisdiction across the country.
In this context, state and local policies, programs, and practices shaping labor standards and worker power have never been more important. Some of the funding opportunities and mechanisms in these laws require the kinds of labor standards necessary to ensure that good jobs, equity, and worker power result from major public investments. In most cases, however, these labor standards are purely optional, if they are mentioned at all. Individual federal program and funding rules are highly variable across agencies, allowing wide latitude for state and local governments and labor and community stakeholders to shape the uses of many federal funds and the rules that private employers and contractors receiving funds will be expected to follow.
This resource library is intended to serve as a hub for 1) sharing practical guidance on navigating complex information streams associated with the three major industrial policy bills and the federal agencies administering them, and 2) providing easy access to how-to guides best practices, and implementation resources designed for state and local advocates.
Last updated April 11, 2024
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Every Floridian deserves access to a quality job that provides a living wage; a job where the employer fosters equitable workplace practices and empowers workers. In a truly thriving economy, working Floridians get to share in the prosperity created by that work. However, Florida’s policies have historically prioritized profits and corporate interests over people, especially workers of color, people paid low wages, and immigrants. This has put economic mobility out of reach for far too many, forcing Floridians to work twice as hard and face countless roadblocks to fiscal stability.
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The post-pandemic labor market, which forced employers to step up their game to attract workers, won’t last forever. What goes up may very well come back down. The time to lock down gains for low wage workers is now. Policies like local minimum wage boosts, better wage theft enforcement regimes, and strong worker protections can ensure that rising inflation won’t push us back into the status quo: a labor market stacked in favor of big corporations and against the interest of Colorado’s working families.