In Case You Missed It: New Balance Applauds Senator Collins’ Support for Domestic Manufacturing
December 6, 2017 -- Skowhegan, Maine -- New Balance released a statement today commending U.S. Senator Susan Collins on her support for comprehensive tax reform which will enhance the ability of the company to grow and create additional jobs in key U.S. regions like Maine.
New Balance currently has five manufacturing facilities in New England. The facilities in Maine are located in Skowhegan, Norridgewock, and Norway and employ approximately 900 people.
“New Balance is proud to employ thousands of hardworking Americans and produce athletic footwear in the U.S. We applaud Senator Collins’ efforts to encourage greater growth at our U.S. factories by reducing the corporate tax burden, incentivizing capital investment and creating long-term certainty. The Senate bill will allow New Balance to be more competitive and manufacture more footwear in Maine that we can export across the globe.”
Among the many pro-growth provisions included in the Senate tax bill, three changes to the tax code in particular are important to New Balance:
- First, the bill lowers the corporate tax rate. This significantly reduces the incentive for companies to move operations overseas in search of lower tax rates. Companies like New Balance, which already has a strong domestic manufacturing presence, will be able to increase investments in their facilities and be more globally competitive while remaining a U.S. company hiring U.S. workers.
- Second, the bill improves cost recovery for capital investments. These provisions will allow businesses to fully expense or more quickly depreciate newly purchased assets, meaning companies will buy more property, equipment, and machines for use in the U.S. This will lead to more jobs for U.S. workers, more revenue for sellers, and bigger paychecks for employees.
- Third, the ability to bring back foreign profits through deemed repatriation. The return of foreign profits at lower tax rate is a major incentive to build and grow in our communities. New Balance will invest these funds in the development and expansion of our facilities in New England.
New Balance is proud to be the only major company to make or assemble more than 4 million pairs of athletic footwear per year in the USA. Whenever possible, we purchase materials from domestic suppliers, who employ more than 7,000 workers locally.
About New Balance
New Balance, headquartered in Boston, MA has the following mission: Demonstrating responsible leadership, we build global brands that athletes are proud to wear, associates are proud to create and communities are proud to host. Manufactured in the U.S. for over 75 years and representing a limited portion of our U.S. sales, New Balance Made U.S. is a premium collection that contains a domestic value of 70% or greater. New Balance owns five factories in New England and one in Flimby, U.K. New Balance employs more than 6,000 associates around the globe, and in 2016 reported worldwide sales of $3.8 billion. To learn more about New Balance, please visit www.newbalance.com and for the latest press information please visit http://newbalance.newsmarket.com.
