WASHINGTON, D.C.— On behalf of 67 companies from throughout the plastics industry value chain, the Plastics Industry Association (PLASTICS) delivered a letter to leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate expressing concerns about the proposed inclusion of a 20 cent per pound tax on virgin plastic resin in the budget reconciliation package.
Specifically, the letter raises concerns about increased costs to the entire plastics industry value chain and reduced U.S. manufacturing competitiveness. Additionally, there has been a lack of expert analysis, public debate, and other considerations associated with the regular legislative process, but not included in the “fast track” reconciliation process.
This latest correspondence follows a similar letter sent to Congress last week from a coalition of 23 trade associations.
The full text of the plastics industry value chain letter is available below.
Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Minority Leader McConnell, Speaker Pelosi and Minority Leader McCarthy,
We write to you as companies in the value chain of the American plastics industry to express our concerns with the proposed 20 cent per pound tax on virgin plastic resin. We manufacture the products, materials, and machines that would be impacted by this new massive tax and it will be devastating to our industry and our workers.
As manufacturers deemed essential from the start of the pandemic, we have continued to operate and supply America and the world with important products needed in daily life. This past year and a half have been a challenge, but we are proud to say we have risen to the occasion. To now see a potential 20 cent per pound tax on resin being proposed and potentially passed without even a debate is disheartening.
Our companies almost all use recycled plastic. Some of us produce it. But we all believe that using more is necessary. We are committed to increasing the amount of recycled plastic and support reasonable measures to encourage its use. Unfortunately, simply slapping a new tax on virgin resin and expecting significant change ignores the fact that the supply of recycled plastic is limited—especially for food contact applications. That supply constraint would make this tax unavoidable and mean billions in higher costs for our customers, tighter margins across the industry, and safe to assume tens of thousands of manufacturing jobs will be lost.
We are also concerned about the competitive disadvantage at which this will put American manufacturers. The complicated mechanism prescribed in this measure to enforce a tax on imports based on the weight of virgin resin included in finished products will only result in more of those products being made in other countries.
We strongly urge you to set aside the concept of a resin tax from the discussions surrounding the reconciliation package and potential revenue sources. We would welcome public hearings on the use of recycled content and a robust discussion about how we can further the public/private partnership that already exists in recycling. But at this time, please oppose the proposed resin tax.
Sincerely,
Accede Mold & Tool
ACS Group
ADG Solutions
Advanced Polybag Inc.
AGC Chemicals Americas, Inc.
Amcor
Ascend Performance Materials
Bandera Extrusion
Barnes Group Inc.
Bay Plastics Machinery
Bekum America
Bemis
C & G Mercury Plastics
C.N. Brown Plastics, Inc.
Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LP
Clean Plast Purge Compounds
Crown Poly, Inc.
Dart Container
Davis‐Standard
Dri‐Air Industries
Eastman Chemical Company
Engel
Epsilyte LLC
ExxonMobil Chemical Company
Fabri‐Kal
Fanuc America
Formosa Plastics Corporation, USA
Frigel North America
Haitian Absolute Machinery
High Technology Corp
Industrial Heater
IPEG
Kenrich Petrochemicals, Inc.
Leistritz Extrusion
LyondellBasell
Manar Inc.
Maxi‐Blast
Maquire
Mid South Extrusion
MSI Mold Builders
Niagara Bottling LLC
Niigata USA
NOVA Chemicals Corporation
Novolex
Pactiv
Placon Corp
PlastiCal LLC
Polymax TPE
Polyquest
Printpack
PTA Plastics
Rajiv Plastics Pvt. Ltd.
Royce Global
SABIC
Sealed‐Air
SEPRO America
Shawnee Chemical Company
Shell Chemical LP
Sigma Plastics
Steinwall, Inc
Stihl
Superbag
Vestolit
Westfall Technik
Westlake Chemical Corp.
Yushin America
Zieger Industries
CC: All Members of the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives
About Plastics Industry Association
The Plastics Industry Association (PLASTICS) is the only organization that supports the entire plastics supply chain, representing nearly one million workers in the $395 billion U.S. industry. Since 1937, PLASTICS has been working to make its members and the industry more globally competitive while advancing recycling and sustainability. To learn more about PLASTICS’ education initiatives, industry-leading insights and events, networking opportunities and policy advocacy and the largest plastics trade show in the Americas, NPE: The Plastics Show, visit plasticsindustry.org. Connect with PLASTICS on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.
