By: David Wood, Aaron Cantrell, Melanie Brusseler
Originally Published In ImpactAlpha’s Policy Corner On April 18, 2023. Read The Article Here.
A new paradigm for U.S. industrial strategy
The IRA, IIJA, and CHIPS Act iconize a new era in US green industrial strategy: a narrow definition of redressing “market failures” is giving way, on both sides of the aisle, to a more constructive vision of the public sector’s role in building an equitable and sustainable economy.
Industrial policy incorporates a wide range of carrots and sticks, including trade and procurement policies, financial and industrial regulation, and labor policies. But it is public investment that, when done well, can create a center of gravity that other policy tools can’t provide: for building infrastructure and productive capacity to deal with the climate crisis, driving equitable growth, and enhancing resilience in historically marginalized communities.