The supply chain crisis has retailers and consumers wondering if they’ll be facing empty shelves and higher prices as we head into the holiday shopping season. That’s why we need you to send an SOS to Congress - Save Our Shipments.
Although there is not one simple solution to the crisis, Congress can help retailers keep store shelves stocked and address some of the issues plaguing supply chains by acting on a few pieces of critical legislation. Here are three ways Congress can address the supply chain crisis and Save Our Shipments now:
Pass the Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework – Passage of the $1.2 trillion infrastructure package is a critical first step to help get America’s supply chains back on track. This bill has historic infrastructure investments that will modernize the nation’s ports, roads, bridges and rails that our supply chains depend on.
Add more truck drivers to the workforce – Truck drivers are an integral part of our supply chain system and we simply do not have enough. In fact, the trucking industry is currently short a whopping 80,000 truck drivers. Congress can help by passing the DRIVE-Safe Act, a bill which would cut the bureaucratic red tape that prevents 18–20-year-olds from entering the truck driver profession.
Update the Shipping Act – Long-standing unfair business practices by the ocean carriers and terminal operators are complicating the supply chain disruption issues and adding to port congestion. The bipartisan Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2021 would put in place common sense reforms to address some of these long-standing issues which have been further highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic.