Committee Advances Made in America Jobs Act to Expand EDA Grant Eligibility for Reshoring

The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure adopted an amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 73 42, the Made in America Jobs Act of 2026, and ordered the measure favorably reported to the House.

Representative Hurd, the sponsor of the amendment in the nature of a substitute, said the bill authorizes the Commerce Secretary to consider projects that help reshore manufacturing jobs in economically distressed communities as eligible for Economic Development Administration (EDA) grants. He said the change builds on EDA’s mission to provide grant funds and technical assistance to communities suffering high unemployment and low wages and that the bill creates no new federal programs or increases spending.

Ranking member Larson supported the amendment, noting it builds on EDA’s recent reauthorization and expands criteria that promote long-term investment and domestic manufacturing growth. Representative Figures said the bill would help bring back well-paying manufacturing jobs to districts that have seen long-term job loss and emphasized rural and economically distressed communities as primary beneficiaries.

Mister Perry challenged the premise, arguing that the EDA has historically failed to deliver results despite significant funding and that the agency’s footprint should be reduced rather than expanded.

The committee adopted the amendment in the nature of a substitute and then agreed to report HR 73 42, as amended, favorably to the House by voice vote. The chair laid the motion to reconsider on the table. No roll-call tally was recorded in the markup transcript.