Congressmen Ask Company To Keep Jobs In Illinois

U.S. Reps. Don Manzullo (R-Egan) and Bobby Schilling (R-Colona) urge the CEO of Massachusetts-based Sensata Technologies to abandon plans to offshore production to Asia and instead keep the work and the jobs in Freeport, Illinois.

In a letter to the company, Manzullo and Schilling expressed their concerns with Sensata’s plans to shut down its Freeport plant and move the production and jobs to China.

The Congressmen instead suggest Sensata should follow the lead of other multi-national corporations who are “reshoring” American jobs -- bringing back production from overseas – to boost lead times, innovation and quality.

Citizens of Freeport contacted both Manzullo and Schilling for help in appealing to Sensata to keep operations in Freeport.

“Labor costs in China are soaring, and energy costs are driving up the cost of shipping products,” Manzullo and Schilling said in the letter. “We would ask that you strongly consider these factors as well as the important value of the highly skilled, highly productive workforce in the northern Illinois region that is second to none in the global economy.”

The letter points out executives at Google Inc. have decided to manufacture the company’s new Nexus Q home entertainment device in the United States instead of China, reportedly to speed up innovation time.

According to a recent Boston Consulting survey of 106 U.S.-based manufacturing executives with sales greater than $1 billion, 37 percent were considering or planning to move production back to the United States from China.

Manzullo and Schilling added that Freeport has been a leader in innovative workforce development initiatives, such as the Work Keys program that assesses and trains workers to match the needs of area employers. The region is also supported by a superior transportation network led by United Parcel Services’ second largest air cargo hub at the Chicago-Rockford International Airport, as well as the Union Pacific Railroad Global III Intermodal Hub.

“These are just some of the many reasons that we respectfully request that you reconsider your decision to move your Freeport operations,” the letter stated.

Rockford Postal Service Not Moving -- Further Study Underway

While announcing the closure of six other Illinois sorting centers today as part of a nationwide consolidation effort, the Postal Service singled out Rockford for further review and said it is widening the study to include possible consolidations with the sorting centers at Carol Stream and Palatine. 

In addition, U.S. Postmaster General Patrick Donahue has accepted Manzullo’s invitation to come to Rockford to view operations personally. A date for the visit is pending.

“While we are not out of the woods yet, it is a huge victory that Rockford was not on the closing list today,” Manzullo said. “Rockford was singled out for further study because moving mail sorting operations to Wisconsin – and delaying delivery to eight northern Illinois counties – did not make economic sense. It wouldn’t save any money, especially considering the high efficiency of the Rockford workers. It’s a message more than 600 citizens and I delivered at the public hearing in Rockford on Jan. 5, and it obviously caused the postal officials to have second thoughts.

“I thank the postal service for heeding our concerns, stepping back, and taking another look at this. As the postal service embarks on yet another consolidation study, you can rest assured that I will be monitoring the situation closely with the top postal officials in Washington, DC. In addition, I just learned that U.S. Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe has accepted my invitation to come to Rockford and view operations firsthand. We are working on dates for the visit.”

At the Jan. 5 public meeting, Manzullo presented USPS officials with resolutions of support approved on very short notice by 18 communities in northern Illinois. The closure of the Rockford sorting center would delay mail delivery to the eight counties served by zip codes beginning with 610 and 611. Those counties include Boone, Winnebago, Stephenson, JoDaviess, Carroll, Whiteside, Lee, and Ogle.

Congressman Manzullo Honored For Efforts To Cut Wasteful Spending

WASHINGTON – Americans for Prosperity (AFP), the premier free market grassroots organization committed to smaller government and free enterprise, has honored Congressman Don Manzullo (R-Egan) with a perfect 100 percent score for his efforts to cut wasteful Washington spending, strengthen our economy, and help put Americans back to work.

Manzullo joined Congressman Joe Walsh (R-McHenry) as the only two Members of Congress from Illinois to receive an “A+” rating from the group.

In total, 39 Members out of 435 received a perfect score in AFP’s mid-term legislative scorecard. The scorecard included several critical votes on such issues as repealing President Obama’s new health care law, preempting EPA’s purported authority to regulate greenhouse gases, and several spending votes.

“Americans for Prosperity was glad to see that once again Illinois Congressman Don Manzullo came in with a perfect score on the most important economic votes cast during the first session of the 112th Congress.

Manzullo is among just a handful of representatives who have a lifetime 100% score. Since AFP began our scorecard in 2007, Manzullo supported the small government, free market position on all 56 House votes we’ve scored,” said AFP Director of Government Affairs James Valvo.

Manzullo has also been honored for his conservative principles by the American Conservative Union, National Taxpayers Union, Citizens Against Government Waste, and others. Since 2007, Manzullo has voted more than 700 times to cut more than $2.6 trillion in wasteful Washington spending and shrink the size of the federal government.

United Postal Services Plans To Move Sorting Operations To Wisconsin

The United States Postal Services plans to shut down sorting operations in Rockford and move all the jobs to Madison, Wisconsin. The would end overnight mail service to residents in the eight counties starting with zip codes 610 and 611

Congressman Don Manzullo, R-16^th – reports that the Postal Services is hosting a public meeting on this matter Thursday, January 5, beginning at 7:00 p.m. in the Best Western Clock Tower Resort & Conference Center, 7801 E. State Street, Rockford

This planned move would send about 200 local jobs to Madison and delay mail service by 2 to 3 days to homes and businesses in the eight counties Rockford currently serves, including Boone, Winnebago, Stephenson, JoDavies, Carroll, Whiteside, Ogle and Lee.

This processing center is consistently rated among the most efficient centers in the nation, and Rockford workers provide excellent overnight delivery service to their customers.

Manzullo explains, “We are well aware the Postal Service is facing difficult times, but closing one of the nation’s most efficient sorting centers in Rockford and delaying mail delivery to northern Illinois would be a terrible mistake.

Manzullo is urging residents in zip codes 610 and 611 to attend Thursday night’s meeting to let the Postal Service officials know how much they appreciate the excellent service.

Congressman Manzullo is working with U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Mark Kirk (R-IL) to keep the jobs and overnight delivery service in northern Illinois. Manzullo, Durbin and Kirk met with Postmaster General Pat Donahoe on November 1 to share their concerns with the potential move of operations to Wisconsin and the damage it would cause to northern Illinois

Congressman Manzullo Comments On Death of North Korean Dictator Kim Jong II

U.S. Rep. Don Manzullo, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia & the Pacific, tonight issued the following statement reacting to the death of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il.

 “Kim Jong Il was the epitome of evil, a dictator of the worst kind who ruled his country with an iron fist and dished out constant pain and misery to his people. As Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, I have watched Kim Jong Il closely and our committee has monitored his actions, including his unprovoked provocation toward South Korea and his relentless quest for nuclear weapons.

“We hope his passing will mark a new chapter for North Korea. This is an opportunity for North Korea to emerge from its cycle of oppression and walk down a new path toward democracy. We will be watching closely.”