The shoe manufacturer, with three factories in Maine, is pushing the government to keep its promise to use U.S.-made athletic shoes in the military and speaking out against the Trans-Pacific Partnership, with support from Maine's congressional delegation.
The Boston-based company has been quiet over the last year on its opposition to the TTP because the company wanted the military footwear contract — but that silence has ended, Matt LeBretton, New Balance’s vice president of public affairs, said Tuesday.
At issue with New Balance is the government’s promise to buy American-made footwear for the U.S. military. New Balance imports materials, but is one of the only major athletic shoe companies that manufactures its shoes in the U.S.
Congress first established the domestic purchasing mandate — the Berry Amendment — in 1941, and for decades, the military complied by issuing American-made uniforms, including athletic footwear, for American troops.
Citing a decline in domestic shoe manufacturing in recent years, the Department of Defense skirted the policy by issuing cash allowances to soldiers — about $80 each — for their own purchase of athletic shoes, which meant the soldiers could buy footwear manufactured outside the United States.
The department announced in April 2014 that it would require new military recruits to use the cash footwear allowance to buy athletic shoes that are compliant with the Berry Amendment, but that has yet to happen.
That requirement would include shoes made in three New Balance factories in Maine — Skowhegan, Norridgewock and Norway — once they become available in the marketplace.
New Balance employs about 900 people in Maine and 3,000 across the country. Factories in Skowhegan and Norridgewock make more than 1.6 million pairs of shoes each year. The Skowhegan plant has about 320 employees and Norridgewock has about 390.
In his visit to the Norridgewock factory April 4, Poliquin said, “We want these American-made shoes to be on these American men and women who are keeping us safe and free — period.”
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New Balance blasts Obama administration over trade pact, broken promise - Central Maine
The Boston-based company has been quiet over the last year on its opposition to the TTP because the company wanted the military footwear contract — but that silence has ended, Matt LeBretton, New Balance’s vice president of public affairs, said Tuesday.
At issue with New Balance is the government’s promise to buy American-made footwear for the U.S. military. New Balance imports materials, but is one of the only major athletic shoe companies that manufactures its shoes in the U.S.
Congress first established the domestic purchasing mandate — the Berry Amendment — in 1941, and for decades, the military complied by issuing American-made uniforms, including athletic footwear, for American troops.
Citing a decline in domestic shoe manufacturing in recent years, the Department of Defense skirted the policy by issuing cash allowances to soldiers — about $80 each — for their own purchase of athletic shoes, which meant the soldiers could buy footwear manufactured outside the United States.
The department announced in April 2014 that it would require new military recruits to use the cash footwear allowance to buy athletic shoes that are compliant with the Berry Amendment, but that has yet to happen.
That requirement would include shoes made in three New Balance factories in Maine — Skowhegan, Norridgewock and Norway — once they become available in the marketplace.
New Balance employs about 900 people in Maine and 3,000 across the country. Factories in Skowhegan and Norridgewock make more than 1.6 million pairs of shoes each year. The Skowhegan plant has about 320 employees and Norridgewock has about 390.
In his visit to the Norridgewock factory April 4, Poliquin said, “We want these American-made shoes to be on these American men and women who are keeping us safe and free — period.”
more
New Balance blasts Obama administration over trade pact, broken promise - Central Maine
