Follow the Money: Credit Crunch for Manufacturers

The Original Equipment Suppliers Association is feeling the credit crunch. The Association has proposed that the federal government provide loan guarantees or rework loan terms for manufacturers. Taking the lead in Congress is Sherrod Brown, representative from Ohio. He is pushing legislation to give aid so companies can retool to supply “green energy” projects, and is considering a measure to let the Small Business Administration provide larger loans.

Ron Bloom, the administration’s chief manufacturing policy maker, is not providing support at this point. The legislative proposal would have the government guarantee $10 billion in loans in order to spur banks into lending. The guarantee was proposed in August by the Commerce Department’s Manufacturing Council, an outside advisory group.