{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.heitkamp.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=00DD5A23-E683-4F84-9215-5F41ABD92AF7", "Heitkamp Receives National Award for Outstanding Work to Stand Up for American Workers, Manufacturers", "2016-10-27", "2016", "2016-10", "Democrat", "House", "ND", "Heidi Heitkamp", "H001069", "www.heitkamp.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "FARGO, N.D. \u2013 U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp today was recognized by North Dakota members of the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) at Case New Holland (CNH) for her work to stand up for American workers and manufacturers.\r\nDuring her remarks after receiving the NAM Award for Manufacturing Legislative Excellence, Heitkamp reinforced the need for smart federal regulatory policies that help level the playing field for small businesses by cutting red tape and a fully operational Export-Import Bank \u2013 both of which are crucial to supporting manufacturing jobs and economic growth in North Dakota and across the country.\r\n\u201cMaking sure North Dakota is building good jobs and strong communities for tomorrow means supporting our manufacturers through effective, commonsense policies today,\u201d said Heitkamp. \u201cBut we can\u2019t just talk about supporting workers \u2013 we have to actually do it. That\u2019s why I\u2019ve been pushing for commonsense federal regulatory policies that cut red tape for small businesses and manufacturers, and for a fully functioning Export-Import Bank to help level the playing field for North Dakota\u2019s workers and businesses. This award means a great deal as it\u2019s also about the thousands of workers across our state who go to their jobs every day building a stronger North Dakota.\u201d\r\n\u201cSenator Heitkamp has shown immense support for policies that support manufacturers in the U.S. and expand job opportunities for workers across the country,\u201d said Brad Crews, COO, NAFTA, at CNH Industrial. \u201cWe are proud to stand by Senator Heitkamp as she receives this award and look forward to continuing to work with her to drive innovation and growth for manufacturers in North Dakota.\u201d\r\n\u201cManufacturers need leaders in Washington who are going to fight for us,\u201d said Adi Garg, Plant Manager at CNH Industrial in Fargo.\u00a0 \u201cToday we are honoring a member who does more than talk the talk. Her votes for pro-manufacturing, pro-growth policies demonstrate that she cares about manufacturing\u2019s future. On behalf of my company and manufacturers across this country, I am proud to present this award to Senator Heitkamp.\u201dHeitkamp has long advocated for advancing smart federal regulations and improving the way federal rules are promoted and reviewed so small businesses can create jobs and help grow the economy. As ranking member on the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs\u2019 Subcommittee on Regulatory Affairs and Federal Management, Heitkamp is spearheading her bipartisan #CutRedTape initiative with subcommittee chairman James Lankford of Oklahoma that gives American families and businesses a centralized location for voicing their stories on how federal regulations impact them on a daily basis. She has also introduced and helped advance bipartisan legislation to improve the way federal agencies develop federal regulations and make sure unneeded rules are improved or eliminated when they are no longer necessary.\r\nHeitkamp has also been a vocal proponent of the Export-Import Bank, an independent federal government agency and the official export credit agency of the United States which has helped support $42 million in North Dakota exports since 2011, as well as 633 jobs across the state. After Congress let the Bank expire for the first time in the agency\u2019s more than 80-year history in June 2015, Heitkamp fought for and succeeded in passing in December 2015 her bipartisan legislation reauthorizing the Export-Bank for four years.\r\nHowever, even with the support of a vast majority of U.S. senators, the Bank has still been unable to fully operate because U.S. Senate Banking Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-AL) has refused to hold a committee vote on the Export-Import Bank Board nominee, Mark McWatters. His refusal to do so is preventing a quorum on the board, and halting the agency from financing $20 billion in deals from large businesses and small suppliers across the country that are currently awaiting approval. With a lack of a majority on the Bank\u2019s board, transactions over $10 million are prevented from taking place, hindering American jobs and businesses like Case New Holland, which produces wheel loaders in Fargo.\r\nHeitkamp has been fighting for businesses like Case New Holland and others across the country by joining with 41 of her Senate colleagues in pressing Shelby to permit a vote on the nomination of McWatters to serve on the Board of Directors of the Export-Import Bank. Last month, Heitkamp took to the U.S. Senate floor to call on her colleagues to include quorum requirement changes needed for the Export-Import Bank\u2019s Board of Directors to fully function in the Senate\u2019s bill to fund the U.S. government.\r\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.heitkamp.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=00DD5A23-E683-4F84-9215-5F41ABD92AF7"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9856848046183586, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}