Issue link: http://palletcentral.uberflip.com/i/1040159
palletcentral.com PalletCentral • September-October 2018 11 For Thompson there are numerous important issues in Congress which affect his constituents, but for the wood pallet industry he highlights the farm bill with good proposals for forestry, better support for active land management, and combatting invasive species. He added that "by providing the USDA and our nation's farmers with more tools to address matters such as these, we support rural areas and important job providers that work with them hand in hand." Both Remmey and Cunningham noted that the labor market is tight which makes it difficult to hire and retain quality workers. However, Thompson, as co-chairman of the bipartisan Career & Technical Education Caucus, has led the effort to increase access to training programs which help fill many of the industry's vacancies. "Congressman Thompson was also a strong supporter of the comprehensive tax reform which allowed many in our industry to invest more into our businesses providing better growth opportunities," Remmey said. "Thompson was also a strong proponent to include paper, wood, and pulp products in the USDA's BioPreferred Program® – including pallets designed with the Pallet Design System™." In 2017, Thompson was recipient of NWPCA's Champion of the Wood Pallet & Wood Packaging Industry award. He continues to support and advocate for the wood packaging industry, as NWPCA continues to cultivate more friends like GT to become a strong voice in Congress for our industry. PC "By providing the USDA and our nation's farmers with more tools to address matters such as [good proposals for forestr y, better suppor t for active land management, and combatting invasive species], we suppor t rural areas and impor tant job providers that work with them hand in hand." – Congressman Glenn Thompson