THU AM News: Manufacturers predicting profit growth despite tariff concerns; Baldwin, other lawmakers raising concerns over manufacturing centers funding cut

April 10, 2025

— Manufacturers across North America are largely optimistic about future profit growth despite rising concerns about tariffs, according to a survey from Milwaukee-based advisory firm Wipfli.

After surveying about 300 manufacturing companies across the United States, Canada and Mexico last month, the firm found 55% of respondents are forecasting higher profits for 2025 than in 2024. Respondents in the survey predicted 2.7% revenue growth this year, even as they face an unstable outlook amid constantly shifting tariffs.

Laurie Harbour, a partner at Wipfli, says most manufacturers are starting off 2025 slow but “sentiment is generally trending up” and expects companies to gain momentum in the second half of this year and into 2026.

“Certain industries, such as aerospace, defense and industrial equipment, are better positioned for growth compared to agriculture and automotive,” Harbour said in a statement, adding manufacturers should “double down on real data” to create more realistic forecasts for this year.

Wipfli points to a “modest” increase in expectations around profits, revenue, utilization and backlog in the first quarter of this year over year-end 2024.

The survey also finds “key drivers of sentiment” are in line with previous years, as respondents grapple with the rising cost of operation, upward wage pressure, skilled labor challenges and more competition from countries where it’s cheaper to do business.

Meanwhile, 61% of respondents said tariffs imposed by the Trump administration would impact their business. The tariffs are already influencing respondents’ supply chain decisions, according to Wipfli, as some are pausing contracts, shifting to suppliers outside the U.S. and signaling greater interest in establishing domestic production.

Cara Walton, director at Wipfli, says flexibility and informed decisionmaking “will be key” to navigating the increasingly complex trade environment this year.

“Regardless of the type of manufacturing process, our data shows the industry expects an impact due to tariffs — both positive and negative,” she said.

Wipfli also says 40% of manufacturers report no change in their employee base, while 21% are “hiring for growth” and 4% are laying off workers. The survey found skilled labor shortages are ongoing despite this relative stability, though many respondents are “upskilling” current workers, investing in automation and focusing on efficiency rather than filling open jobs.

See the release.

— U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison has signed onto a letter expressing “deep concern” about funding cuts to a program that helps U.S. manufacturers grow and create jobs.

In the letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, the lawmakers criticize the department’s recent decision to cancel future funding for 10 National Institute of Standards and Technology Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership Centers.

Wisconsin’s MEP center isn’t one of them, but lawmakers say the move has “raised widespread concern” across the entire network of 51 centers across the country. The letter, which was sent Tuesday, says the centers in Wisconsin and elsewhere “expected to be notified about their status shortly.”

“Given the MEP program’s long-standing, bipartisan support in strengthening small and medium-sized American manufacturers, we share these concerns and urge you to provide clarity and certainty on your plans for the future of the MEP program,” the lawmakers wrote.

Baldwin’s release notes Wisconsin’s MEP center has helped create more than $2.5 billion in economic impact and created or retained nearly 4,000 jobs over the last two years.

The lawmakers are requesting a “full explanation” of the rationale behind cutting funding for the program and asking Lutnick to reconsider the move. And they’re asking the Department of Commerce to provide an impact assessment to Congress with details on how the funding cut will impact manufacturers.

See the letter and Baldwin’s release.

— Wisconsin faces an economic loss of $247 million from federal health research cuts, and could lose more than 1,000 related jobs, according to data from the Science & Community Impacts Mapping Project.

This university research effort maps out the national, state and county-level impacts of the Trump administration’s cuts to health research funding. It comes after the administration earlier this year announced it would cap the indirect cost rate for new and current grants at 15%, a major blow to federal research funding support.

In Wisconsin, Dane and Milwaukee counties will be hit the hardest by these cuts, the map shows. Dane County, home to UW-Madison, is expected to see a $154 million loss. And Milwaukee County — where UW-Milwaukee and the Medical College of Wisconsin are located — is expected to see a $46 million loss.

Statewide, job losses linked to the research cuts are estimated at 1,068.

Meanwhile, the national impacts include a $16 billion economic loss and 68,000 lost jobs, the map shows.

See the map.

— Wisconsin and its sister state of Hessen, Germany have formed a new agreement aimed at boosting economic collaboration, Gov. Tony Evers announced.

Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. Secretary and CEO Missy Hughes recently signed a memorandum of understanding on the 50th anniversary of Wisconsin’s sister state partnership with Hessen. It was also signed by Rainer Waldschmidt, CEO of Hessen Trade and Invest, which represents all Hessen-based economic development groups.

Under the MOU, the two states aim to “accelerate innovation” as well as entrepreneurship, trade and investment, putting a “special emphasis” on startup companies, according to the guv’s office. The agreement also calls for new ways to leverage expertise in research, development and investment.

Evers said the agreement “marks a new chapter in our enduring partnership and friendship” between Wisconsin and Hessen.

“Maintaining Wisconsin’s strong relationships with our global partners remains as important as ever, most especially given all of the uncertainty in the world today,” he said in a statement.

The announcement comes after a recent WEDC trade mission to parts of Germany and France, which included both state officials and Wisconsin businesses. It was Evers’ third trade mission since being elected in 2019.

See the release and read a recent story on the trade mission.

— Several GOP lawmakers who were opposed to a heavily lobbied transmission bill knocked a new version that adds in additional provisions addressing farmland preservation and other issues.

Meanwhile, opponents have also started questioning whether the provisions to give incumbent utilities the first shot at building new transmission lines conflict with an executive order President Donald Trump issued this week seeking to target state laws his administration believes hinder domestic energy production.

That order directs the U.S. attorney general to identify all state laws “burdening the identification, development, siting, production, or use of domestic energy resources” that are unconstitutional or otherwise unenforceable. It singles out state laws “purporting to address ‘climate change.’”

The provisions in the original “right of first refusal” legislation and the new bill Assembly Republicans released Tuesday aren’t related to climate change. The proposals address expected transmission line work coming to Wisconsin as part of a regional infrastructure upgrade.

State Rep. Chanz Green, one of the co-sponsors of the new bill dubbed the Wisconsin Energy Reform Act, said he has asked Leg Council for an analysis of whether the transmission line provisions in the new bill are impacted by the executive order.

But he said that analysis may be difficult until the Trump administration further flushes out the details of the new executive order.

The bill includes a provision that would negate the rights granted to utilities if the federal government repeals a provision that allows the owners of transmission facilities to spread costs over the region.

“Until everything is set in stone, I don’t know how it’s going to affect us,” said Green, R-Grand View.

Eric Bott with Americans for Prosperity, which has helped lead the charge against ROFR, cited language in Trump’s executive order in a post on X about states targeting or discriminating “against out-of-State energy producers by imposing significant barriers to interstate and international trade.”

He urged Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, to “End this scam.”

Ellen Nowak, vice president of state and federal affairs ATC, said the utility was still studying the bill released Tuesday. Still, she said the executive order is about climate change laws and has nothing to do with ROFR. She added it is directed at energy producers, not transmission.

“This is just a discussion among an echo chamber among 20 Twitter followers,” Nowak said.

State Sen. Steve Nass, R-Whitewater, was among those yesterday who knocked the new Wisconsin Energy Reform Act, calling it “political cover for some legislators to flip their positions of fighting for their constituents and instead deliver for the powerful utility special interests.”

Meanwhile, state Rep. Joy Goeben, R-Hobart, said the new bill was “nearly identical to ROFR with more pork thrown in to make the bad parts palatable.”

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EDUCATION

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HEALTH CARE

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MANAGEMENT