As 2026 begins, uncertainty continues for American manufacturing

On December 18, 2025, 29 U.S. Senators sent a letter to Acting Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology Craig Burkhardt demanding clarification on why the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has been delaying or withholding congressionally approved funding to the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) Program. MEPs, which were first authorized in 1988 under President Reagan, are nonprofits supporting small- and medium-sized manufacturing companies in their respective states.

This support takes the form of training and certification opportunities, help with new technology adoption, and more. The MEP page on the NIST website states, “Our ability to create private-public partnerships can bring to manufacturers capabilities that they cannot access alone, providing a wide range of options to address challenges and offer practical solutions that get products to market faster, enhance operational performance, finance growth, manage risks and encourage innovation.” These words, however, are at odds with the organization’s current actions.

In early April 2025, NIST informed lawmakers it wouldn’t be paying the nearly $12.9 million authorized to MEP centers. After strong bipartisan opposition, the administration reversed its decision. However, shortly afterward, it reversed course again, continuing to withhold funds and warning of defunding in 2026. At a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing in early June, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick called the MEP program “outdated”.

“The new technology is AI-driven, automated,” he said. “I think we need to re-examine and retool a whole variety of these programs so that we are able to provide the best technological assistance rather than just continuing a program that’s decades and decades old.” Lutnick isn’t wrong about the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and automation in manufacturing. The technology is clearly driving major change in the industry. However, the implementation of automation isn’t automatic. The NIST website itself is full of case studies about MEP centers helping small businesses implement new technology in ways that would be difficult to achieve alone.

“Automation is something we know we need to be doing in order to remain competitive in today’s manufacturing world,” said John Ribic, president of Ohio CNC machine shop Rimeco Products, in one such case study. “Although we are committed to automation and increased efficiency, it is very difficult to fund and allocate the necessary resources and manpower to manage a project like this.”

That project, which successfully integrated cobot technology with a CNC mill, was supported by Cleveland MEP nonprofit MAGNET, whose federal funding was abruptly suspended days after the case study’s publication – along with that of Ohio’s five other MEP centers, pending a multi-year audit of the program.

Ohio Congresswoman Shontel Brown said the Department of Commerce “failed to be forthcoming about the concerns, the process, or the timeline for resolution…If the Trump Administration truly wants to support American manufacturing, they would provide transparency and find [a] reasonable path forward instead of simply pulling the rug out from the whole state.”

This kind of confusion and back-and-forth costs people jobs, delays progress, and destabilizes supply chains. As 2026 begins, let’s hope for clarity – and recognition of the crucial role MEPs play in strengthening American manufacturing.