Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images.
The Biden administration is launching a new initiative to try to address the supply chain crisis, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: The move comes as global unrest and fresh coronavirus outbreaks threaten to further destabilize a U.S. economy already reeling from shortages, skyrocketing inflation and an overall drop in consumer morale.
- Consumers are growing increasingly impatient as supply chain issues drag into their second year, Axios' Hope King reports.
- This all comes as President Biden is fighting to defy the historical odds and keep his party in power following the midterm elections this November.
Driving the news: The initiative, Freight Logistics Optimization Works (FLOW), is being launched at a White House event on Tuesday morning, an administration official told Axios.
- Attendees will include Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Brian Deese, director of the National Economic Council.
Details: The initiative involves creating a "proof-of-concept information exchange" between 18 public and private organizations at various stages of the supply chain, according to a fact sheet provided to Axios.
- The organizations include state and local port authorities, maritime shipping companies, seaport terminal operators, retail and food businesses, trucking companies, chassis companies and logistics companies.
- The Transportation Department is leading it as "an honest broker and convener to bring supply chain stakeholders together," the fact sheet says.
- The program aims to "support businesses throughout the supply chain and improve accuracy of information from end-to-end for a more resilient supply chain."
The bottom line: The administration is hoping Americans will see this effort as proof it’s actively trying to address day-to-day economic woes.