Great Lakes Wire

WASHINGTON, DC – The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee approved U.S. Senator Gary Peters’ (MI) bipartisan bill that would strengthen federal efforts to expand domestic manufacturing of semiconductor chips.

The Securing Semiconductor Supply Chains Act – which Peters led with U.S. Senators Rick Scott (R-FL), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), and Jon Tester (D-MT) – would direct the U.S. Department of Commerce’s SelectUSA program, in collaboration with other federal agencies and state economic development organizations, to develop strategies that would attract investment in U.S. semiconductor manufacturers and supply chains. Peters’ bill – which previously passed the Senate last year – would help to address the ongoing global shortage of semiconductor technologies that has disrupted a range of industries in recent years – including manufacturers and automakers in Michigan. Companion legislation was introduced in the House of Representatives by Representatives Greg Pence (R-IN) and Anna Eshoo (D-CA).

“The CHIPS and Science Act makes significant investments to lower costs, strengthen supply chains and bolster our economic competitiveness that we must continue to build on,” said Senator Peters, a member of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee. “This bipartisan legislation would do just that by encouraging investment in U.S. semiconductor manufacturers, as well as their suppliers. I’m pleased this bill has advanced in the Senate and will continue to push for it to be passed into law to reduce our dependence on foreign producers for critical technologies and create good-paying jobs.”

“Michigan continues to make a name for itself in the global semiconductor industry by rising to the challenge and adopting groundbreaking solutions that will help bring home this critical element of supply chains,” said Quentin L. Messer, Jr., CEO of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC). “We remain grateful for the bi-partisan leadership of Senator Peters and his Senate colleagues to help ensure the U.S., and Michigan especially, will reclaim its position as the home for semiconductor industry investments as the world becomes more dependent on these products.”

“Thank you to Senator Peters for his leadership on this bipartisan legislation that will grow domestic semiconductor manufacturing and strengthen our supply chains,” said Governor Matt Blunt, President of the American Automotive Policy Council. “This legislation is critical to auto manufacturers, and promotes economic growth in the U.S. auto sector.”

The SelectUSA program was established by President Obama in 2011 to improve federal efforts that attract job-creating business investments in the United States, and that support U.S. firms. Peters put forward this bipartisan bill after the Biden Administration issued a report emphasizing that the SelectUSA program could be further leveraged to strengthen private sector investments across the semiconductor manufacturing supply chain, in particular.

The Securing Semiconductor Supply Chains Act would direct the SelectUSA program to engage with state-level economic development organizations about how they are attracting foreign direct investment to onshore activities related to semiconductor manufacturing, and identify what resource gaps or other challenges they face in achieving that goal. SelectUSA would then be required to develop strategies to increase investments in semiconductor manufacturing.

Peters has worked to address the semiconductor shortage crisis that has stymied automotive innovation in recent years and has impacted consumers, workers and industries across the country – including the Michigan auto industry. Peters secured multiple provisions in the CHIPS and Science Act that was signed into law to bolster U.S. semiconductor production, including a provision he championed with U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow (MI) to create a $2 billion supplemental incentive fund to support the domestic production of mature semiconductor technologies and ensure that projects supporting critical manufacturing industries are given priority status, which would include the automotive sector. This is in addition to $50 billion already in the bill to incentivize the production of semiconductors of all kinds in the U.S. – for a total of $52 billion.

The CHIPS and Science Act also included Peters’ bipartisan Investing in Domestic Semiconductor Manufacturing Act, which will ensure federal incentives to boost domestic semiconductor manufacturing include U.S. suppliers that produce the materials and manufacturing equipment that enable semiconductor manufacturing – bolstering semiconductors supply chains and Michigan manufacturers. The CHIPS and Science Act also authorized increased funding for the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) program, which has been a priority for Peters. In the most recent government funding bill signed into law, Peters secured an additional $188 million for MEPs like Michigan’s Manufacturing Technology Center – which provide technical assistance to small and medium-sized manufacturers on business operations, advanced technologies, workforce and skills development, cybersecurity and more.

Last year, Peters convened a field hearing in Detroit to examine how Congress can help bolster U.S. innovation for electric and autonomous vehicles by increasing domestic production of semiconductor chips and other technologies, while also delivering economic, environmental, and safety benefits for the American people. Peters has additionally raised the issue of supply chain disruptions seen in recent years with numerous Biden Administration officials in conversations both before and after President Biden took office – including during a roundtable discussion with Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo in Michigan. 

Original source can be found here