A group of senators is calling on the Commerce Department to be more transparent about the terms of contracts entered into under the CHIPS and Science Act, saying the Commerce Department will ensure the U.S. semiconductor industry is “safe and sustainable.” It is argued that it is necessary to ensure that
In a letter to Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo on Friday, Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.) )teeth, Recent announcements from the Biden administration Signing of the first commercial agreement between CHIPS and the Science Law Prize.
“The Department of Commerce is committed to implementing a subsidy process to ensure that the U.S. semiconductor industry is safe and sustainable, creates quality jobs, and does not simply enrich shareholders and executives through stock buybacks. The letter states:
To that end, the lawmakers argued that the Commerce Department needs to be more transparent about the terms of CHIPS contracts and report on companies' progress on these commitments.
In August 2022, the CHIPS and Science Act was passed, setting aside nearly $53 billion to increase domestic chip production, with $39 billion of that set aside in manufacturing incentives. Officials said the bill is critical to reducing U.S. dependence on overseas supply chains.
The lawmakers' letter comes just weeks after the Commerce Department finalized a $123 million grant to Polar Semiconductor that will allow the company to expand its Minnesota plant. It becomes like this. The grant is expected to nearly double the company's sensor and power chip production capacity, the agency said.
This award is the first CHIPS grant program to be finalized by the Department of Commerce.
Lawmakers criticized the ministry for failing to make public “key provisions of the agreement,” including issues such as quality of jobs, wages, worker health and safety, and stock buybacks. Lawmakers also argued that the agency has not made clear how much liability it will hold grant recipients if they fail to meet the terms of their contracts.
The Biden administration has so far allocated more than $31 billion in CHIPS funding to companies including Samsung, Intel, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company to develop semiconductor manufacturing in the United States.
President Biden has repeatedly emphasized the importance of chips and science, pointing to the widespread use of microchips in technology from cars to phones to home appliances.
Markey, Warren, Sanders, and Sen. Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM) wrote a similar letter In early August, Raimondo urged the Department of Commerce to ensure that CHIPS recipients maintain high standards for the health and safety of workers, communities, and the environment. Lawmakers at the time cited the risks of chemical exposure and greenhouse gas emissions from semiconductor manufacturing.
