Senator Murray: “This bill is a game changer. It’s going to bring down costs on everything from appliances to cars to medical equipment—everything that requires chips, create good-paying jobs here in King County and across our state, and it’s going to protect us against the price spikes we saw as a result of the pandemic, by strengthening a really critical supply chain.”
***PHOTOS AND B-ROLL OF THE PRESS CONFERENCE HERE***
***AUDIO OF THE PRESS CONFERENCE HERE***
(Seattle, WA) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), hosted a press conference with local business and workforce leaders in Seattle to discuss how the CHIPS and Science Act will boost manufacturing in Washington state while lowering costs and strengthening a critical supply chain.
Senator Murray helped pass the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act in July after more than a year of bipartisan, bicameral negotiations. The bill is a critical investment in American manufacturing – especially in Washington state, which ranks in the top ten states in semiconductor manufacturing, with many of those jobs in King County. By producing more semiconductor chips in America, this bill will help get more goods to shelves and lower prices on a wide range of products that require chips like household appliances, cars, and medical devices. The CHIPS and Science Act, which was recently signed into law, will create good-paying jobs in Washington state, while strengthening supply chains and national security by reducing reliance on foreign manufacturers.
“When the Senate took up the CHIPS and Science Act, I knew that what we were doing was going to make a big, big difference when it comes to building a stronger economy right here at home,” said Senator Murray. “This bill is a game changer. It’s going to bring down costs on everything from appliances to cars to medical equipment—everything that requires chips, create good-paying jobs here in King County and across our state, and it’s going to protect us against the price spikes we saw as a result of the pandemic, by strengthening a really critical supply chain. This is a win for Washington state and I am going to keep fighting to lower costs and create jobs here in Seattle and across the state.”
Senator Murray was joined by Rachel Smith, President and CEO of the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce; Michael Schutzler, CEO of the Washington Technology Industry Association; Paul Francis, Executive Director of the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges, and Ken Young, General Manager of the Space Systems Business Unit at Aerojet Rocketdyne.
“The federal investments championed by Sen. Patty Murray will translate into direct cost-savings for consumers and business owners,” said Rachel Smith, President and CEO of the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce. “Along with investments in research, development, and manufacturing, the CHIPS and Science Act will provide a big boost to one of most important things we need – broader, more inclusive access to science, technology, engineering and math education for our future workforce – that will mean more opportunity for good-paying jobs in key industries for the coming generations. Innovation today means jobs tomorrow. This legislation impacts jobs in our homegrown industries like aerospace, communications, clean energy, information technology, and health care, and I am filled with optimism that the success of our region will be sustained and we can continue to compete for talent on the global stage.”
“WTIA members are enthusiastic about the passage of the CHIPS and Science Act. There is significant opportunity for Washington state to help grow the STEM workforce, increase R&D in emerging technologies, and establish a regional tech hub,” said Michael Schutzler, CEO of the Washington Technology Industry Association. “We are ready to partner with the Senator and many others as the programs are implemented. This is an exciting time to build a better future.”
“We deeply appreciate Senator Murray’s role in pushing this transformative game-changing legislation. With support from the CHIPS and Science Act, our 34 community and technical colleges will train Washingtonians for well-paying, highly-skilled jobs that employers are desperate to fill. And we’ll strengthen and expand the frontiers of our economy in the process,” saidPaul Francis, Executive Director of the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges.
“While ensuring the ability to access domestically-sourced semiconductors is critical, it is equally important that this effort supports the production of existing designs,” said Ken Young, General Manager of Aerojet Rocketdyne in Redmond, Washington. “Producing new chips with existing designs reduces the schedule, risk and cost of redesigning and requalifying critical components for many high-tech industries, including aerospace and defense.”
The recently passed CHIPS & Science Act will enable the Department of Commerce to provide $39 billion in incentives via loans, loan guarantees and grants to chip manufacturers, as well as to companies that do not make chips (e.g., chip equipment and materials suppliers). The Act also provides a 25 percent investment tax credit for semiconductor manufacturing equipment and the construction of semiconductor manufacturing facilities. Additional funds can support local workforce development efforts. These activities may be beneficial to a range of local companies, like Aerojet Rocketdyne.
The CHIPS & Science Act also reauthorizes National Science Foundation’s Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program and doubles the budget for ATE from the current level of $75 million per year to $150 million per year. This program helps community and technical colleges like Renton Technical College improve and expand educational programs for technicians to work in high-tech STEM fields that drive the U.S. economy and secure good paying jobs in King County.
The bill will allow small and medium sized microchip manufacturers to expand and hire more workers, get products on the shelves faster, and lower costs on consumer electronics. When it comes to national security, the CHIPS and Science Act will decrease our reliance on foreign supply chains and make American manufacturing more competitive on the world stage.
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