President Biden signs $280 billion CHIPS and Science Act to boost semi-conductor production in U.S.

On Tuesday, President Joe Biden signed into law the CHIPS and Science act, which will provide a $280 billion package to boost semi-conductor production in the United States.

The full title of the bill is Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors for America Act. The legislation has ring-fenced $52 billion specifically for computer chips.

Biden touted the bill during a White House ceremony after signing it. “Today is a day for builders. Today, America’s delivering. The CHIPS and Science Act is a once in a generation investment in America itself,” Biden said. “Today, I am signing the law, the Chips and Science Act, a once-in-a-generation investment in America itself, a law the American people can be proud of,” Biden went on to say.

The bill has been in the works for over a year. It cleared both chambers of Congress in late July with a sizeable bipartisan support. The Senate passed it 64-33, with 17 GOP senators voting for the bill, while the House voted it in favor with a 243-187. 24 house Republicans voted for the bill.

There has been a recent shortage in computer chips, and this has caused tech companies to invest in new factories. The aim of the bill is to prevent more factories being off-shored to China, which would stifle growth in the US for the industry.

During the pandemic, many customers wishing to snap up the PlayStation 5 were left disappointed as a result of the chip shortage.

Last month Commerce Department Secretary Gina Raimondo cautioned that the United States could miss the boat on the semiconductor industry’s urgency to manufacture more chips. 

“Semiconductor companies need to get ‘concrete in the ground’ by this fall to meet this increased demand in the years ahead,” Raimondo and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin wrote in a letter addressed to congressional leaders in mid-July. “CEOs of firms all along the supply chain have made clear that the industry is deciding where to invest now.”