Buckeye Reporter

In Case You Missed It: U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and U.S. Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA) published an op-ed on CNBC.com calling on their colleagues to quickly pass legislation that will level the playing field with China by bolstering domestic production of semiconductors and investing in Ohio’s manufacturing. Brown has been a leading voice in Congress calling for legislation to help U.S. manufacturers compete with China.

Brown was recently appointed to serve as a conferee on the committee that will reconcile the differences between the Senate’s U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (USICA) and the House’s America Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence in Technology and Economic Strength (COMPETES) Actof 2022.

“The digital sector is reshaping our economy. But by providing digital services in a few select cities in the U.S., and outsourcing production to our foreign competitors, it has excluded too many American workers in the process, and sent innovation and growth to other countries,” wrote the lawmakers.

“Intel, a company headquartered in one of our home districts in Silicon Valley, just provided a roadmap to closing this divide with the announcement of a $20 billion dollar investment in Ohio. Its investment is not only a commitment to creating opportunity in places beyond major metropolitan hubs, it is also a commitment to making things in America.” 

“The CHIPS Act is just one piece of a much larger legislative package we’re working to pass to make bold investments in research, development, and manufacturing of critical technology. It would ensure new research investments translate into increased manufacturing and high-tech jobs in American industries, and ensure we continue to set technology standards around the world in a the 21st-century economy,” the lawmakers continued.

Brown has been pushing for action to support American semiconductor production, which is key to supporting investments in Ohio’s manufacturing. In January, Intel announced a $20 billion investment to build a semiconductor plant in New Albany, which is expected to create 10,000 jobs. The USICA will boost Intel’s initial investment to create thousands of additional jobs in Ohio. 

USICA includes Brown’s bill that builds on the success of his bipartisan 2014 legislation, the Revitalize American Manufacturing and Innovation Act, which created a network of 15manufacturing innovation hubs around the country. This network was modeled after the first manufacturing institute, “America Makes,” in Youngstown, which President Obama directed the Department of Defense to create in 2012.This effort was one of the biggest steps the U.S. had taken to make our manufacturing industry more competitive. America Makes is the nation's leading public-private partnership for additive manufacturing - also called 3D printing- technology and education.

Following the passage of the House version of USICA, Brown and four of his Senate colleagues sent a letter to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer urging them to prioritize the pro-worker, pro-environment trade provisions bill as the two chambers begin to conference the legislation.

The America COMPETES Act contains Brown’s Leveling the Playing Field 2.0 Act as well as the CHIPS for America Act. The package will make a once-in-a-generation investment in American science, technology and innovation to help the U.S. preserve its competitive edge.

In 2021, Brown made several stops around Ohio to discuss the benefits of USICA. Brown visited America Makes, a manufacturing hub in Youngstown, the Wright Brothers Institute in Dayton, a part of the Air Force Research Lab (AFRL), and the Cleveland-based Manufacturing Advocacy and Growth Network (MAGNET) with Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh, to discuss how USICA would create a tech hub and support and expand manufacturing partnerships.