Washington (AFP) - The US Senate passed a bill on Wednesday to boost domestic production of semiconductors amid shortages of the microchips that power everything from smartphones to cars to weapons.
The legislation, which now goes back to the House of Representatives for final passage, provides $52 billion to increase domestic semiconductor production and more than $100 billion over five years for research and development.
The CHIPS Act was passed in the Senate by a rare bipartisan vote of 64 to 33 with 17 Republicans joining hands with Democrats.
President Joe Biden welcomed Senate passage of the legislation that he said will "accelerate the manufacturing of semiconductors in America, lowering prices on everything from cars to dishwashers."
"It also will create jobs -– good-paying jobs right here in the United States," Biden said in a statement.
"It will mean more resilient American supply chains, so we are never so reliant on foreign countries for the critical technologies that we need for American consumers and national security," he said.
Global semiconductor supplies were severely disrupted by fallout from Covid-19 pandemic shutdowns, sparking shortages of the chips -- many of which are made in Asia.
The shortages notably slowed production of new automobiles last year, causing prices to increase.
The version of the CHIPS Act passed Wednesday provides $39 billion to finance semiconductor manufacturing plants in the United States and another $13 billion for research.
Senate passage of the bill came a day after the South Korean group SK announced a huge investment in US semiconductor and other cutting edge industries.
The conglomerate said in a statement it plans to "increase its new investment in the United States by $22 billion in areas including semiconductors, green energy, and bioscience, creating tens of thousands of new high-tech, high-paying American jobs."
