Schumer Moves Senate Closer to House Talks on China, Chips Bill

(Bloomberg) -- Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer kicked off the process Thursday for negotiations with the House on a bill to keep the U.S. technologically competitive with China and provide $52 billion to bolster domestic semiconductor manufacturing. 

Schumer, who co-sponsored the initial version of the legislation in the Senate with Indiana Republican Todd Young, took a procedural step toward establishing a committee to hammer out differences between the House and Senate bills. The legislation has been stalled for months and a resolution remains weeks away. 

Both the House and Senate versions include $52 billion for grants and incentives to semiconductor manufacturers to locate manufacturing facilities in the U.S., which has fallen behind in producing the chips that go into everything from farm equipment to military jets. Companies such as Intel Corp. have pushed for the government to provide the funding, citing similar subsidies in other countries.

Senator Mark Warner, a Virginia Democrat who co-sponsored the chips portion of the bill, said he wanted to see the final vote before the Memorial Day holiday at the end of May.

“Companies are making decisions on these fabrication facilities,” he said. “They’re not waiting for Congress to finish its work.”

Other provisions of the legislation are aimed at enhancing U.S. research and development on advanced manufacturing, bolstering education in science and technology and thwarting China’s recruitment of American scientists and academics.

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