NH Business Review Highlights Benefits to NH from Senator Hassan and Colleagues' Bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act

WASHINGTON – In case you missed it, the New Hampshire Business Review highlighted how the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, which Senator Hassan helped develop and worked to pass into law, will benefit Granite State businesses. The law supports supply chains, lowers costs, and helps America outcompete countries like China by investing in research and manufacturing here at home, especially for semiconductors.

Last month, Senator Hassan joined U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo to participate in the ribbon cutting ceremony of onsemi’s newest manufacturing facility in Hudson. At the event, they highlighted the impact of the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act for businesses in New Hampshire and across the nation. New Hampshire business leaders also recently applauded Senator Hassan’s leadership on the law.

To read the New Hampshire Business Review’s article, click here or read excerpts below:

New Hampshire Business Review: In the CHIPS: NH may reap big benefits from new federal law

By BOB SANDERS

Ever since onsemi Corp. acquired the formerly bankrupt GT Advanced Technologies facility in Hudson in November, the plant has been growing silicon carbon crystals like wild in order to feed companies’ appetite for the material, which is used in the worldwide production of semiconductors, or computer chips. Because of that demand, onsemi has doubled its workforce to 185 people in Hudson, while it has ramped up production fivefold.

And thanks to the $52.2 billion CHIPS Act, which was signed into law in August, the company may be growing a whole lot more.

The act provides both carrots and sticks to chip manufacturers with the goal of bringing semiconductor production home. 

[…] First, the new law could ease the kind of supply chain issues that emerged during the pandemic, which could benefit both suppliers and customers of those chip manufacturers.

Second, semiconductors are loosely defined in the bill, leaving much up to the Department of Commerce, so more companies might be eligible for that funding than originally thought.

Third, the law is more than just about computer chips. It actually is the CHIPS and Science Act. While three-quarters of the money available will go to companies that make semiconductors, billions will go to help develop the nation’s advanced manufacturing capacity through programs that include the Manufacturing Extension Partnership in Manchester.

New Hampshire in particular can benefit because it is rural, and that might help it snag a regional hub designation. It is one of 25 states with an Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, or EPSCoR, centered at the University of New Hampshire, and one of 16 states with a designated Manufacturing USA innovation institution, namely the ARMI/BioFabUSA regenerative medicine initiative in Manchester. Both could get a major boost from funding, though how much remains to be seen.

Acute supply chain issues

CHIPs, which stands for Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors for America, is one of those congressional amalgamations of previous bills melded together to win the support of a bipartisan core of senators. Both Sen. Maggie Hassan and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen are part of that core. Hassan sponsored a forerunner bill, the Endless Frontier Act, and Shaheen, who is on the Appropriations Committee along with 1st District Congressman Chris Pappas, played a role in ushering the CHIPs Act’s passage. It easily passed the split Senate, 64-33, and the House, 243-187.

[…] But Hassan does think the law’s applications are broader than what has been generally viewed.

Ever since onsemi Corp. acquired the formerly bankrupt GT Advanced Technologies facility in Hudson in November, the plant has been growing silicon carbon crystals that are used in the worldwide production of semiconductors, or computer chips.

“Semiconductors have different components, and the law gives the Commerce Department discretion to define what exactly constitutes a semiconductor, but Congress made clear that the Commerce Department should take a wide view so that we can make more of the transistors, diodes, integrated circuits and associated components that are necessary for all types of technology in the U.S.,” according to a statement from Hassan’s office. […]

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