Weber Times

WASHINGTON – On May 12, 2023, Reps. Blake Moore (R-UT) and Anna G. Eshoo (D-CA) reintroduced bipartisan legislation to bolster domestic printed circuit board (PCB) production and strengthen supply chain security. The Protecting Circuit Boards and Substrates Act will complement semiconductor incentives by encouraging domestic PCB manufacturing and R&D to reduce supply chain disruptions, address national security concerns related to foreign PCB production, and further enhance America’s economic leadership.

“Now is the moment for Congress to take decisive action by furthering robust legislation to reshore our manufacturing, strengthen our supply chains, and prioritize national security,” said Congressman Blake Moore. “The Protecting Circuit Boards and Substrates Act provides a tried and true approach to incentivizing American companies to produce printed circuit boards here at home, which will maintain the integrity of military and national security commercial materials, boost our economy and workforce, and usher in a new era of American manufacturing. The progress we have made on semiconductors is a significant step in the right direction, but congressional support for the entire microelectronics ecosystem is needed to reduce reliance on China. I am grateful to reintroduce this bill with Congresswoman Eshoo and am hopeful this bipartisan effort will successfully move through the legislative process.”

"Printed circuit boards (PCBs) are critical components of almost every piece of electronics used today," said Congresswoman Eshoo. "However, over the past two decades, a vast majority of PCB manufacturing has moved offshore, making PCBs vulnerable to tampering by foreign adversaries, and only 4% of PCBs are manufactured in the United States. If we want to ensure technological superiority across the global stage and strengthen national security, we need to bring PCB production back to America, which is exactly what my bipartisan bill does."

“Remember, chips don’t float. They need PCBs to connect to any electronic device. With production of American-made semiconductors ramping up, PCBs are a key ingredient in revitalizing the nation’s microelectronics ecosystem,” said Travis Kelly, Chairman of the Printed Circuit Board Association of America (PCBAA). “Without a robust domestic supply chain, we have become almost entirely reliant on foreign suppliers for the PCBs we need.”

“From F-35s to F-150s, the modern world is built on printed circuit boards, and we need to make more of them in America,” said David Schild, Executive Director of PCBAA. “This bill will lead to new factories, high paying jobs and an ecosystem to support the work being done by our colleagues in the semiconductor industry."

“This bipartisan bill addresses well-known vulnerabilities in U.S. electronics manufacturing, taking a ‘silicon-to-systems’ approach that prioritizes greater innovation and resiliency across the entire industry,” said John W. Mitchell, President and CEO of the IPC. “We thank Reps. Moore and Eshoo for their leadership, and we call on all Members of Congress to support this bill.” 

“We are excited to see the introduction of the PCBS Act today," said Tom Edman, CEO of TTM Technologies. "We believe that the passage of this Act will provide our global customers the opportunity to better afford the purchase of U.S. manufactured printed circuit boards and substrates.”

“Our industry is grateful for this bipartisan support for American-made microelectronics,” said Will Marsh, President of PCBAA and Vice President of TTM Technologies. “This is the right response to years of offshoring and a dangerous dependence on foreign sourcing.”

Background

PCBs are the material on which semiconductors sit (often the green-colored surface in images of chips) and are a critical part of the supply chain. An assessment from the departments of Commerce and Homeland Security called for domestic investment and production of key information and communications technology products such as PCBs.

The Protecting Circuit Boards and Substrates Act does the following to incentivize domestic PCB manufacturing and R&D:

1. Provides a 25% tax credit for the purchase or acquisition of American-made PCBs;
2. Establishes a financial assistance program, modeled on the CHIPS for America Act, for American facilities manufacturing or researching PCBs;
3. Requires a Presidential determination for single financial awards over $150 million;
4. Provides for delay and technology clawbacks of award funds in the event that funding is not used efficiently or in a manner that raises national security concerns;
5. Authorizes appropriations of $3 billion to carry out the program.

Click HERE to view the bill text.

Original source can be found here.