U.S. Rep. Blake Moore (R-UT) on May 23 unveiled legislation that would authorize appropriations of $3 billion to carry out a program for incentivizing the domestic manufacturing and research and development of printed circuit boards (PCBs), which are the foundation of most modern electronic devices, connecting electronic components and guiding electrical signals.
“This bill provides a tried-and-true approach to incentivizing American companies to produce printed circuit boards here at home,” said Rep. Moore. “It 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 Protecting Circuit Boards and Substrates Act, H.R. 3597, which Rep. Moore sponsored alongside lead original cosponsor U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), aims to reduce supply chain disruptions, address national security concerns related to foreign PCB production, and enhance America’s economic leadership.
“There has never been a more important time for Congress to get to work on reshoring our manufacturing and strengthening our critical supply chains,” Rep. Moore said. “The Chinese government’s open willingness to withhold access to technology and rare earth minerals proves that we are in a race against Beijing at all levels of the microelectronics ecosystem.”
Specifically, H.R. 3597 would provide a 25-percent tax credit for the purchase or acquisition of American-made PCBs, and establish a financial assistance program, modeled on the CHIPS for America Act, for American facilities manufacturing or researching PCBs, according to a bill summary provided by Rep. Moore’s office.
H.R. 3597 also would require a presidential determination for single financial awards over $150 million, and provide 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, the summary says.
“While we’ve made real progress in domestic chip production, microchips can’t function without printed circuit boards — 90 percent of which are made in Asia, including half in the People’s Republic of China,” said Rep. Krishnamoorthi. “Our bipartisan bill reduces that dangerous dependence by rebuilding U.S. manufacturing, strengthening supply chains, and supporting American workers.”
IPC International Inc., Summit Interconnect, and the Printed Circuit Board Association of America support the measure, which has been referred for consideration to the U.S. House committees on Ways and Means; Energy and Commerce; and Science, Space, and Technology.