Cantwell: $250 Billion CHIPS and Science Act will Supercharge Aerospace Innovation in Northwest Washington
Investments will benefit manufacturers and the supply chain, promote research into key sustainability technologies
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- This week, the U.S. Senate and House passed the CHIPS and Science Act, authorizing $250 billion to advance key technologies of the future.
U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) is a main architect of the bill, which is currently awaiting President Biden’s signature. Sen. Cantwell helped assemble a bipartisan coalition of Senators to support these investments, including:
- $20 billion for a new National Science Foundation tech directorate to further research into technologies like advanced materials. Advanced materials will help produce the next generation of aircraft, from large-bodied planes to advanced air mobility concepts and drones.
- A sustainable aviation initiative to reduce greenhouse gas and noise emissions, which multiple Snohomish County companies — including Boeing — are already working to achieve.
- Authorization for NASA’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems Operation Program. More than 200 Washington state companies, supporting more than 2,000 jobs, are involved in the drone industry.
READ A LIST OF THE TOP 10 PRIORITIES OF THE CHIPS AND SCIENCE ACT HERE
“From quiet, clean-fueled jets to speedy, maneuverable drones, there’s no limit to the future of aerospace innovation,” said Senator Cantwell. “The CHIPS and Science bill authorizes billions of dollars to advance aerospace R&D, and Snohomish County stands ready to play a leading role — resulting in economic growth and good-paying jobs.”
Snohomish County business are primed to benefit from investments in these areas:
Next Generation of Aerospace Manufacturing:
New materials, producing lighter, more sustainable aircraft, are the future of aerospace manufacturing. The NSF Technology Directorate ($20 billion from FY 2023 to FY 2027) will further U.S. research into advanced materials like thermoplastics and composite manufacturing which will produce the next generation of aircraft, from large-bodied planes to advanced air mobility concepts and drones.
The NASA Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technology Program will help develop new composite materials, create efficient manufacturing processes, and reduce the time it takes to design, industrialize, and certify advanced materials and their manufacturing processes. This program will also leverage public-private partnerships to provide education and training opportunities for the U.S. aerospace workforce in advanced materials and manufacturing technology.
A skilled workforce is critical to meeting future demand. According to the Washington State Department of Commerce, over the next 20 years, more than 200,000 new jobs could be created in the state to develop flight technologies for, design, and manufacture new types of aircraft. This will nearly triple the amount of aviation and aerospace jobs in Washington over the next two decades. Nationally, the U.S. composites end products market was valued at $26.7 billion in 2019 and is projected to reach $33.4 billion in 2025.
Sustainable Aviation:
NASA will accelerate its sustainable aviation work through a newly authorized research and development initiative with a goal of (1) reducing greenhouse gas emissions from new aircraft by 50%; (2) reducing noise levels throughout all phases of flight; and (3) achieving net-zero aviation greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
Aviation represents 11 percent of United States transportation-related emissions. Air travel is one of the most carbon intensive activities an individual can engage in. Washington state is the fifth largest consumer of aviation fuel in the United States. In 2019, jet fuel and aviation gasoline made up 7.8 percent of Washington’s total carbon emissions, significantly more than the national average of approximately 2.7 percent.
NASA will continue to form partnerships with commercial aircraft manufacturers, such as Boeing, other manufacturers in the supply chain, and new entrants, to advance research and development in commercial aviation emission reductions. NASA has partnered with Boeing and air carriers, such as Alaska Airlines through the Boeing ecoDemonstrator project, to test and prove sustainable aviation technologies. The project has made advancements such as fuel-efficient winglets, sustainable aviation fuel use, and additional carbon fiber composite applications possible in today’s commercial aircraft.
These research and development goals directly align with the work of Washington aerospace companies and the growing number of new entrants in the sustainable aviation sector.
Unmanned Aircraft Systems – Drones:
NASA’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems Operation Program will continue unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) research and testing to advance air traffic management technologies and promote the safe integration of unmanned aircraft systems into the national airspace system.
UAS, otherwise known as drones, are the fastest growing segment of aviation in the United States. As of January, over 860,000 drones have been registered with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and over 260,000 Remote Pilots have been certified by the FAA. These numbers are projected to continue to grow.
This NASA program has the potential to benefit efforts underway by members of Washington’s Uncrewed Systems Industry Council, which seeks to help the state compete on a national and international basis in this fast-growth sector of aviation. According to the Washington State Department of Commerce, approximately 200 companies – twice the number from five years ago – are involved in aircraft, systems, datasets, traffic management, and other UAS technologies. This means more than 2,000 direct jobs which, based on the past trajectory, could grow quickly to more than 10,000 jobs in the next several years.
Aerospace Supply Chain:
Strengthening the supply chain, from first tier to sub-tier suppliers, is critical to U.S. aerospace manufacturing and Washington’s 1,400 supply chain companies, the country’s largest concentration. The National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) ($2.3 billion from FY 2023 to FY 2027) will help Washington supply chain companies integrate new technologies, and fend off new threats like cyberattacks.
Impact Washington helps facilitate the MEP program in the state and has provided manufacturing and job training assistance to aerospace businesses.
Domestic Semiconductor Capacity:
Semiconductors are an integral part of key systems used in the aerospace and defense industry – chips enable critical avionics systems like flight computers to function. Building up U.S. capacity to produce chips domestically through the enactment of the CHIPS Act ($52 billion in semiconductor manufacturing incentives and research funding) will ensure more secure and resilient supply chains for original equipment manufacturers in the aviation supply and their tiered suppliers in Washington.
Sen. Cantwell is an architect of this legislation and a longtime champion of boosting America’s competitiveness in research, development and manufacturing.
SENATOR CANTWELL’S 7/27 REMARKS ON THE SENATE FLOOR AVAILABLE HERE, AUDIO HERE, AND FULL TRANSCRIPT HERE.
SENATOR CANTWELL’S BIPARTISAN 7/27 PRESS CONFERENCE REMARKS ARE AVAILABLE HERE, AUDIO HERE, AND FULL TRANSCRIPT HERE.
SUMMARY OF CHIPS AND SCIENCE ACT AVAILABLE HERE
SECTION BY SECTION AVAILABLE HERE
In 2021, Cantwell advanced the U.S. Innovation and Competition bill in the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, which culminated in a 24-4 bipartisan vote, and then managed the bill on the floor of the United States Senate, where it passed with a 68-32 vote.
On May 13, 2022, Cantwell chaired the kickoff meeting of the Conference Committee to negotiate differences between Senate’s United States Innovation and Competition Act (USICA) and the House’s America COMPETES Act.
For months, Cantwell has called on Congress to act on the bill. She spoke on the Senate floor on March 28, 2022; March 24, 2022; March 21, 2022; February 10, 2022, and February 4, 2022 encouraging her colleagues to move the bill forward. The Senator previously chaired a Commerce Committee hearing with tech and trucking industry CEOs on the importance of U.S. investment in America’s domestic semiconductor manufacturing and research and organized multiple classified briefings on the impact of the chip shortage on national and economic security.
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