Cantwell: $250 Billion in Science and Semiconductor Investments Should Ease Delays and Improve Yields for Generations of Washington State Farmers
Investments spearheaded by Cantwell will fund research to improve agricultural efficiency, help prevent supply chain disruptions
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:
- Doubling the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) annual budget to nearly $19 billion, with a mandate to invest in key technologies and in workforce development.
- Directing NSF to conduct research to improve agricultural sensors.
- $52 billion to spur domestic semiconductor manufacturing, securing access to chips for America’s industry and Armed Forces.
- $13 billion to train a STEM-educated workforce, critical to America’s global economic competitiveness.
“Innovation is driving agricultural improvements all over the world, and America will not leave our farmers behind,” said Senator Cantwell. “The research investments in this bill will drive yield-improving technology like precision agriculture, an area where Washington State University is already leading the way with innovations from 3D vision systems to hand-held thinning devices. The funding for domestic semiconductor manufacturing will also be important, helping to tackle delays for farm machinery and for the trucks needed to ship goods.”
Currently, the semiconductor shortage in the U.S. is limiting farmers’ ability to access the equipment they need. The $52 billion to spur domestic semiconductor manufacturing, coupled with a 25% investment tax credit for domestic chip manufacturing worth $24 billion, will help ease supply chain issues for generations to come.
"Our tractors have been delayed 8-12 months, pickups have been delayed about that long. Communication hardware for irrigation circles is a problem too,” said Adam Weber, owner of Weber Farms in Quincy, Wash.
READ A LIST OF THE TOP 10 PRIORITIES OF THE CHIPS AND SCIENCE ACT HERE
Washington State University is a leader in precision agriculture. The school’s Center for Precision & Automated Agricultural Systems (CPAAS) researches agricultural automation and precision farming and focuses on Washington relevant research to meet the needs of agriculture in Washington state. In 2021, Washington State University also won a new center, AgAid, for applying artificial intelligence to agricultural production.
These projects demonstrate how additional funding for research can provide useful benefits for Washington farmers. CPASS has completed several successful research projects, including developing technology to help accurately estimate apple crop load, improving the estimation by 20%, increasing efficiencies and profitability.
Additionally, CPASS developed a 3D machine vision system to map red raspberry bushes for automatic pruning and created a hand-held mechanical thinning device for cherry production, allowing field workers to penetrate inner layers of cherry trees, increasing efficiency and productivity.
The CHIPS and Science Bill will provide greater funding opportunities for WSU to continue to research and develop agriculture technology that benefits farmers and consumers.
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 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.
###
Next Article Previous Article
