11.01.24

Cantwell Statement on Speaker Johnson’s Threat to Repeal The CHIPS & Science Act

YAKIMA, WA – Today, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) released this statement regarding Speaker of the House Mike Johnson saying that Republicans would vote to repeal the CHIPS & Science Act:

“The CHIPS & Science Act is about strengthening America's competitiveness by bringing supply chains back to the United States, creating new U.S. manufacturing jobs, and lowering costs. It passed both the House and Senate with bipartisan votes because lawmakers understand how important it is to strengthen our national security and economic competitiveness. Now Speaker Johnson and Donald Trump want to kill thousands of jobs that have already been created, stop fabrication facilities already under construction in several states, and make us vulnerable again to outsourcing critical chip components overseas,” Sen. Cantwell said.

In August, in marking the two-year anniversary of the Act’s passage, Sen. Cantwell announced a major CHIPS & Science Act investment for the Olympic Peninsula. The Recompete pilot program will invest $35M for community-driven initiatives to revive and modernize the region's traditional timber and maritime economies.

Sen. Cantwell, chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, was the chief architect of the CHIPS & Science Act. Sen. Cantwell was appointed Chair of the 107-member Conference Committee to negotiate the legislation and successfully negotiated and rallied a last-minute bipartisan push to secure the inclusion of historic science research and development investments. The CHIPS & Science Act passed the Senate 64-33 on July 27, 2022, and the House one day later. Sen. Cantwell joined President Biden for the bill signing on Aug. 9, 2022.