A bill designed to encourage more semiconductor companies to build chip plants in the U.S. passed the Senate on Wednesday by a 64-33 vote, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said this legislation could bring a big boost in jobs to upstate New York.
The $280 million measure includes federal grants and tax breaks for companies that build their chip facilities in the U.S.
Schumer told reporters that he pushed for this bill to have a variety of cities, not just major cities, to be considered as tech hubs for the new chip plants.
“To make sure that it’s not just New York City, or San Francisco or Boston that get these tech jobs, but other areas,” the New York Democrat said. “The program was designed so a place like Buffalo, or a place like Rochester, or Syracuse, could become a tech hub.”
And Schumer told reporters that the Rochester area, with its academic institutions and high-tech companies, is poised to take advantage of that.
“(An) MIT study ranked Rochester as the No. 1 region ready for U.S. scientific investment,” Schumer said. “And now we have billions of dollars of scientific investment. You can be sure I’m going to push those dollars into the Rochester, Finger Lakes area.”
The legislation now heads to the House later this week, where Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said it has the support for passage.
This story includes reporting by the Associated Press.
