On Sept. 6, the Department of Commerce announced its strategy for the distribution of $50 billion in new funding provided by the CHIPS Act of 2022, which is aimed at boosting the domestic semiconductor industry.

The law will be implemented through a new Chips for America program established at the DOC, with funding documents to be released by February 2023. The plan includes significant funding for the construction and expansion of manufacturing facilities dedicated to the production, testing and assembly of semiconductors. The plan notes that Davis-Bacon prevailing wage requirements will apply to all CHIPS-funded construction projects. ABC opposed the inclusion of prevailing wage requirements in semiconductor legislation through letters, action alerts and advocacy to Congress, and will continue to oppose the expansion of unnecessarily costly and burdensome Davis-Bacon requirements.

For more information, the DOC has released an executive summary of the implementation strategy as well as the full paper. Further updates will be posted to the department’s chips.gov website.