SCHUMER UNVEILS BIPARTISAN PLAN TO BOLSTER SYRACUSE’S TECH ECONOMY AND PRESERVE U.S. SCIENTIFIC LEADERSHIP; SCHUMER PUSHES +$160 BILLION PLAN TO CREATE NEW JOBS & JUMPSTART INNOVATION IN SYRACUSE, PUTTING CENTRAL NY ON THE FRONTLINES OF THE GLOBAL TECH BATTLE
Schumer’s $160B Plan Would Dramatically Increase U.S. Investment In Manufacturing, Research & Development, and STEM Education & Workforce Training To Keep U.S. Competitive With China And Other Countries
Three-Point Plan to Make Bold Investments In Semiconductor Manufacturing, Strategically Important R&D And Regional Tech Hubs Could Bolster CNY’s Key Assets – White Pine Commerce Park, Syracuse University And The ‘Syracuse Surge’ Initiative
Schumer: CNY Can Help The U.S. Stay Ahead Of International Competitors In The Most Consequential Race of The 21st Century
Standing at Syracuse University’s National Veterans Resource Center, flanked by University and local leaders, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer will launch his bold, bipartisan initiative to propel American science and technology to ensure the U.S. continued to lead the world in the technologies of today and tomorrow. Schumer’s $160B plan – which includes passing the “Endless Frontier Act” and fully funding the federal manufacturing and R&D incentives to produce domestic semiconductors that Schumer passed into law in last year’s defense bill – would dramatically increase U.S. investment in advanced manufacturing of semiconductors and other key technologies, research & development of strategically important technologies, and the support of regional tech hubs across the country. These investments could help lead to the creation of new jobs and jumpstart innovation in Central New York.
“We must immediately address several dangerous weak spots in our country’s competitiveness that threaten America’s global technological leadership. We’re in an all-out battle to protect our country and it’s time to put Central New York’s top-tier workforce and tech community on the frontlines” said Senator Schumer. “This legislation will enhance American competitiveness with China and other countries by building up places like Central New York to lead in the innovation economy, creating high-tech American manufacturing jobs, strengthening R&D, and investing in workforce training capabilities.”
Schumer added, “The stakes are enormous. If we do not invest in the research, development, and manufacturing of technologies of the future now, we risk falling behind in the race with China and other global competitors, putting at risk U.S. jobs and national security.”
Today, the United States’ position as the unequivocal global leader in scientific and technological ingenuity and innovation is under pressure from China and is eroding. U.S. competitiveness and national security are being threatened by decades of U.S. underinvestment in research, manufacturing, and workforce development, coupled with foreign competitors stealing American intellectual property and aggressively investing to dominate the key technology fields of today and of the future. Schumer said that without a significant and sustained increase in investment in research, education and training, technology transfer and entrepreneurship, manufacturing, and the broader U.S. innovation ecosystem across the nation, it is only a matter of time before America’s global competitors overtake the U.S. in terms of technological primacy, threatening national security and prosperity.
Schumer’s plan would put a bipartisan, competiveness bill on the floor of the Senate in the coming weeks that would include his ‘Endless Frontier Act’ and upwards of $50 billion in emergency federal funding to implement the semiconductor manufacturing incentives passed into law last year. The $160 billion dollar plan would invest in three main areas – advanced manufacturing and R&D in the semiconductor industry; research, development, entrepreneurship, and & workforce training in strategically important technologies; and establishing regional technology hubs across the country to be global tech centers.
Incentives to Produce Semiconductors ($50 Billion):
Schumer has led the effort to create historic new federal investments in domestic semiconductor manufacturing and R&D. He successfully added his bipartisan bill introduced last year, the ‘American Foundries Act’, as an amendment in July 2020 to the Senate’s Fiscal Year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The new programs included in NDAA will increase federal support for semiconductor manufacturing by providing new federal incentives to build new fabs and R&D facilities in the U.S., conduct advanced research and development of semiconductor technology, secure the supply chain, and ensure national and economic security by reducing reliance on foreign semiconductor manufacturing. As part of the competitiveness package that will soon come to the Senate floor, Schumer will push for $50 billion in emergency funding to implement the federal semiconductor programs created in last year’s defense bill. Schumer says that this investment will help Onondaga County recruit a tenant to the White Pine Commerce Park – one of the premier sites in the country to host a semiconductor manufacturer – and create new, high-tech manufacturing jobs in Central New York.
Endless Frontier Act ($112 Billion):
Specifically, the Endless Frontier Act proposes an expansion of the National Science Foundation (NSF) with the establishment of a new Technology and Innovation Directorate within NSF to advance research and development in 10 key technology focus areas, including artificial intelligence, semiconductors, quantum computing, advanced communications, data analytics, biotechnology, and advanced energy.
The newly-established Technology and Innovation Directorate would receive $100 billion over five years to invest in basic and advanced research, commercialization, and education and training programs in technology areas critical to national leadership. The Directorate would provide funding to universities and not-for-profit entities to perform this work, alongside partners from across sectors. Schumer said that in recent years Syracuse University has recruited faculty to campus to research, develop and train students in fields like quantum computing and artificial intelligence – positioning the region to access new funding from the Directorate and further bolster innovation in Central New York.
An additional $10 billion would be authorized at the Department of Commerce to support regional technology strategies and to designate at least 10 regional technology hubs, awarding funds for comprehensive investment initiatives that position regions across the country as global centers for the research, development, entrepreneurship, and manufacturing of key technologies. Schumer said local officials are already preparing Syracuse for the economy of the future with the ‘Syracuse Surge’ initiative – which leverages investments in UAS, 5G, and the STEAM School – making the region an ideal candidate for the newly created ‘tech hubs’.
Schumer added, “These investments are key to preserving America’s position on the world stage as a current and future technological leader. In the coming weeks, the Senate will turn to these proposals into a package of legislation focused on competitiveness to ensure that the U.S.’ hand at home and abroad is as strong as possible as we compete with China on all fronts.”
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