Blunt Rochester Votes To Bolster American Economic Competitiveness

Statement

Today, Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.) voted to pass H.R. 4521, the America COMPETES Act of 2022. The bill is a comprehensive package to bolster America's global economic competitiveness. The package also includes a bipartisan provision, authored by Blunt Rochester, the Building Resilient Supply Chains Act authored by Blunt Rochester. The provision bolsters America's supply chains and onshoring the production of critical components of consumer goods. Passage of the bill comes on the heels of news that the U.S. economy created an unprecedented 6.6 million jobs over the past 12 months.

"Today, I was proud to cast my vote for the America COMPETES Act - a bill that will boost America's economic competitiveness. As the founder of the Bipartisan Future of Work Caucus, I've been focused on the challenges and lessons we can take away from the impact that COVID-19 has had on our economy," said Blunt Rochester. "Chief among those lessons is having a more reliable and sustainable supply chain that rapidly responds to the needs of the American economy. That's why I'm so thrilled that the America COMPETES Act included our bipartisan Building Resilient Supply Chains Act, which will help expand American capacity to produce the key components for so many of the products we rely on every single day -- and in the process, will make our economy more competitive, reliable, and sustainable. I look forward to the House and Senate now working together to send this bill to President Biden's desk, and am confident that the Building Resilient Supply Chains Act will be included in any final package."

America COMPETES is a comprehensive, strategic package that will power the success of America's workers, businesses and economy at home and position America to compete -- and win -- on the world stage. It will super-charge American innovation and competitiveness, immediately and in the long-run, including by:

Making Critically-Needed Semiconductors in America: Over the past 30 years, the United States' global share of manufacturing semiconductors -- an increasingly essential component in everything from computers to cars -- has collapsed, leaving the U.S. vulnerable to chip shortages and disruptions abroad that drive up costs of key goods here at home. The America COMPETES Act meets this challenge by appropriating $52 billion for the CHIPS for America Act, critical investments to support continued American technological leadership in semiconductor fabrication, address supply chain disruptions and ensure more semiconductors are produced here at home.
Fixing the Supply Chain & Strengthening American Manufacturing: The disruption of the pandemic has exposed deeper weaknesses in a supply chain that has increasingly relied on foreign manufacturing, instead of making goods in America with American workers. The America COMPETES Act authorizes $45 billion to fix our broken supply chains by building more critical components in America, strengthening American manufacturing and protecting our national security with American-made capacity to prevent shortages and disruptions -- including public health and biological preparedness, information and communications technology, the energy and transportation sector's industrial base, and agricultural commodities and food products.
Turbocharging American Scientific Research, Technology & Innovation Excellence: To ensure America leads the technologies of the future, the America COMPETES Act of 2022 includes a suite of bipartisan science, research and technology bills to turbocharge American innovation, focusing on solutions instead of chasing buzzwords and maximizing the American talent pool by strengthening and diversifying our nation's STEM workforce.
Securing America's Global Competitiveness & Leadership Through Economic Development; Diplomacy, Human Rights & Alliances: Includes numerous provisions to strengthen and promote America's leadership around the globe, ensuring that American interests, partnerships and values succeed on the global stage, and that American leadership wins on the key issues our time, including the climate crisis and the coronavirus pandemic, particularly as the PRC and other countries seek to re-write the rules of the road in their favor. COMPETES takes real, strong action to hold the PRC accountable for its trade abuses and its human rights violations, including the genocide against the Uyghurs.

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