https://techcrunch.com/2022/07/27/senate-passes-chips-act-to-subsidize-domestic-semiconductor-production/

The United States Senate today approved the CHIPS Act, with a 64-33 vote, following yesterday’s cloture passage. The bill, which includes $52 billion to subsidize domestic semiconductor production, now moves onto the House for debate. The current bill bears more than a passing resemblance to the United States Innovation and Competition Act, which also passed through the Senate before petering out in the lower congressional chamber.

The bill is a reaction to the on-going global chip shortage, itself a result of a confluence of international crises, including the pandemic, tense U.S.-China relations, extreme weather phenomena and the on-going Russia-Ukraine War. Those factors, combined with the manufacturing’s concentration in Asia (specifically Taiwan), have led to shortages in the chips that power everything from phones to cars.