H.R. 4346 would appropriate $54.2 billion over five years, including $52.7 billion for semiconductor research and manufacturing and $1.5 billion for 5G development and implementation, and authorizes a 25-percent tax credit for spending on semiconductor manufacturing facilities. Additionally, H.R. 4346 authorizes, over five years, $81 billion for the National Science Foundation (NSF), $67 billion for the Energy Department, $11 billion for the Commerce Department, and $9.7 billion for the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Among other actions, the bill authorizes new and existing NASA programs, requires the NSF to support research in new fields including climate change, and authorizes programs to improve underrepresented groups’ participation in STEM fields.
The Senate passed H.R. 4346 on July 27, 2022 by a vote of 64 to 33 (Roll Call 271). We have assigned pluses to the nays because the Constitution does not authorize Congress to fund research and development programs for the private sector. The free market, not government, is the key to technological and economic progress.
