Companies looking to tap into the 39-billion-dollar US government chip manufacturing fund will need to guarantee affordable and high-quality child care for their new employees. That’s one of the more unusual conditions for the “Chips for America” program, for which the US government unveiled the rules this week.
Recipients will also be required to “share with the US government a portion of any cash flows or returns that exceed the applicant’s projections above an established threshold.” This condition has been set to ensure that companies provide accurate financial projections. Less surprising restrictions include a moratorium on expansion in China for the next ten years and a preference for companies that pledge to refrain from stock repurchases.
The 52-billion-dollar Chips and Science Act sets aside 39 billion dollars for manufacturing incentives and the remainder for R&D stimuli and workforce development. The overarching goal is to establish two semiconductor hubs, each consisting of “a robust supplier ecosystem,” according to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo. Her administration considers the relative weakness of the US in both leading-edge and more mature semiconductors to be a national security issue.