The U.S. House of Representatives joined the U.S. Senate in passing the bipartisan Chips + Science Act of 2022 – historic legislation to boost American innovation and competitiveness.

This legislation represents the most significant investment in U.S. science and tech leadership in generations.

While the entire Chips + Science Act is a massive accomplishment for American innovation, U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján’s provisions are among the most significant for U.S. competition and security needs – adding to his proven record of delivering for New Mexicans in a divided Senate.

“Today, Congress made clear that our National Laboratories are vital to advancing our scientific and technological leadership on the world stage,” Sen. Ben Ray Luján. “This bipartisan legislation includes numerous victories for New Mexico and our country that I fought hard to secure.

“This legislation invests $16.5 billion for our National Labs, including New Mexico’s Sandia and Los Alamos Labs, for critical research and development in key technologies, in addition to nearly $15 billion that I secured for necessary updates and upgrades to enhance their capacity to address 21st century challenges. The CHIPS and Science Act also expands successful programs to foster the next generation of science and tech entrepreneurs, and allows small businesses to access state-of-the-art facilities at the National Labs.

“Through these historic investments, our National Labs will continue their leadership in developing cutting-edge technology, maintaining our national security and global competitiveness while creating more skilled, good-paying jobs in New Mexico and across the nation.”

PROVISIONS CHAMPIONED BY LUJÁN:

Department of Energy

• $16.5 billion for DOE science and innovation, based on an amendment that Luján authored to strengthen DOE’s research and development efforts in 10 key technology focus areas, including clean energy and energy efficiency, advanced manufacturing, biotechnology, artificial intelligence, and quantum information sciences. Last year, Senator Luján successfully passed this amendment with wide bipartisan support from the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Technology.

This includes:

• • $11.2 billion for DOE research, development, and demonstration activities and energy-related supply chain activities in key technology focus areas.
    • This funding will address societal challenges like workforce development, climate change, national security, manufacturing productivity, and equitable access to education and opportunity.
  • $40.5 million for the Partnerships for Energy Security and Innovation Act that Luján introduced and passed while he served in the House and co-led in the Senate.
    • This provision creates a new nonprofit foundation to channel private-sector investments in support of DOE’s mission and to accelerate the commercialization of innovative technologies in energy, such as next-generation batteries, low-carbon fuels, and advanced materials.
  • $975 million for the Microelectronics Research for Energy Innovation Act which Luján cosponsored in Senate.
    • Accelerates American innovation and leadership in microchip technology by establishing two new microchip research and development programs within the Department of Energy.
  • $125 million for the Leveraging our National Laboratories to Develop Tomorrow’s Technology Leaders Act which Luján authored, introduced, and led to passage while serving in the House.
    • This supports the Lab Embedded Entrepreneurship Program, which embeds entrepreneurial scientists and engineers at National Labs to perform early-stage R&D in order to launch energy or manufacturing businesses – a program currently being piloted in New Mexico.
  • $125 million for the Promoting Small Business Innovation through Partnerships with National Labs Act, an effort Luján also led to passage while in the House. 
    • This provision provides vouchers for small businesses to gain access to premier facilities at the National Labs, spurring innovation and stimulating private-public collaborations.
  • $250 million for a Regional Clean Energy Innovation Program, an effort led alongside Senator Catherine Cortez Masto. 
    • Through targeted investments, this geographically distributed program supports public-private partnerships for R&D and commercialization of diverse clean energy technologies.

• $14.7 billion for National Lab infrastructure and modernization, which was inspired by the Senator’s Restore and Modernize our National Laboratories Act. During his tenure in the House, Luján had introduced and passed this legislation.
  • From updating facilities and roads to investing in the latest scientific instrumentation, this funding will support not only the technological capacity of the laboratories but also create local jobs in construction and equipment supply.
• $250 million for a National Laboratory consortium to prepare for and address emerging biological threats, like the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • This provision was developed from the National Laboratory Biotechnology Research Act introduced by Senator Luján.

National Science Foundation:

• Promotes greater diversity in research and development
  • Over 7 years, this bill doubles the proportion of NSF grant and fellowship funding for states that don’t currently get a large share of R&D dollars, also known as EPSCoR states, such as New Mexico.