The ongoing global shortage of semiconductor chips has hit the auto industry hard, including General Motors, which has been forced to curtail production in response. Now, President Biden says the U.S. Senate is readying legislation to address the shortage.
Joe Biden with GM CEO Mary Barra in 2014
According to a recent report from Reuters, President Biden recently discussed the chip shortage while outlining his administration’s national infrastructure plans, indicating that U.S. Senate leaders would soon introduce new legislation to address the issue.
“We’re working on that,” Biden said in regard to the shortage. “[Senate Majority Leader] Chuck Schumer and, I think, [Senate Republican Leader Mitch] McConnell are about to introduce a bill along those lines.”
This coming Monday, the White House will hold a virtual summit with several U.S. automobile executives, including General Motors CEO Mary Barra, as well as Ford Motor Company CEO Jim Farley.
Earlier in the week, the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a trade group representing several major automotive manufacturers and suppliers, including General Motors, pressed the U.S. government to address the global semiconductor shortage. In a letter, the group asked for federal funding “to build new capacity that will support the auto industry and mitigate the risks to the automotive supply chain.” Group members also include BMW, Bosch, VW, Ford, Cruise, Denso, Toyota, Hyundai, and others.
It’s estimated the shortage could result in 1.28 million fewer vehicles built in 2021, and could affect production for another six months. Some estimate that the shortage will result in 60,000 fewer GM vehicles built this year in North America alone, as well as 216,000 fewer vehicles globally. GM estimates that the shortage could cut into its earnings for 2021 by as much as $2 billion.
Most recently, GM indicated that it will idle production at its Spring Hill Assembly facility in Tennessee and Lansing Delta Township facility in Michigan.
In February, President Biden signed an executive order for $37 billion in funding to support semiconductor chip manufacturing in the U.S.
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Comments
This problem will be solved by the private sector just as the private sector caused it in the first place. We don’t need Hunter as the czar of electronics.
The problem was NOT caused by private industry. It was caused by unions.
I think/hope the solution involves bringing some more semiconductor manufacturing state side as right now we mostly rely on other countries to produce this obviously vita component. Similar to brining more pharmaceuticals here. What would we do if they decided to go to war and at the same time cut us off? We’d be hosed. It’s crazy this doesn’t appear to have been a thought in the governments mind.
evpower
The same bill made it legal to kill anyone flying a Trump flag.
#SecondAmendmentNotJustForRepublicansAnyMore
Why not just get rid of the unions, regulations and taxes that caused outsourcing in the first place?
You want a government that loves all those things to get rid of them?
That’s not going to happen.
Yeah, that’s the ticket! Get the Federal Government involved! That will fix the problem ……………
Will he remember what he promised yesterday? Will blacks, gays, trannies, and oompa loompas be first in line in the woke super conductor industry?
Having a vacuous old man who can’t put a sentence together, can’t board an aircraft, calls his V.P. the President, involved in legislation which could impact the supply chain makes as much sense as defunding the Police. Who in the right mind would even suggest such an action. Oh that’s right, that same vacuous old man.