Micron Technology will receive more than $6.1 billion after the US Department of Commerce finalized one of the largest CHIPS Act awards ever to “the only US-based manufacturer of memory chips,” Vice President Kamala Harris said in a press statement.
Micron will use the funding to construct “several state-of-the-art memory chips facilities” in New York and Idaho, Harris said. The chipmaker has committed to a “$125 billion investment over the next few decades” and promised to create “at least 20,000 jobs,” Harris confirmed.
Additionally, Micron “agreed to preliminary terms for an additional investment of $275 million to expand” its facility in Manassas, Virginia, Harris confirmed. Those facilities will mostly be used to manufacture chips for automotive and defense industries, Harris noted.
Because of billions in CHIPS funding doled out by the Biden administration, Harris said, the US’s “share of advanced memory manufacturing” will go “from nearly 0 percent today to 10 percent over the next decade.”
The Semiconductor Industry Association, a trade and lobbying group that bills itself as “the voice of the semiconductor industry,” celebrated Micron’s award. In a press release, its president and CEO, John Neuffer, said that the award sets the US on a path to become a leading memory chip innovator.
“Memory is a technology critical to America’s economic future and national security, and Micron’s historic investments in producing memory chips in the US will strengthen US leadership for the long term,” Neuffer said.
Advocates: Micron needs to explain what a “good job” is
But while Neuffer joined Harris’ and the Commerce Department’s chorus, praising the award for creating “high-paying American jobs,” bolstering US national and economic security, and fueling “innovation for years to come,” communities are raising questions.
Advocates with Jobs to Move America (JMA)—who are organizing ahead of Micron’s New York construction starting in 2026—are concerned that Micron hasn’t been clear about what a “good job” is before moving into an area with “one of the highest poverty rates in the country.”
“There has been little discussion or firm commitments made regarding what exactly a ‘good job’ is, or how equitable access for said jobs will be achieved for current local residents,” JMA’s “Good Jobs Platform,” drafted earlier this year with more than 20 local advocacy groups, said.
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