Senate Agrees to Conference with House for Bipartisan Innovation Act

On April 28, the Senate voted 67 to 27 in favor of going to conference on H.R. 4521, the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (USICA), to negotiate a final draft of the bill with the chosen conferees from the House of Representatives. This vote comes just weeks after the House announced their conferees for the America COMPETES Act. The 26 Senate conferees are set to meet with the 81 House conferees to agree to a final bill that satisfies both chambers.

House and Senate leaders have announced their intent to complete negotiations on a bipartisan innovation and semiconductor investment package by the July 4 congressional recess. The conference negotiations come at a crucial time for the U.S. supply chain, with shortages in key high-tech manufactured products prompting calls for significant new incentives for investment in U.S. manufacturing capacity. Supporters of the bill are encouraging a sense of urgency as the supply chain shortages continue to drive inflation.
 
For more information about the USICA and America COMPETES Act conference legislation, visit: https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/4521
 
For the full list of Senate Conferees, visit: https://www.democrats.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/schumer-announces-senate-democratic-conferees-to-jobs-and-competitiveness-bill-conference and https://www.republicanleader.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/mcconnell-statement-on-usica-legislation-