Semiconductors: U.S. Industry, Global Competition, and Federal Policy
Semiconductors: U.S. Industry, Global Competition, and Federal Policy October 26, 2020 Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov R46581 SUMMARY R46581 Semiconductors: U.S. Industry, Global October 26, 2020 Competition, and Federal Policy Michaela D. Platzer Semiconductors, tiny electronic devices based primarily on silicon or germanium, enable nearly Specialist in Industrial all industrial activities, including systems that undergird U.S. technological competitiveness and Organization and Business national security. Many policymakers see U.S. strength in semiconductor technology and fabrication as vital to U.S. economic and national security interests. The U.S. semiconductor John F. Sargent Jr. industry dominates many parts of the semiconductor supply chain, such as chip design. Specialist in Science and Semiconductors are also a top U.S. export. Semiconductor design and manufacturing is a global Technology Policy enterprise with materials, design, fabrication, assembly, testing, and packaging operating across national borders. Six U.S.-headquartered or foreign-owned semiconductor companies currently operate 20 fabrication facilities, or fabs, in the United States. In 2019, U.S.-based semiconductor Karen M. Sutter manufacturing directly employed 184,600 workers at an average wage of $166,400. Specialist in Asian Trade and Finance Some U.S.-headquartered semiconductor firms that design and manufacture in the United States also have built fabrication facilities overseas. Similarly, U.S.-headquartered design firms that do not own or operate their own fabrication facilities contract with foreign firms located overseas to manufacture their designs. Much of this overseas capacity is in Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan, and increasingly in China. Some Members of Congress and other policymakers are concerned that only a small share of the world’s most advanced semiconductor fabrication production capacity is in the United States.
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