Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek said Wednesday she is directing $5 million from the Oregon CHIPS Act passed last year to help establish child care options for people working on construction projects in the state’s semiconductor industry. That adds to $2.5 million allocated in legislation passed earlier this year.
“Every family should have access to affordable, quality child care options when they need them,” Kotek said in a statement Wednesday.
The Oregon CHIPS Act allocated $240 million in financial support for the state’s semiconductor industry last year. Most of that money goes directly to chipmakers planning to expand Oregon operations, but some goes to education and other services that support the industry.
The $52 billion federal CHIPS Act, approved by Congress in 2022, requires chipmakers and their supplies who receive public support to offer child care and other services, an effort to make the industry accessible to a more diverse range of workers.
That requirement brought criticism from some members of Congress, particularly Republicans, who said the Biden administration was allowing its social agenda to intrude on public policy. But Intel and other chipmakers said they didn’t object to the requirement.
Some large manufacturers, including Intel, already offer some child care benefits for their employees. The funding Kotek allocated Tuesday is directed at helping fund child care for workers in the semiconductor supply chain, particularly apprentices working on construction projects for chipmakers.
Clarification: This article has been updated to clarify the $5 million supports construction apprentices.
-- Mike Rogoway covers Oregon technology and the state economy. Reach him at mrogoway@oregonian.com.
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