Senate clears key procedural hurdle on sweeping China competition bill

Context: The foundation of the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act is a wide-ranging bipartisan proposal from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.) that would establish a technology directorate at the National Science Foundation (NSF).

• In February, Schumer asked both Democratic committee chairs and their ranking Republicans to work on measures that could be included in a broader package to bolster the tech sector, manufacturing and research as the U.S. competes with China.
• The resulting $200 billion proposal, subject to final changes, had input from half a dozen Senate committees, a sign of the bipartisan consensus for the need to outcompete China, according to Schumer.
• It would provide $52 billion to support domestic semiconductor manufacturing, $16.9 billion to the Energy Department for R&D and energy-related supply chains, and $10 billion to NASA’s human landing systems program, among other provisions.

What they're saying: "This is not a minor bill. Just because there's not partisan fighting doesn’t mean it's not one of the most important bills we have passed in a very long time. And we'll look back in history and say this was a moment when America got a grip back on itself and moved forward after several years of languishing, at best," Schumer said on the Senate floor Wednesday.

What to watch: The Senate will continue debating the bill and could hold another procedural vote to advance the Endless Frontier Act, an underlying bill that would authorize $81 billion for the National Science Foundation from fiscal year 2022 to 2026.