House Approves Permit Exemption for Chips, Sending Bill to Biden.

The US House has passed a bill that would exempt certain semiconductor manufacturing projects from federal permitting requirements, in an effort to accelerate the growth of the US semiconductor industry. The legislation aims to address concerns that environmental reviews and lawsuits could delay the construction of domestic chip factories. While the bill has received support from chip companies and the Biden administration, environmental groups have expressed concerns about bypassing the review process and the potential environmental impact of the industry. The bill outlines three ways for projects to qualify for a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) exemption, including starting construction before the end of the year and receiving only loans instead of direct grant funding. [Extracted from the article]