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American Made Advocacy: The Administration Changed, but Our Industry’s Needs Remain

The beginning of the holiday season in Washington, D.C., this year also signals the changes that come with a new administration. Here are my projections about the effect on our industry.

Our Industry’s Issues
Our core issues don’t change. No matter which party has the White House, the PCB ecosystem needs the policy and legislative support already generously given to semiconductors. This means we need to be more vigilant than ever because if we do nothing, nothing changes in Washington. Semiconductors will continue to get all the focus and funds and PCBs will remain in the shadows. We must tell our story every chance we get.

The Wind Remains at Our Backs
The forces that drove a focus on supply chains and reshoring manufacturing have not abated over the last four years. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle recognize that more must be done to secure the technologies we depend on and strengthen our industrial base. Global events argue for a continued focus on where we make things and what role government should play.

Relationships Matter
With the change of administrations, we have the benefit of strong relationships with the federal officials who will continue to serve at the Departments of Commerce and Defense when a new crop of political appointees arrives in the new year. In addition to keeping our existing relationships current, there will be new senior elected and appointed officials we need to meet with and bring up to speed on our issues and invite to our facilities.

Member’s Actions
We need to leverage the strength of our growing membership and partners like IPC and USPAE to educate, advocate, and champion legislation and policies that revitalize our industry and strengthen our national and economic security. Each member of PCBAA has an important role to play in the year ahead.

Every company has elected representatives who can influence our future and who could benefit from meeting with us and touring facilities. Our Washington lobbying and communications team can help arrange these interactions.

Each of our members has customers who should be members. This includes OEMs. We will reintroduce legislation in the new Congress and the elements of the bill will benefit everyone including OEMs. We are working hard to bring OEMs into our membership. Their addition would amplify our voice and boost our impact.

Like many of us, PCBAA attended PCB West last month. We were encouraged by the number of companies passionate about what PCBAA is doing for the industry. We all recognize the steep hill we are climbing as we compete for recognition, understanding and funding inside Washington.

There will be a lot of noise in Washington when a new president occupies the White House and new members of Congress arrive on the scene. It is every member’s job to remind them all that “chips don’t float” and that there is more work to be done to create a secure and resilient supply chain for the microelectronics we depend on.

This column originally appeared in the November 2024 issue of PCB007 Magazine.