Biden wants chipmakers to provide childcare if they want billions in free money
- Reference: 1677583751
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2023/02/28/biden_chips_child_care/
- Source link:
New rules, slated for release by the US Commerce Department this week, will require chipmakers hoping to avail themselves of the billions in subsidies made available by the law to provide low-cost childcare for the men and women building and operating the facilities, the New York Times [1]reported Monday.
However, businesses won’t necessarily have to pay for all of it. In addition to the infrastructure and materials necessary to build new fabs, companies reportedly will be able to use a portion of the CHIPS funds on childcare for their workers.
[2]
Fund applicants can integrate child-care facilities into their foundry designs, pay local providers to expand availability of services, or offer workers a stipend to pay for the costs of raising children. And it's worth noting that there’s no requirement for free childcare, just that it has to be affordable.
[3]
[4]
However, it’s not exactly clear what “affordable” means in this context. The US Department of Health and Human Services says
[5]PDF
childcare must be less than 7 percent of household income to be considered affordable.But depending on where you live, the actual cost is usually much higher than that. A 2018 study found that the average annual cost of full-time childcare ranged from $5,700 to $19,269 a year, depending on the city and state. And things certainly haven’t gotten cheaper in the post-COVID era.
[6]Sure looks like Beijing stole blueprints from chip fab world's ASML
[7]Unless things change, first zettaflop systems will need nuclear power, AMD's Su says
[8]Intel slashes shareholder dividend by two-thirds as cash crunch bites
[9]Intel coughs up for something other than stock buybacks: Avoiding wafer spoilage
In Ohio, where Intel has broken ground on a $20 billion fab [10]project that will employ about 3,000 workers when complete, childcare ranges between $7,895 and $9,697, according to the Economic Policy Institute think tank. By its estimate that’s about 16.9 percent of a median family’s income in the state.
However, for an Intel employee making [11]claimed average salary of $135,000 a year, that would mean childcare in the state is already “affordable” under the Department of Health’s definition and improving access would be the primary requirement under the rules. As many parents know well, even if childcare costs are manageable, that doesn’t mean they’re readily available.
[12]
The new rules come as the US Commerce Department prepares to start accepting early applications for CHIPS funding. As we [13]detailed when the bill was first approved, the funding takes the form of roughly $39 billion in subsidies, $11 billion for research and development, and an additional $24 billion in tax breaks, to the tune of 25 percent.
However, the bill isn’t a blank check for major chipmakers like Intel, which hopes to offset a good chuck of its extensive foundry build out with taxpayer dollars. In addition to affordable childcare, chipmakers must agree to [14]forgo stock buybacks, and fabs funded by the bill must be built in the US.
The Register reached out to the Commerce Department for comment but did not immediately hear back. ®
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[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/27/us/politics/child-care-chip-makers-biden.html
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/systems&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2Y-4zNyOVBe-8LwYVIGGZCgAAANc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/systems&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Y-4zNyOVBe-8LwYVIGGZCgAAANc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/systems&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Y-4zNyOVBe-8LwYVIGGZCgAAANc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://aspe.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/migrated_legacy_files//200606/increases-in-out-of-pocket-child-care-costs.pdf
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/27/asml_china_data_spying/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/23/amd_zettaflop_systems_nuclear/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/22/intel_quarterly_dividend/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/17/intel_leads_funding_round_for_unisers/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2022/01/21/intel_us20bn_ohio/
[11] https://www.npr.org/2022/08/22/1118768790/7-000-construction-workers-are-needed-for-ohios-largest-economic-development-pro#:~:text=At%20hand%20is%20the%20%2420,average%20salary%20of%20around%20%24135%2C000.
[12] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/systems&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Y-4zNyOVBe-8LwYVIGGZCgAAANc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2022/09/06/chips_commerce_funding_tax_credit/
[14] https://www.theregister.com/2022/08/01/us_chips_act_vs_world/
[15] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Backwards
Shouldn't they just raise the requirement for the minimum wage, so that childcare becomes affordable for the workers?
And doesn't discriminate against the child-free (and less)
Re: Backwards
Or people having kinless non-human companion.
Re: Backwards
"And doesn't discriminate against the child-free (and less)"
Don't worry, those kids are going to be one ones paying for your retirement.
Just ask Japan what happens if we don't have enough kids.
Re: Backwards
And why the hell would anybody with a shred of compassion want to inflict life on a child who has done nothing to deserve it?
I, for one, welcome the robots that will take up the slack.
Re: Backwards
Let's give monkeys a chance
Shouldn't they just raise the requirement for the minimum wage, so that childcare becomes affordable for the workers
Childcare is a minimum wage business. If you push up minimum wages to allow people to pay for childcare you end up pushing up the cost of childcare to match.
Ultimately childcare is a "servant" business. High earners make enough money to pay for someone else to look after their kids. Low earners can't as their "servant" would want the same pay as they get. OK, economies of scale help but they are limited by the governing laws that dictate how many kids a child minder can look after at once.
You have kind of disproved your own point.
If you push up minimum wages to allow people to pay for childcare you end up pushing up the cost of childcare to match.
Also this is complete nonsense. Sure, when the wages will be topped up there will be a period when prices will go up, but it will draw people into the market who previously didn't consider giving a childcare service, so the market would come to an equilibrium.
If a worker can't afford such a basic need as childcare, then they are simply not paid enough. Anything else is just smoke and mirrors.
@elsergiovolador
"If a worker can't afford such a basic need as childcare, then they are simply not paid enough. Anything else is just smoke and mirrors."
Up to how many children does this apply? What other life choices does this apply to? I aint paid enough for a lot of things I might like to have but is that on my employer or me?
If they dont earn enough to hire a servant to look after their child then they will have to look after the child themselves. Dont like that idea? Why have a child?
Re: @elsergiovolador
Up to how many children does this apply?
Up to 5.
What other life choices does this apply to?
You can choose to not have this many children and use money for something else like buying a guitar and spending 18 years learning how to play.
If they dont earn enough to hire a servant to look after their child then they will have to look after the child themselves. Dont like that idea? Why have a child?
Why have a job that doesn't cover the basics?
Re: @elsergiovolador
@elsergiovolador
"Up to 5."
Where does this number come from? Is it arbitrary or is there a reason?
"You can choose to not have this many children and use money for something else like buying a guitar and spending 18 years learning how to play."
True. So better money management (or education to be fair) would be more responsible than begging for daycare.
"Why have a job that doesn't cover the basics?"
That is also valid. They could go get a better paid job if they are able to contribute to a higher value job.
Re: @elsergiovolador
There has been some research that the best spacing to have children is 3 years. 5 times 3 gives you (15+3) 18 year span in total, where the older siblings will be able to help with care for the younger ones and typically after 18 years you would get tired of having more children.
So better money management (or education to be fair) would be more responsible than begging for daycare.
This is nonsense. You may as well not pay the workers and say they can go foraging or hunting if they want to eat.
Ok lets give an example. You want to go out to work to earn £10/hour but you need childcare. I say I'll provide that for you, at minimum wage of £10/hour but you don't like those numbers. Then minimum wage goes up so you get £15/hour and you come back to me and say "Can you look after my kids now". I say "Sure, I'll do that for you for minimum wage. That will be £15/hour".
Why do you feel I should be paid any less for looking after your children than you are paid for doing a similar skill level job? Or even the identical job. Suppose you were looking after someone else's children, or for that matter mine?
I think you misunderstood my comment. I didn't say increase minimum wage for everyone. They should increase it for the workers building the facility.
OK that's valid, but they are increasing it for the workers in the facility. Think of their wage being in two parts: one part goes into their pocket and the other part goes to their childcare provider, who just happens to also be their employer. I'm pretty sure the state won't allow them to pay less than minimum wage because they provide "free" childcare.
Shock
"There are more than a few strings attached"
Government doesnt give for free.
Re: Shock
"Government doesnt give for free."
Really? The "Too big to fail" Wall Street firms that got hundreds of billions from the government due of the 2008 financial disaster would laugh in your face.
These were the same people who created the crisis in the first place. They paid themselves ridiculous bonuses from that cash pile and were able to pay it back with interest in 2012 to get the government out of their hair. They also used that cash to lobby Congress to relax the finance controls put in place since the 1929 stock market crash to prevent such an occurrence.
Re: Shock
@AC
"Wall Street firms that got hundreds of billions from the government due of the 2008 financial disaster would laugh in your face." ..."These were the same people who created the crisis in the first place."
Not exactly. The gov (Bush) was pushing for more home owners. While the banks came up with a solution which should have been bullet proof based on the entire history they had to work with (housing not crashing all over the US at the same time) it was the government agency who signed it off as safe too! It was the sub-prime low grade investments that failed, the more secure ones were as expected more secure.
"They paid themselves ridiculous bonuses from that cash pile and were able to pay it back with interest in 2012 to get the government out of their hair."
If they paid themselves well and paid off the gov loans they probably earned their pay.
Re: Shock
The devil is in the details
How young?
> childcare for their workers
I know that IT has a problem with older staff, but isn't that a bit extreme?
Re: How young?
E*Trade has been hiring infants for quite some time now. It’s only to be expected that others would follow suit.
Re: How young?
Did you write that or your chaperone?
Just a comment on the accompanying picture
Child, put those crude side cutters down, and step away from the circuit board. Go find a BigClive approved pair of proper shnips.
Re: Just a comment on the accompanying picture
As semiconductor features get smaller then child labour is an obvious solution - we can't get to 3nm without those tiny fingers
Backwards
will require chipmakers hoping to avail themselves of the billions in subsidies made available by the law to provide low-cost childcare for the men and women building and operating the facilities
Shouldn't they just raise the requirement for the minimum wage, so that childcare becomes affordable for the workers?
Or do they think if worker sees more money, they'll drink it away and won't come back to the site after a month?