Biden Chip Money Sparks Debate Over Plants’ Environmental Impact

The White House’s grand vision of a thriving domestic semiconductor industry could be undermined by environmental permitting rules, according to Senate lawmakers and regulatory specialists.

To head off that red tape, a bipartisan group of lawmakers has introduced a bill to change the permitting process for chip manufacturing sites. Opponents of the bill say it’s just the latest in a long line of attempts to carve out exemptions from the strictures of the National Environmental Policy Act.

Both Democrats and Republicans want last year’s CHIPS and Science Act (Public Law 117-167) to succeed because it checks so many boxes in ...