B
efore he took on the role as the nation’s commander-in-chief, President Joe Biden’s connections to central New York primarily lay in his status as an alumnus of Syracuse University’s College of Law.
As he nears the end of his four-year presidency, Biden has left a lasting impact on the city of Syracuse and the surrounding region, implementing multiple policies that brought noticeable change to the area.
The Biden administration’s primary impacts on Syracuse have centered around infrastructure projects and facilitating the arrival of Micron Technology, positioning the region to become a workforce hub for the incoming semiconductor manufacturing industry.
Infrastructure
In 2021, Biden’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, now the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, allocated $1.2 trillion for improvements in infrastructure across the United States. Within the legislation, the Syracuse Hancock International Airport received $27.3 million.
Additionally, $55.8 million went toward Syracuse Centro Public Transportation to aid its driver shortage, which caused a shorter bus schedule and created inconvenience for residents who relied on public transportation.
Announced on Aug. 22, $30 million in BIL funding was awarded to 30 communities throughout New York to improve water infrastructure by beginning to identify and replace lead piping throughout the state. Syracuse received around $3.2 million for sanitary sewer system improvements.
The Biden administration’s BIL legislation has also funded projects related to the Interstate 81 viaduct removal project. The 2021 bill also granted $11.5 billion in highway funding to New York state for the reformation of the I-81 Viaduct Project and other transportation projects.
Most recently, in March, the Biden administration approved a $180 million grant to Syracuse and the New York State Department of Transportation for the I-81 project — intended to address the structural deficiencies and mitigate the historical harms of the overpass.
The award — part of the U.S. DOT’s Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods Grant program — was allocated toward improving street transportation to reconnect the neighborhoods affected by the viaduct and improve the “quality of life in disadvantaged communities” within the city, according to a press release.
The bill also implemented the U.S. DOT’s Capital Investment Grants program, which provided $55.8 million to the Bus Rapid Transit in Syracuse. The program created a bus service that runs on a more frequent and fixed schedule.
Semiconductor manufacturing
In August 2022, the CHIPS and Science Act, a federal bill passed to incentivize investment in domestic semiconductor manufacturing, was signed into law. The legislation paved the way for Micron’s $100 billion investment into central New York through the construction of a semiconductor fabrication facility in Clay, New York — just 10 minutes away from Syracuse.
The semiconductor manufacturing facility is estimated to bring 9,000 jobs to the area and 50,000 jobs affiliated with the project, according to Micron’s website. In April, Biden announced that the Micron project would receive a $6.1 billion CHIPS grant and named central New York as one of four Investing in America “Workforce Hubs.” That month, he visited Syracuse to discuss the investments.
Alongside specific investments into Micron, the Biden administration also established the Syracuse-Rochester-Buffalo region as one of 31 national technology hubs — labeling the area as a place of growth throughout the technology industry — in October 2023.
The Tech Hubs program, part of the CHIPS program, allows for technology hub-designated cities to qualify for $50-$75 million to move forward into Phase 2, helping the tech hub to gain more investment in the future.
In April, Biden visited Syracuse to tout his $6.1 billion grant to Micron under the CHIPS and Science Act for its proposed semiconductor manufacturing complex. He spoke about Micron’s role in mobilizing the region’s economy.
Additionally, Syracuse, Rochester and Buffalo were awarded a $40 million grant after winning the Biden administration’s federal “Tech Hub” competition in July. The funds will go directly toward the New York Semiconductor Manufacturing and Research Technology Innovation Corridor initiative.
In September, the U.S. Department of Defense awarded $30 million to the Northeast Regional Defense Technology Hub, a New York state-based microtechnology development consortium, funded through the CHIPS act.
Micron is also planning to collaborate with multiple local universities, including SU and Onondaga Community College, to provide microtechnology workforce development opportunities for their students.
Graphic by Hailey Hoang | Design Editor
Published on October 31, 2024 at 1:57 am
Contact Zaara: zamalik@syr.edu
