IN THE NEWS: Thanks to Sen. Kelly’s Leadership, More Jobs, Broadband Investments Coming to Arizona

In case you missed it, yesterday Arizona Senator Mark Kelly welcomed Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo to the Phoenix area to highlight how Kelly’s CHIPS Act of 2022 and the Kelly-shaped Bipartisan Infrastructure Law would lower costs, and bring great-paying jobs and high-speed internet to Arizona. During their visit, Kelly and Raimondo also emphasized the strong partnerships across private and public sectors in Arizona that will create more jobs and greater economic opportunities for Arizonans, including those without a four-year degree. 

See news clips and highlights below:

Arizona Republic: Big effort for fiber cable in Arizona: $100M Corning factory planned in Gilbert, AT&T expanding service

Corning Inc. will build a $100 million fiber-cabling factory in Gilbert that will employ 250 people and help AT&T deploy high-speed internet access, the companies announced on Tuesday.

The factory news came amid a whirlwind day of economic-development promotion by U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., who joined the companies for their announcement at Mesa Community College amid stops at Arizona State University and the Intertribal Council of Arizona.

Kelly credited the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act passed by Congress last year with helping bring the deal together.

“We didn’t just want to expand high-speed internet, we wanted to put Arizonans to work in doing it, so we required more of the raw materials to be made in the United States,” Kelly said to a small crowd at MCC.

“And as a result, companies like Corning are announcing what they are doing here today, expanding fiber-optic, cable-manufacturing facilities right here in our state. That means more good-paying jobs for Arizonans. … That’s the infrastructure law at work.”

Univision: Senador Kelly visita a ASU, habla sobre su ley de CHIPS

Spanish: 

Presentador: Al norte de Phoenix, la construcción de una nueva planta promete ayudar no solamente con la distribución de estos semiconductores, si no también, generar empleos. Pero como nos dice Héctor Lagunas, hace falta personal y esto puede ser una gran oportunidad. 

Lagunas: Continúa la construcción de la planta de fabricación de semiconductores al norte de Phoenix. Un proyecto que una compañía de Taiwán, en parte, ha logrado gracias a la legislación bipartidista que propuso el senador Mark Kelly hace un año y que el gobierno federal aprobó a principios de agosto.

La empresa fabricante de chips más grande del mundo responsable de fabricar estos circuitos  electrónicos para la industria aerospacial y servicios elcetronicos, planea abrir 2,000 posiciones de empleo en Arizona. Ya contrataron a 1,500 ingenieros. […] 

English: 

Anchor: North of Phoenix, the construction of a new plant promises to help not only with the distribution of these semiconductors, but also create jobs. But as Hector Lagunas tells us, there is a lack of personnel and this could be a great opportunity.

Lagunas: Construction continues on the semiconductor manufacturing plant north of Phoenix. A project that a Taiwanese company has achieved, in part, thanks to bipartisan legislation proposed by Senator Mark Kelly a year ago and approved by the federal government in early August.

The world’s largest chipmaker responsible for making these electronic circuits for the aerospace and electronic services industries plans to open 2,000 jobs in Arizona. They have already hired 1,500 engineers. […] 

AZ Family: Senator Kelly Discusses CHIPS Act of 2022 in Arizona

Today, the Senator highlighted the bipartisan work which helped to push that bill through. To get this done with Democrats and Republicans in Congress is just a good thing for our country, but it’s also a great thing for our state. Aside from creating new jobs, the CHIPS Act is also seen as important for national security, since it will decrease our reliance on foreign manufacturers.

12 News: New Push to Bring High-Tech Jobs to AZ 

U.S. Senator Mark Kelly was joined by U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, at stops in Mesa and Tempe. They touted Congress’s work to bring tech manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. with the new Chips and Science Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. 

The infrastructure law getting credit for Corning Inc’s announcement of a new Gilbert factory to make the optical fiber cable that connects the high speed Internet. The facility will create 250 jobs when it opens in 2024. Corning’s partner AT&T announced the cable will be used to build out a high speed fiber network in Mesa.

KJZZ: Sen. Mark Kelly touts Arizona opportunities to rake in CHIPS Act funding

Kelly and U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo toured an Arizona State University research and development facility before hosting a roundtable discussion with local business leaders, including those from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, which is already constructing a fabrication plant in Arizona.

“Every state ought to put their best foot forward. And so every governor, every state legislature, every president of public universities in every state ought to be now putting their plan of attack together,” Raimondo said. “This is a race. It’ll be competitive. It’ll be transparent, and I hope every state competes.”

“And we’re well-positioned to compete,” Kelly said of Arizona.

Arizona Republic: 5 Arizona tribes will share $105 million to fund high-speed internet

The U.S. Department of Commerce will award $105.8 million to five tribes in Arizona to fund high-speed internet connections in communities that lack such services. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., were in Arizona to formally announce the grants Tuesday.

The money, part of the Internet for All Initiative, will fund projects through the agency’s Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program for Hopi Telecommunications, Inc., Navajo Tribal Utility Authority, the Pascua Yaqui Tribe of Arizona, San Carlos Apache Tribal Council/Triplet Mountain Communications, Inc. and the White Mountain Apache Tribe.

More than 33,300 homes will get high-speed internet service as a result of the project.