Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

American Made Advocacy: A Growing Presence in Washington in Turbulent Times

Last month, PCBAA held its fourth annual meeting in Washington, D.C. It was our largest gathering to date and included speakers from the House and Senate, the Department of Commerce, and OEMs Lockheed Martin, RTX, and Northrop Grumman. We also spent a day on Capitol Hill educating lawmakers and their staff about the importance of a secure domestic microelectronics supply chain.

As I looked around the room, I was struck by the growing depth and breadth of our organization. In less than four years, PCBAA has grown from five PCB manufacturers to nearly 75 members in 34 states, representing raw and refined materials, board shops, assemblers, tooling, training, testing, and most recently, an OEM.

PCBAA staff spend a lot of time in Washington. When it comes to advocacy, there is no substitute for being face to face with the men and women who actually make policy and write legislation. We were fortunate to hear directly from regulators, purchasers, elected officials, and the current administration. Legislators were clear that the current administration will continue to use Executive Orders to take direct action on priority topics. We were advised to work with other like-minded trade groups and the uniformed services’ associations to get our messages out and drive favorable outcomes for the microelectronics industry.

During the meeting, we also took time for open discussion about current dynamics in our industry. Tariffs were a frequent topic of conversation. Companies of all sizes are challenged by the uncertainty caused by frequently changing tariffs. Because we rely on a global supply chain, costs are increasing in unpredictable ways, which makes long-range planning and investment difficult.

We reminded policymakers that the PCB industry represents family businesses and billion-dollar operations alike. At all levels, the ever-changing nature of trade policy is a burden on our industry. This underscores why PCBAA and our partners at organizations like the Global Electronics Association are focused on incentives and policies that will create a demand signal and advance a renaissance of American manufacturing.

As we wrapped up another successful week in Washington, I was left with a few key takeaways:

Our industry should continue to fight for tariff exemptions for select items in the PCB supply chain. American industry relies on foreign inputs, and our trade policy should reflect that.

PCB executives need to provide this administration with big ideas for making American companies more competitive on the global stage.

We must continuously educate legislators, policymakers, and their staff about our industry. PCBs, while essential and ubiquitous, remain largely invisible without our advocacy.

Our strategy must remain multifaceted. In addition to the PCBS Act, H.R. 3597, we will pursue DoD regulations that secure supply chains and push for domestic sourcing of the microelectronics that power critical infrastructure. We will also work closely with Department of Commerce officials writing the policies and regulations that govern our industry.

We have an opportunity to influence the future of our industry in the year ahead. Now more than ever, we need to work together wherever we operate to educate, advocate, and champion legislation and policies that will revitalize American microelectronics manufacturing. We welcome new members and new voices across our industry to support this very important mission.

This column originally appeared in the July 2025 issue of PCB007 Magazine.