Dear IPC Members:

The top highlight of this week was IMPACT Europe, our annual education and advocacy event focused on European issues and policymakers. Almost 30 IPC members participated in interesting discussions of the European Commission's Trade Policy Review, the European Union’s “green and digital” transitions, due diligence in supply chain, and more. We will have a complete recap for you next week.

Here in Washington, there are plenty of legislative priorities that the U.S. Congress needs to address in its “lame duck” session over the next few weeks, including annual defense authorization and appropriations bills. We will keep you informed as advocacy opportunities arise. It’s shaping up to be a busy end of year, so stay tuned.
 
And as we approach the holiday season, please continue to stay safe and review our COVID-19 Update page for all the latest information and resources. Your health and safety are our top priority.

All the best,

Chris Mitchell
Vice President, Global Government Relations

TOP NEWS OF THE WEEK

SCIP Database Requirements May Apply to Your Company: The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) hosted a webinar last week covering how to prepare and submit a Substances of Concern in Products (SCIP) notification. The webinar also outlined the tools that can be used to refer to information already submitted to the SCIP database. If you were unable to attend, you can still view the webinar here. As a reminder, under the current timeline, the database is set to come into effect on January 5, 2021, just 10 weeks after it was unveiled for the first time. For more information on the SCIP database and how it can impact your company, check out a newly updated IPC blog. Let us know if you have any questions about the notification process. IPC Contact: Alison James.

U.S. Chemical Data Reporting – Still Open! The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is extending the Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) submission period through January 29, 2021. The CDR rule requires manufacturers and importers of certain chemical substances listed under the Toxic Substances Control Act Chemical Substance Inventory to report data to the EPA every four years. There are several new reporting requirements you should be aware of, including changes related to byproducts, exemptions; and an improved process for reporting co-manufacturing. Let us know if you have any questions as your company goes through the reporting process. IPC Contact: Kelly Scanlon.

It’s Time to Complete Unfinished Business on Capitol Hill: Although officials around the country are still finalizing the results of the 2020 elections, here in the United States, members of the U.S. Congress have returned to Washington, where a busy legislative agenda awaits them, including coronavirus recovery, the National Defense Authorization Act, and appropriations bills. Check out this recent blog from IPC Vice President of Global Government Relations Chris Mitchell for a full rundown of IPC’s legislative priorities in the waning days of 2020. IPC Contact: Chris Mitchell.

IPC ADVOCACY AND YOU

Which Government Policy Issues Are You Riled Up About? IPC has been conducting an ongoing member survey about the government policy issues that concern you most. We received a host of new responses amid Election 2020, and here are the updated survey results. When asking our members to identify their top areas of concern, a majority mentioned trade and tariffs (54 percent). A second tier of top issues are education and workforce skills (33 percent); incentives for research, development, and investment (33 percent); environmental regulations (31 percent); taxes (28 percent); and intellectual property protection (28 percent). Which government policy issues matter the most to you? Simply click here to take our five-question, five-minute survey.
 
Join IPC’s Pledge to Stay Involved in Advocacy in 2021: The IPC Government Relations team is composed of experienced professionals working for you year-round. But our success depends on awareness and participation from IPC members like you. With the November elections now behind us, our 2021 advocacy efforts are just beginning. Please click here to pledge to stay involved in IPC advocacy. IPC Contact: Ken Schramko.

DEFENSE AND SECURITY

Final NDAA Negotiations Begin: Leaders of the U.S. House and Senate Armed Services Committees began official negotiations this week to resolve competing versions of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Although “there is no shortage of disagreements,” Politico reports, a final resolution still remains on track by early December. IPC is continuing to work with key members of Congress to enact bipartisan provisions to require printed circuit boards (PCB) and PCB assemblies used in defense systems to be acquired from trusted sources. Learn more in this blog and let us know if you have an interest in this issue. IPC Contact: Chris Mitchell.
  
Senate Releases Annual Spending Bills, Including Defense: The U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee released drafts of a dozen annual spending bills last week, including the defense spending bill, with time running out before the December 11 deadline to keep the government open. The Senate and House of Representatives must now negotiate over differences between their respective spending bills, with the House version including a number of provisions that are contentious, including blocking Pentagon money for a border wall. Meanwhile, the $694.6 billion spending bill passed by the House in July included funding for IPC-backed lead-free electronics research and development. IPC will continue to advocate for measures to shore up supply chains for electronics related to essential governmental functions including defense. IPC Contact: Chris Mitchell.

ECONOMIC POLICY

Federal Reserve Makes Changes to Small Business Lending Program: On October 30, the U.S. Federal Reserve announced it would be lowering the minimum loan size for the Main Street Lending Program from $250,000 to $100,000 in an effort to expand eligibility to a wider range of small businesses. The Federal Reserve also announced it would reduce the processing fees for lenders offering Main Street loans below $250,000 to further incentivize lending to smaller companies in need of capital. Read more about the latest updates to the lending program here. IPC Contact: Chris Mitchell.

EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE

Inside the Semi-Virtual Year for IPC Student Chapter Members: Most of our IPC student chapter members are back on campus for a semi-virtual collegiate experience that significantly affects their courses and extracurriculars. While some of the core benefits of the IPC Student Chapter Program can be delivered virtually through online technical education courses and other online methods, much of IPC’s technologies are hands-on. The IPC Education Foundation is doing all that it can to bring valuable virtual opportunities to learners. Check out this column by Aaron Birney, the IPC education program manager, on the impacts the coronavirus pandemic has had on the academic landscape. IPC Contact: Charlene Gunter.

ENVIRONMENT, HEALTH AND SAFETY

EPA Takes Next Steps on TSCA Fees: Deliberations on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Toxic Substances Control Act Fees Rule have continued, with the agency recently submitting a draft notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA). IPC is staying engaged throughout the process and has recently met with both the EPA’s fees rule team and the OMB to share the electronics industry’s concerns regarding the existing fees rule. IPC expects the final NPRM to be released in December, with a new rule to be issued by fall of 2021. As always, we welcome your insights on fee obligations and what it would mean for your business. IPC Contact: Kelly Scanlon.

EPA Moving Toward Key Deliberations on Toxic Chemicals: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approaching a critical phase of deliberations under the Toxic Substances Control Act, and the next steps in the process will have major ramifications for electronics manufacturers. Currently, the EPA is nearing the completion of 10 risk evaluations, and is just beginning evaluations of an additional 20 high-priority chemical substances. The EPA is seeking input from IPC and our members, and our expertise will be critical in forging smart solutions that protect human health and the environment and enable our industry to thrive. If you have information that is relevant to these proceedings, we need to hear from you. Check out this IPC blog for more information. IPC Contact: Kelly Scanlon.

IPC Comments on Commission’s Sustainable Products Initiative: On November 16, IPC submitted industry input on the European Commission's Sustainable Products Policy Initiative, which aims to revise and expand the Ecodesign Directive and proposes legislative measures to make products, including electronics, more sustainable. Among the recommendations IPC shared with the commission included, defining the electronics and ICT key value chains, expanding the Ecodesign Directive, and elevating the voices of small and medium-sized enterprises. The commission is expected to present a legislative proposal by Q1 of 2021. IPC Contact: Alison James.

IPC Team Active at Chemicals Management for Electronics Conference: IPC was well-represented at Chemical Watch’s virtual conference on regulatory updates, chemicals management, and hot topics in electronics held last week. IPC Environment, Health, & Safety Policy and Research Director Kelly Scanlon presented on managing Toxic Substances Control Act high-priority chemical substances in electronics equipment. Meanwhile, Chief Technologist Matt Kelly also featured on an industry “hot topics” panel discussion addressing factories of the future, and Design Standards Manager Patrick Crawford hosted an “ask the expert” forum on standards for electronics. Reach out to us if you have any outstanding questions from the conference. IPC Contact: Kelly Scanlon.

Advancing Electronics in Asia Pacific: On November 5, IPC’s Environment, Health, and Safety Fellow Fanyu Zhang presented on chemical regulations, including the Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive (RoHS), the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals Directive (REACH), and Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment rules (WEEE), and how they affect electronics manufacturers in Asia Pacific at the South China International Advanced Electronics Automation and Laser Expo. In addition to Zhang’s presentation, IPC Asia Pacific staff also held standards development meetings and shared information certification, education, market research, and more. Let us know if you have any questions. IPC Contact: Kelly Scanlon.

China Releases New Batch of Priority Controlled Chemicals: On November 2, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment released the second round of Priority Controlled Chemicals, which consists of 18 classes of chemicals that are dangerous to human health and the environment. Companies that that use, produce, or discharge these chemicals must adopt risk management and control measures to minimize the impact of these chemicals “at critical links of manufacturing and use.” IPC Contact: Kelly Scanlon.

Interested in Chemical and Product Regulations in Asia? To help our members, IPC has created nine white papers, each of which highlights the history of chemical regulations, current regulatory systems, recent regulatory updates, and anticipated trends in the Asia-Pacific region. The Philippines, Vietnam, and Malaysia are the latest countries to undergo a deep dive by our environmental, health, and safety (EHS) experts. Please check out this recent IPC blog for links to papers on China, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand, and let us know if you have any questions or concerns. IPC Contact: Kelly Scanlon.
 

EUROPEAN UNION

“Policy Going Forward Will be Viewed Through the Lens of Recovery”: Interested in what’s happening in IPC Europe? The IPC Blog staff recently chatted with Alison James, IPC’s senior director for Europe, about the bloc’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, as well as other issues facing our industry, from the “Green Deal” to chemicals regulation to supply chain resiliency. Read the full blog post here, and reach out to Alison if you have any questions. IPC Contact: Alison James.
 

TRADE AND SUPPLY CHAIN

U.S.-China Trade Relations Remains Rocky: Following the breakdown in bilateral talks earlier this year, the United States and China continue to engage in a tit-for-tat trade dispute. In 2020 alone, the Trump administration has taken 159 policy actions aimed “countering China's growing power.” Last week, Trump signed an executive order barring Americans from investing in Chinese companies that support China ’s military, with Trump insiders signaling that there are more punitive actions against China to come. Meanwhile, this week, the U.S. Department of State issued a new report asserting that China is seeking to displace U.S. leadership and is “a mounting challenge to free countries that adhere to the international, rules-based system.” IPC will continue to monitor all developments between the two nations, including the posture of the incoming Biden administration. IPC Contact: Chris Mitchell.

Industry Groups Express Concern Over Strategic Autonomy: Two industry groups, the American Chamber of Commerce to the European Union and Orgalim, which represents Europe’s technology industries, recently responded to the European Commission’s trade policy review, expressing concerns about the potential adverse effects of “open strategic autonomy” on trade and investment. The commission’s consultation ended on November 15, and the results will feed into a communication to be published by the end of 2020. Meanwhile, the new trade strategy is expected to be released in Q1 of 2021. IPC Contact: Alison James.

UPCOMING EVENTS

IPC APEX EXPO Moved to March: With safety in mind and facing new considerations around conferences and travel, IPC decided to move IPC APEX EXPO 2021 to March 6-11. Just as your companies are innovating to overcome the challenges of this pandemic, we are adapting as well. Mark your calendars and watch for more details coming soon. IPC Contact: Chris Mitchell.

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