Lipinski Introduces New “Buy American” Bill

Congressman Dan Lipinski (IL-3) has introduced H.R. 6907, the BuyAmerican.gov Act, which helps ensure that federal agencies follow Buy American laws and prioritize the purchase of American-made goods. The legislation directs the General Services Administration to establish a website to collect and display information about each request by a federal agency to bypass “Buy American” laws and purchase foreign-made products. If approved, manufacturers and others will be able to use the site to identify contract opportunities and hold federal agencies accountable for abusing “Buy American” waivers. Republican Representative Mike Bost (IL-12) joined Rep. Lipinski in introducing the bill.

“Despite the fact that too many Americans still can’t find good-paying jobs, the federal government continues to buy many products outside our country instead of using our hard-earned tax dollars to buy American products and hire American workers,” said Rep. Lipinski. “This bipartisan bill will help change that.”

“American taxpayers expect that when their hard-earned dollars are spent, those dollars should support American jobs,” said Rep. Bost. “This bipartisan legislation will improve transparency and better ensure that American workers and businesses can fairly compete on federal procurement opportunities.”

In the last five years, federal agencies have spent $47.7 billion on goods manufactured by foreign firms. The Department of Defense, the largest purchaser of manufactured goods in the world, has spent almost $200 billion on manufactured goods made by foreign companies since 2007. At the same time, the United States has seen a reduction in middle-class manufacturing jobs that could have been kept in the U.S.

A companion bill has been introduced in the Senate.

Congressman Lipinski has been a leader when it comes to protecting and boosting American jobs. In recent years, he has successfully added critical “Buy American” provisions to bills involving water resources and the FAA. Last year he introduced the Buy American Improvement Act to create American jobs, promote the domestic manufacturing industry, increase transparency and accountability in government procurement, and ensure that taxpayer dollars are spent in the U.S. whenever practicable. This bill applies “Buy American” requirements to federal spending programs that are not covered in current law and closes gaping loopholes in programs where “Buy American” requirements are already law.