[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 524 Referred in Senate (RFS)]

  1st Session
                                H. R. 524


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 14, 2001

    Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, 
                      Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
  To require the Director of the National Institute of Standards and 
  Technology to assist small and medium-sized manufacturers and other 
   such businesses to successfully integrate and utilize electronic 
  commerce technologies and business practices, and to authorize the 
   National Institute of Standards and Technology to assess critical 
  enterprise integration standards and implementation activities for 
  major manufacturing industries and to develop a plan for enterprise 
           integration for each major manufacturing industry.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Electronic Commerce Enhancement Act 
of 2001''.

                      TITLE I--ELECTRONIC COMMERCE

SEC. 101. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) Commercial transactions on the Internet, whether retail 
        business-to-customer or business-to-business, are commonly 
        called electronic commerce.
            (2) In the United States, business-to-business transactions 
        between small and medium-sized manufacturers and other such 
        businesses and their suppliers is rapidly growing, as many of 
        these businesses begin to use Internet connections for supply-
        chain management, after-sales support, and payments.
            (3) Small and medium-sized manufacturers and other such 
        businesses play a critical role in the United States economy.
            (4) Electronic commerce can help small and medium-sized 
        manufacturers and other such businesses develop new products 
        and markets, interact more quickly and efficiently with 
        suppliers and customers, and improve productivity by increasing 
        efficiency and reducing transaction costs and paperwork. Small 
        and medium-sized manufacturers and other such businesses who 
        fully exploit the potential of electronic commerce activities 
        can use it to interact with customers, suppliers, and the 
        public, and for external support functions such as personnel 
        services and employee training.
            (5) The National Institute of Standards and Technology's 
        Manufacturing Extension Partnership program has a successful 
        record of assisting small and medium-sized manufacturers and 
        other such businesses. In addition, the Manufacturing Extension 
        Partnership program, working with the Small Business 
        Administration, successfully assisted United States small 
        enterprises in remediating their Y2K computer problems.
            (6) A critical element of electronic commerce is the 
        ability of different electronic commerce systems to exchange 
        information. The continued growth of electronic commerce will 
        be enhanced by the development of private voluntary 
        interoperability standards and testbeds to ensure the 
        compatibility of different systems.

SEC. 102. REPORT ON THE UTILIZATION OF ELECTRONIC COMMERCE.

    (a) Advisory Panel.--The Director of the National Institute of 
Standards and Technology (in this title referred to as the 
``Director'') shall establish an Advisory Panel to report on the 
challenges facing small and medium-sized manufacturers and other such 
businesses in integrating and utilizing electronic commerce 
technologies and business practices. The Advisory Panel shall be 
comprised of representatives of the Technology Administration, the 
National Institute of Standards and Technology's Manufacturing 
Extension Partnership program established under sections 25 and 26 of 
the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act (15 U.S.C. 278k 
and 278l), the Small Business Administration, and other relevant 
parties as identified by the Director.
    (b) Initial Report.--Within 12 months after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Advisory Panel shall report to the Director 
and to the Committee on Science of the House of Representatives and the 
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate on the 
immediate requirements of small and medium-sized manufacturers and 
other such businesses to integrate and utilize electronic commerce 
technologies and business practices. The report shall--
            (1) describe the current utilization of electronic commerce 
        practices by small and medium-sized manufacturers and other 
        such businesses, detailing the different levels between 
        business-to-retail customer and business-to-business 
        transactions;
            (2) describe and assess the utilization and need for 
        encryption and electronic authentication components and 
        electronically stored data security in electronic commerce for 
        small and medium-sized manufacturers and other such businesses;
            (3) identify the impact and problems of interoperability to 
        electronic commerce, and include an economic assessment; and
            (4) include a preliminary assessment of the appropriate 
        role of, and recommendations for, the Manufacturing Extension 
        Partnership program to assist small and medium-sized 
        manufacturers and other such businesses to integrate and 
        utilize electronic commerce technologies and business 
        practices.
    (c) Final Report.--Within 18 months after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, the Advisory Panel shall report to the Director and to the 
Committee on Science of the House of Representatives and the Committee 
on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a 3-year 
assessment of the needs of small and medium-sized manufacturers and 
other such businesses to integrate and utilize electronic commerce 
technologies and business practices. The report shall include--
            (1) a 3-year planning document for the Manufacturing 
        Extension Partnership program in the field of electronic 
        commerce; and
            (2) recommendations, if necessary, for the National 
        Institute of Standards and Technology to address 
        interoperability issues in the field of electronic commerce.

SEC. 103. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE PILOT PROGRAM.

    The National Institute of Standards and Technology's Manufacturing 
Extension Partnership program, in consultation with the Small Business 
Administration, shall establish a pilot program to assist small and 
medium-sized manufacturers and other such businesses in integrating and 
utilizing electronic commerce technologies and business practices. The 
goal of the pilot program shall be to provide small and medium-sized 
manufacturers and other such businesses with the information they need 
to make informed decisions in utilizing electronic commerce-related 
goods and services. Such program shall be implemented through a 
competitive grants program for existing Regional Centers for the 
Transfer of Manufacturing Technology established under section 25 of 
the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act (15 U.S.C. 
278k). In carrying out this section, the Manufacturing Extension 
Partnership program shall consult with the Advisory Panel and utilize 
the Advisory Panel's reports.

                    TITLE II--ENTERPRISE INTEGRATION

SEC. 201. ENTERPRISE INTEGRATION ASSESSMENT AND PLAN.

    (a) Assessment.--The Director shall work to identify critical 
enterprise integration standards and implementation activities for 
major manufacturing industries underway in the United States. For each 
major manufacturing industry, the Director shall work with industry 
representatives and organizations currently engaged in enterprise 
integration activities and other appropriate representatives as 
necessary. They shall assess the current state of enterprise 
integration within the industry, identify the remaining steps in 
achieving enterprise integration, and work toward agreement on the 
roles of the National Institute of Standards and Technology and of the 
private sector in that process. Within 90 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Director shall report to the Congress on 
these matters and on anticipated related National Institute of 
Standards and Technology activities for the then current fiscal year.
    (b) Plans and Reports.--Within 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Director shall submit to the Congress a plan 
for enterprise integration for each major manufacturing industry, 
including milestones for the National Institute of Standards and 
Technology portion of the plan, the dates of likely achievement of 
those milestones, and anticipated costs to the Government and industry 
by fiscal year. Updates of the plans and a progress report for the past 
year shall be submitted annually until for a given industry, in the 
opinion of the Director, enterprise integration has been achieved.

SEC. 202. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this title--
            (1) the term ``Director'' means the Director of the 
        National Institute of Standards and Technology;
            (2) the term ``enterprise integration'' means the 
        electronic linkage of manufacturers, assemblers, and suppliers 
        to enable the electronic exchange of product, manufacturing, 
        and other business data among all businesses in a product 
        supply chain, and such term includes related application 
        protocols and other related standards; and
            (3) the term ``major manufacturing industry'' includes the 
        aerospace, automotive, electronics, shipbuilding, construction, 
        home building, furniture, textile, and apparel industries and 
        such other industries as the Director designates.

            Passed the House of Representatives February 14, 2001.

            Attest:

                                                 JEFF TRANDAHL,

                                                                 Clerk.