[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6118 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 6118

  To establish a National Manufacturing Extension Partnership Supply 
                Chain Database, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            December 1, 2021

Mrs. Torres of California (for herself and Mr. Fleischmann) introduced 
  the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science, 
                         Space, and Technology

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To establish a National Manufacturing Extension Partnership Supply 
                Chain Database, and for other purposes.

    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 ``National MEP Supply Chain Database 
Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. NATIONAL MANUFACTURING EXTENSION PARTNERSHIP SUPPLY CHAIN 
              DATABASE.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Center.--The term ``Center'' has the meaning given such 
        term in section 25(a) of the National Institute of Standards 
        and Technology Act (15 U.S.C. 278k(a)).
            (2) Database.--The term ``Database'' means the National 
        Manufacturing Extension Partnership Supply Chain Database 
        established under subsection (b).
            (3) Director.--The term ``Director'' means the Director of 
        the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
            (4) Institute.--The term ``Institute'' means the National 
        Institute of Standards and Technology.
    (b) Establishment of Database.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to the availability of 
        appropriations, the Director shall establish a database to 
        assist the United States in minimizing disruptions in the 
        supply chain by providing a resource for manufacturers in the 
        United States.
            (2) Designation.--The database established under paragraph 
        (1) shall be known as the ``National Manufacturing Extension 
        Partnership Supply Chain Database''.
    (c) Considerations.--In establishing the Database, the Director 
shall consider the findings and recommendations from the study required 
under section 9413 of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (Public Law 116-283), including 
measures to secure and protect the Database from adversarial attacks 
and vulnerabilities.
    (d) Connections With Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnerships 
Centers.--
            (1) In general.--The Director shall create the 
        infrastructure for the Database through the Hollings 
        Manufacturing Extension Partnership, established under section 
        25 of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act 
        (15 U.S.C. 278k), by connecting information from the Centers 
        through the Database.
            (2) National view.--The Director shall ensure that 
        connections under paragraph (1)--
                    (A) provide a national overview of the networks of 
                supply chains of the United States; and
                    (B) support understanding of whether there is a 
                need for some manufacturers to retool in some critical 
                areas to meet the urgent need for key products, such as 
                defense supplies, food, and medical devices, including 
                personal protective equipment.
            (3) Individual hollings manufacturing extension partnership 
        center databases.--
                    (A) In general.--The Director shall ensure that--
                            (i) each Center is connected to the 
                        Database; and
                            (ii) each supply chain database maintained 
                        by a Center is interoperable with the Database.
                    (B) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this section 
                shall be construed to require a State or territory of 
                the United States to establish a new supply chain 
                database through the Hollings Manufacturing Extension 
                Partnership program.
    (e) Maintenance of National Supply Chain Database.--The Director, 
acting through the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership program 
or a designee of the program--
            (1) shall maintain the Database as an integration of State-
        level databases from the Center of each State or territory of 
        the United States; and
            (2) may populate the Database with information from past, 
        current, or potential clients of Centers.
    (f) Database Content.--
            (1) In general.--The Database may include the following:
                    (A) Basic company information.
                    (B) An overview of capabilities, accreditations, 
                and products.
                    (C) Proprietary information.
                    (D) Such other items as the Director considers 
                necessary.
            (2) Standard classification system.--The Database shall use 
        the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Codes 
        as follows:
                    (A) Sector 31-33--Manufacturing.
                    (B) Sector 54--Professional, Scientific, and 
                Technical Services.
                    (C) Sector 48-49--Transportation and Warehousing.
            (3) Levels.--The Database shall be multi-leveled as 
        follows:
                    (A) Level 1 shall have basic company information 
                and shall be available to the public.
                    (B) Level 2 shall have a deeper, nonproprietary 
                overview into capabilities, products, and 
                accreditations and shall be available to all companies 
                that contribute to the Database and agree to terms of 
                mutual disclosure.
                    (C) Level 3 shall hold proprietary information.
            (4) Matters relating to disclosure and access.--
                    (A) FOIA exemption.--The Database, and any 
                information contained therein that is not publicly 
                released by the Institute, shall be exempt from public 
                disclosure under section 552(b)(3) of title 5, United 
                States Code.
                    (B) Limitation on access to content.--Access to a 
                contributing company's nonpublic content in the 
                Database shall be limited to the contributing company, 
                the Institute, and staff from a Center who sign such 
                nondisclosure agreement as the Director considers 
                appropriate.
                    (C) Aggregated information.--The Director may make 
                aggregated, de-identified information available to 
                contributing companies, Centers, or the public, as the 
                Director considers appropriate, in support of the 
                purposes of this section.
    (g) Coordination With National Technology and Industrial Base.--The 
Director, acting through the Hollings Manufacturing Extension 
Partnership program, may work with the National Defense Technology and 
Industrial Base Council established by section 2502(a) of title 10, 
United States Code, as the Director considers appropriate, to include 
in the Database information regarding the defense manufacturing supply 
chain.
    (h) Protections.--
            (1) In general.--Supply chain information that is 
        voluntarily and lawfully submitted by a private entity and 
        accompanied by an express statement described in paragraph 
        (2)--
                    (A) shall be exempt from disclosure under section 
                552(b)(3) of title 5, United States Code;
                    (B) shall not be made available pursuant to any 
                Federal, State, local, or Tribal authority pursuant to 
                any Federal, State, local, or Tribal law requiring 
                public disclosure of information or records; and
                    (C) shall not, without the written consent of the 
                person or entity submitting such information, be used 
                directly by the Director, or any other Federal, State, 
                or local authority in any civil enforcement action 
                brought by a Federal, State, or local authority.
            (2) Express statement.--The express statement described in 
        this paragraph, with respect to information or records, is--
                    (A) in the case of written information or records, 
                a written marking on the information or records 
                substantially similar to the following: ``This 
                information is voluntarily submitted to the Federal 
                Government in expectation of protection from disclosure 
                as provided by the provisions of section 2(h) of the 
                National MEP Supply Chain Database Act of 2021.''; or
                    (B) in the case of oral information, a written 
                statement similar to the statement described in 
                subparagraph (A) submitted within a reasonable period 
                following the oral communication.
    (i) Rules of Construction.--
            (1) Private entities.--Nothing in this section shall be 
        construed to require any private entity to share data with the 
        Director specifically for the Database.
            (2) Prohibition on new regulatory authority.--Nothing in 
        this section shall be construed to grant the Director, or the 
        head of any other Federal agency, with any authority to 
        promulgate regulations or set standards on manufacturers, based 
        on data within the Database, that was not in effect on the day 
        before the date of enactment of this section.
    (j) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated--
            (1) $31,000,000 for fiscal year 2022 to develop and launch 
        the Database; and
            (2) $26,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 through 2026 
        to maintain, update, and support Federal coordination of the 
        State supply chain databases maintained by the Centers.
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