[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 104 (Wednesday, July 13, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Page S4558]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. ROCKEFELLER:
  S. 1363. A bill to amend titles 10 and 41, United States Code, to 
allow contracting officers to consider information regarding domestic 
employment before awarding a Federal contract, and for other purposes; 
to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
  Mr. ROCKEFELLER. Mr. President, today I am introducing the American 
Jobs Matter Act, legislation that will promote domestic job creation in 
the field of Federal contracting.
  We must do all that we can to stop the outward migration of jobs. 
This bill takes the important step of directing the Federal Government 
to notify contract applicants that it may consider American job impact 
when deciding which bids to accept. The government would then be 
allowed to use that information in making award decisions.
  There should be no greater champion of American-made goods than the 
Federal Government. Members of Congress come from 50 States and 435 
districts and we each know of the special skill sets that our 
constituents possess and how fortunate the Federal Government would be 
to have these employees working on Federal projects. Yet our flawed 
procurement policy has no mechanism to assess the impact of government 
purchasing on American jobs.
  This bill seeks to change that. Under the American Jobs Matter Act, 
contractors will be allowed to submit information related to the net 
effect of their offer on American employment. This information could 
include the number of American jobs expected to be created or retained 
as a result of the work. Bidders would also be allowed to guarantee 
that the jobs created would not be moved outside the United States 
after the contract is awarded. The legislation would finally give 
Federal agencies the ability to assess the impact of procurement 
decisions on American jobs. It does not dictate that a contract go to 
the applicant that will create the most jobs. It just elevates job 
creation to its right place in the hierarchy of criteria that should be 
studied before making a decision.
  The American Jobs Matter Act would be an important step towards 
promoting a vibrant manufacturing base which is essential to our 
standard of living, the health of our communities, and ensuring our 
long-term economic security.
  I want to thank my counterpart from the House of Representatives, 
Representative Chris Murphy, for his leadership in that body on this 
legislation. I ask my colleagues to join me in supporting this 
important legislation and thank the chair for allowing me to speak on 
this issue.
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