[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 90 (Monday, May 24, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3340-S3341]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 1924. Mr. SANDERS submitted an amendment intended to be proposed
to amendment SA 1502 proposed by Mr. Schumer to the bill S. 1260, to
establish a new Directorate for Technology and Innovation in the
National Science Foundation, to establish a regional technology hub
program, to require a strategy and report on economic security,
science, research, innovation, manufacturing, and job creation, to
establish a critical supply chain resiliency program, and for other
purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:
On page 23, between lines 7 and 8, insert the following:
(5) Conditions of receipt.--
(A) Required agreement.--A covered entity to which the
Secretary of Commerce awards Federal financial assistance
under section 9902 of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021
(Public Law 116-283) or paragraph (3) of this subsection with
amounts appropriated under this subsection shall enter into
an agreement that specifies that, during the 5-year period
immediately following the award of the Federal financial
assistance--
(i) the covered entity will not--
(I) repurchase an equity security that is listed on a
national securities exchange of the covered entity or any
parent company of the covered entity, except to the extent
required under a contractual obligation that is in effect as
of the date of enactment of this Act;
(II) outsource or offshore jobs to a location outside of
the United States;
(III) pay any officer or employee a salary in an amount
that is greater than 50 times the median salary of employees
during the period lasting one year after the end of the
calendar quarter in which the Federal financial assistance is
awarded;
(IV) abrogate existing collective bargaining agreements;
(V) consider any individual performing a service for the
covered entity as an independent contractor, unless--
(aa) the individual is free from control and direction in
connection with the performance of the service, both under
the contract for the performance of service and in fact;
(bb) the service is performed outside the usual course of
the business of the covered entity; and
(cc) the individual is customarily engaged in an
independently established trade, occupation, profession, or
business of the same nature as that involved in the service
performed; or
(VI) outsource labor for the covered entity to an
independent contractor; and
(ii) the covered entity will--
(I) require any contractor or subcontractor for any
construction project funded by the Federal financial
assistance to enter into a pre-hire collective bargaining
agreement or a project labor agreement; and
(II) remain neutral in any union organizing effort.
(B) Financial protection of government.--
(i) In general.--The Secretary of Commerce may not award
Federal financial assistance to a covered entity under
section 9902 of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (Public Law
116-283) or paragraph (3) of this subsection with amounts
appropriated under this subsection, unless--
(I)(aa) the covered entity has issued securities that are
traded on a national securities exchange; and
(bb) the Secretary of the Treasury receives a warrant or
equity interest in the covered entity; or
(II) in the case of any covered entity other than a covered
entity described in subclause (I), the Secretary of the
Treasury receives, in the discretion of the Secretary of the
Treasury--
(aa) a warrant or equity interest in the covered entity; or
(bb) a senior debt instrument issued by the covered entity.
(ii) Terms and conditions.--The terms and conditions of any
warrant, equity interest, or senior debt instrument received
under clause (i) shall be set by the Secretary of Commerce
and shall meet the following requirements:
(I) Purposes.--Such terms and conditions shall be designed
to provide for a reasonable participation by the Secretary of
Commerce, for the benefit of taxpayers, in equity
appreciation in the case of a warrant or other equity
interest, or a reasonable interest rate premium, in the case
of a debt instrument.
(II) Authority to sell, exercise, or surrender.--For the
primary benefit of taxpayers, the Secretary of Commerce may
sell, exercise, or surrender a warrant or any senior debt
instrument received under this subparagraph. The Secretary of
Commerce shall not exercise voting power with respect to any
shares of common stock acquired under this subparagraph.
[[Page S3341]]
(III) Sufficiency.--If the Secretary of Commerce determines
that a covered entity cannot feasibly issue warrants or other
equity interests as required by this subparagraph, the
Secretary of Commerce may accept a senior debt instrument in
an amount and on such terms as the Secretary of Commerce
deems appropriate.
(C) Definitions.--In this paragraph:
(i) Covered project labor agreement.--The term ``covered
project labor agreement'' means a project labor agreement
that--
(I) binds all contractors and subcontractors on a
construction project through the inclusion of appropriate
specifications in all relevant solicitation provisions and
contract documents;
(II) allows all contractors and subcontractors to compete
for contracts and subcontracts without regard to whether they
are otherwise a party to a collective bargaining agreement;
(III) contains guarantees against strikes, lockouts, and
other similar job disruptions;
(IV) sets forth effective, prompt, and mutually binding
procedures for resolving labor disputes arising during the
covered project labor agreement; and
(V) provides other mechanisms for labor-management
cooperation on matters of mutual interest and concern,
including productivity, quality of work, safety, and health.
(ii) Project labor agreement.--The term ``project labor
agreement'' means a pre-hire collective bargaining agreement
with one or more labor organizations that establishes the
terms and conditions of employment for a specific
construction project and is described in section 8(f) of the
National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 158(f)).
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