[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 212 (Wednesday, December 8, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H7495-H7504]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   UYGHUR FORCED LABOR PREVENTION ACT

  MR. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 1155) ensuring that goods made with forced labor in the Xinjiang 
Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China do not enter 
the United States market, and for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1155

       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 ``Uyghur Forced Labor 
     Prevention Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) In the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China, the 
     Government of the People's Republic of China has, since 2017, 
     arbitrarily detained as many as 1.8 million Uyghurs, Kazakhs, 
     Kyrgyz, and members of other Muslim minority groups in a 
     system of extrajudicial mass internment camps, in addition to 
     arbitrarily detaining many in formal prisons and detention 
     centers, and has subjected detainees to forced labor, 
     torture, political indoctrination, and other severe human 
     rights abuses.
       (2) Forced labor exists within the Xinjiang Uyghur 
     Autonomous Region's system of mass internment camps, and 
     throughout the region, and is confirmed by the testimony of 
     former camp detainees, satellite imagery, official media 
     reports, publicly available documents, official statements, 
     and official leaked documents from the Government of the 
     People's Republic of China as part of a targeted campaign of 
     repression of Muslim ethnic minorities.
       (3) In addition to reports from researchers and civil 
     society groups documenting evidence that many factories and 
     other suppliers in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region are 
     exploiting forced labor, the Department of Commerce's Bureau 
     of Industry and Security on July 22, 2020, added eleven 
     entities to the entity list after determining the entities 
     had been ``implicated in human rights violations and abuses 
     in the implementation of China's campaign of repression, mass 
     arbitrary detention, forced labor and high-technology 
     surveillance against Uyghurs, Kazakhs, and other members of 
     Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous 
     Region''.
       (4) Audits and efforts to vet products and supply chains in 
     the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region are unreliable due to 
     the extent forced labor has been integrated into the regional 
     economy, the mixing of involuntary labor with voluntary 
     labor, the inability of witnesses to speak freely about 
     working conditions given government surveillance and 
     coercion, and the incentive of government officials to 
     conceal government-sponsored forced labor.
       (5) The Department of State's June 2020 Trafficking in 
     Persons Report found that ``Authorities offer subsidies 
     incentivizing Chinese companies to open factories in close 
     proximity to the internment camps, and to receive transferred 
     detainees at satellite manufacturing sites in other 
     provinces. Local governments receive additional funds for 
     each inmate forced to work in these sites at a fraction of 
     minimum wage or without any compensation.''.
       (6) U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued 11 
     ``Withhold Release Orders'' on products suspected to be 
     produced with prison or forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur 
     Autonomous Region. Products subject to the ``Withhold Release 
     Orders'' include all cotton, cotton products, tomatoes, and 
     tomato products as well as certain garments, hair products, 
     apparel, computer parts, and other products.
       (7) In its 2019 Annual Report, the Congressional-Executive 
     Commission on China (CECC) found that products reportedly 
     produced with forced labor by current and former mass 
     internment camp detainees included textiles, electronics, 
     food products, shoes, tea, and handicrafts.
       (8) Reports in 2020 indicated that, in recent years, 
     People's Republic of China Government authorities had 
     organized a labor training and transfer system on a mass 
     scale. Under this system, hundreds of thousands of rural 
     residents of the Tibet Autonomous Region participated in 
     ``military-style'' training, ideological education, and 
     vocational training before being transferred to job postings 
     in the Tibetan Autonomous Region or elsewhere in China. The 
     similarity of the Tibet Autonomous Region system to that in 
     the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region raised fears that 
     coercive practices or rights abuses may be taking place in 
     the Tibet Autonomous Region.

[[Page H7496]]

       (9) Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307) 
     states that it is illegal to import into the United States 
     ``goods, wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced, or 
     manufactured wholly or in part'' by forced labor. Such 
     merchandise is subject to exclusion or seizure and may lead 
     to criminal investigation of the importer.
       (10) The policies of the Government of the People's 
     Republic of China are in contravention of international human 
     rights instruments signed by that government, including--
       (A) the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 
     International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which 
     the People's Republic of China has signed but not yet 
     ratified;
       (B) the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and 
     Cultural Rights, ratified by the People's Republic of China 
     in 2001; and
       (C) the United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and 
     Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children 
     (Palermo Protocol), to which the People's Republic of China 
     has been a state party since February 2010.

     SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

       It is the policy of the United States--
       (1) to prohibit the import of all goods, wares, articles, 
     or merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured, wholly or in 
     part, by forced labor from the People's Republic of China and 
     particularly any such goods, wares, articles, or merchandise 
     produced in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China;
       (2) to encourage the international community to reduce the 
     import of any goods made with forced labor from the People's 
     Republic of China, particularly those goods mined, 
     manufactured, or produced in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous 
     Region;
       (3) to coordinate with Mexico and Canada to effectively 
     implement Article 23.6 of the United States-Mexico-Canada 
     Agreement to prohibit the importation of goods produced in 
     whole or in part by forced or compulsory labor, which 
     includes goods produced in whole or in part by forced or 
     compulsory labor in the People's Republic of China;
       (4) to actively work to prevent, publicly denounce, and end 
     human trafficking as a horrific assault on human dignity and 
     to restore the lives of those affected by human trafficking, 
     a modern form of slavery;
       (5) to regard the prevention of atrocities as in its 
     national interest, including efforts to prevent torture, 
     enforced disappearances, severe deprivation of liberty, 
     including mass internment, arbitrary detention, and 
     widespread and systematic use of forced labor, and 
     persecution targeting any identifiable ethnic or religious 
     group; and
       (6) to address gross violations of human rights in the 
     Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region through bilateral 
     diplomatic channels and multilateral institutions where both 
     the United States and the People's Republic of China are 
     members and with all the authorities available to the United 
     States Government, including visa and financial sanctions, 
     export restrictions, and import controls.

     SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON IMPORTATION OF GOODS MADE IN THE 
                   XINJIANG UYGHUR AUTONOMOUS REGION.

       (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (b), all 
     goods, wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced, or 
     manufactured wholly or in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur 
     Autonomous Region of China, or by persons working with the 
     Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region government for purposes of 
     the ``poverty alleviation'' program or the ``pairing-
     assistance'' program which subsidizes the establishment of 
     manufacturing facilities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous 
     Region, shall be deemed to be goods, wares, articles, and 
     merchandise described in section 307 of the Tariff Act of 
     1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307) and shall not be entitled to entry at 
     any of the ports of the United States.
       (b) Exception.--The prohibition described in subsection (a) 
     shall not apply if the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and 
     Border Protection--
       (1) determines, by clear and convincing evidence, that any 
     specific goods, wares, articles, or merchandise described in 
     subsection (a) were not produced wholly or in part by convict 
     labor, forced labor, or indentured labor under penal 
     sanctions; and
       (2) submits to the appropriate congressional committees and 
     makes available to the public a report that contains such 
     determination.
       (c) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the 
     date that is 120 days after the date of the enactment of this 
     Act.

     SEC. 5. ENFORCEMENT STRATEGY TO ADDRESS FORCED LABOR IN THE 
                   XINJIANG UYGHUR AUTONOMOUS REGION.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 120 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Forced Labor Enforcement Task 
     Force, established under section 741 of the United States-
     Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 4681), 
     shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a 
     report that contains an enforcement strategy to effectively 
     address forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region 
     of China or products made by Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, 
     Tibetans, or members of other persecuted groups through 
     forced labor in any other part of the People's Republic of 
     China. The enforcement strategy shall describe the specific 
     enforcement plans of the United States Government regarding--
       (1) goods, wares, articles, and merchandise described in 
     section 4(a) that are imported into the United States 
     directly from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region or made 
     by Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Tibetans, or members of other 
     persecuted groups in any other part of the People's Republic 
     of China;
       (2) goods, wares, articles, and merchandise described in 
     section 4(a) that are imported into the United States from 
     the People's Republic of China and are mined, produced, or 
     manufactured in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region 
     or by persons working with the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous 
     Region government or the Xinjiang Production and Construction 
     Corps for purposes of the ``poverty alleviation'' program or 
     the ``pairing-assistance'' program; and
       (3) goods, wares, articles, and merchandise described in 
     section 4(a) that are imported into the United States from 
     third countries and are mined, produced, or manufactured in 
     part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region or by persons 
     working with the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region government 
     or the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps for 
     purposes of the ``poverty alleviation'' program or the 
     ``pairing-assistance'' program.
       (b) Matters To Be Included.--The strategy required by 
     subsection (a) shall include the following:
       (1) A description of the actions taken by the United States 
     Government to address forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur 
     Autonomous Region under section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 
     (19 U.S.C. 1307), including a description of all Withhold 
     Release Orders issued, goods detained, and fines issued.
       (2) A list of products made wholly or in part by forced or 
     involuntary labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region or 
     made by Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Tibetans, or members of 
     other persecuted groups in any other part of the People's 
     Republic of China, and a list of businesses that sold 
     products in the United States made wholly or in part by 
     forced or involuntary labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous 
     Region or made by Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Tibetans, or 
     members of other persecuted groups in any other part of the 
     People's Republic of China.
       (3) A list of facilities and entities, including the 
     Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, that source 
     material from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region or by 
     persons working with the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region 
     government or the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps 
     for purposes of the ``poverty alleviation'' program or the 
     ``pairing-assistance'' program, a plan for identifying 
     additional such facilities and entities, and facility- and 
     entity-specific enforcement plans, including issuing specific 
     Withhold Release Orders to support enforcement of section 4, 
     with regard to each listed facility or entity.
       (4) A list of high-priority sectors for enforcement, which 
     shall include cotton, tomatoes, polysilicon, and a sector-
     specific enforcement plan for each high-priority sector.
       (5) A description of the additional resources necessary for 
     U.S. Customs and Border Protection to effectively implement 
     the enforcement strategy.
       (6) A plan to coordinate and collaborate with appropriate 
     nongovernmental organizations and private sector entities to 
     discuss the enforcement strategy for products made in the 
     Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.
       (c) Form.--The report required by subsection (a) shall be 
     submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified 
     annex, if necessary.
       (d) Updates.--The Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force shall 
     provide briefings to the appropriate congressional committees 
     on a quarterly basis and, as applicable, on any updates to 
     the strategy required by subsection (a) or any additional 
     actions taken to address forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur 
     Autonomous Region, including actions described in this Act.
       (e) Sunset.--This section shall cease to have effect on the 
     earlier of--
       (1) the date that is 8 years after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act; or
       (2) the date on which the President submits to the 
     appropriate congressional committees a determination that the 
     Government of the People's Republic of China has ended mass 
     internment, forced labor, and any other gross violations of 
     human rights experienced by Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and 
     members of other Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang 
     Uyghur Autonomous Region.

     SEC. 6. DETERMINATION RELATING TO CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY OR 
                   GENOCIDE IN THE XINJIANG UYGHUR AUTONOMOUS 
                   REGION.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall--
       (1) determine if the practice of forced labor or other 
     crimes against Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and members of other 
     Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous 
     Region of China can be considered systematic and widespread 
     and therefore constitutes crimes against humanity or 
     constitutes genocide as defined in subsection (a) of section 
     1091 of title 18, United States Code; and
       (2) submit to the appropriate congressional committees and 
     make available to the public a report that contains such 
     determination.
       (b) Form.--The report required by subsection (a)--

[[Page H7497]]

       (1) shall be submitted in unclassified form but may include 
     a classified annex, if necessary; and
       (2) may be included in the report required by section 7.

     SEC. 7. DIPLOMATIC STRATEGY TO ADDRESS FORCED LABOR IN THE 
                   XINJIANG UYGHUR AUTONOMOUS REGION.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in 
     coordination with the heads of other appropriate Federal 
     departments and agencies, shall submit to the appropriate 
     congressional committees a report that contains a United 
     States strategy to promote initiatives to enhance 
     international awareness of and to address forced labor in the 
     Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China.
       (b) Matters To Be Included.--The strategy required by 
     subsection (a) shall include--
       (1) a plan to enhance bilateral and multilateral 
     coordination, including sustained engagement with the 
     governments of United States partners and allies, to end 
     forced labor of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and members of 
     other Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uyghur 
     Autonomous Region;
       (2) public affairs, public diplomacy, and counter-messaging 
     efforts to promote awareness of the human rights situation, 
     including forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous 
     Region; and
       (3) opportunities to coordinate and collaborate with 
     appropriate nongovernmental organizations and private sector 
     entities to raise awareness about forced labor made products 
     from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and to provide 
     assistance to Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and members of other 
     Muslim minority groups, including those formerly detained in 
     mass internment camps in the region.
       (c) Additional Matters To Be Included.--The report required 
     by subsection (a) shall also include--
       (1) to the extent practicable, a list of--
       (A) entities in the People's Republic of China or 
     affiliates of such entities that directly or indirectly use 
     forced or involuntary labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous 
     Region; and
       (B) Foreign persons that acted as agents of the entities or 
     affiliates of entities described in subparagraph (A) to 
     import goods into the United States; and
       (2) a description of actions taken by the United States 
     Government to address forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur 
     Autonomous Region under existing authorities, including--
       (A) the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (Public 
     Law 106-386; 22 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.);
       (B) the Elie Wiesel Genocide and Atrocities Prevention Act 
     of 2018 (Public Law 115-441; 22 U.S.C. 2656 note); and
       (C) the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act 
     (22 U.S.C. 2656 note).
       (d) Form.--The report required by subsection (a) shall be 
     submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified 
     annex, if necessary.
       (e) Updates.--The Secretary of State shall include any 
     updates to the strategy required by subsection (a) in the 
     annual Trafficking in Persons report required by section 
     110(b) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 
     U.S.C. 7107(b)).
       (f) Sunset.--This section shall cease to have effect the 
     earlier of--
       (1) the date that is 8 years after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act; or
       (2) the date on which the President submits to the 
     appropriate congressional committees a determination that the 
     Government of the People's Republic of China has ended mass 
     internment, forced labor, and any other gross violations of 
     human rights experienced by Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and 
     members of other Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang 
     Uyghur Autonomous Region.

     SEC. 8. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS RELATING TO FORCED LABOR IN 
                   THE XINJIANG UYGHUR AUTONOMOUS REGION.

       (a) Report Required.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, and not less frequently than 
     annually thereafter, the President shall submit to the 
     appropriate congressional committees a report that identifies 
     each foreign person, including any official of the Government 
     of the People's Republic of China, that the President 
     determines--
       (A) knowingly engages in, is responsible for, or 
     facilitates the forced labor of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and 
     members of other Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang 
     Uyghur Autonomous Region of China; and
       (B) knowingly engages in, contributes to, assists, or 
     provides financial, material or technological support for 
     efforts to contravene United States law regarding the 
     importation of forced labor goods from the Xinjiang Uyghur 
     Autonomous Region.
       (2) Form.--The report required under paragraph (1) shall be 
     submitted in unclassified form, but may contain a classified 
     annex.
       (b) Imposition of Sanctions.--The President shall impose 
     the sanctions described in subsection (c) with respect to 
     each foreign person identified in the report required under 
     subsection (a)(1).
       (c) Sanctions Described.--The sanctions described in this 
     subsection are the following:
       (1) Asset blocking.--The President shall exercise all of 
     the powers granted to the President under the International 
     Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) to the 
     extent necessary to block and prohibit all transactions in 
     property and interests in property of a foreign person 
     identified in the report required under subsection (a)(1) if 
     such property and interests in property--
       (A) are in the United States;
       (B) come within the United States; or
       (C) come within the possession or control of a United 
     States person.
       (2) Ineligibility for visas, admission, or parole.--
       (A) Visas, admission, or parole.--An alien described in 
     subsection (a)(1) is--
       (i) inadmissible to the United States;
       (ii) ineligible to receive a visa or other documentation to 
     enter the United States; and
       (iii) otherwise ineligible to be admitted or paroled into 
     the United States or to receive any other benefit under the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.).
       (B) Current visas revoked.--
       (i) In general.--An alien described in subsection (a)(1) is 
     subject to revocation of any visa or other entry 
     documentation regardless of when the visa or other entry 
     documentation is or was issued.
       (ii) Immediate effect.--A revocation under clause (i) 
     shall--

       (I) take effect immediately; and
       (II) automatically cancel any other valid visa or entry 
     documentation that is in the alien's possession.

       (d) Implementation; Penalties.--
       (1) Implementation.--The President may exercise all 
     authorities provided under sections 203 and 205 of the 
     International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702 
     and 1704) to carry out this section.
       (2) Penalties.--The penalties provided for in subsections 
     (b) and (c) of section 206 of the International Emergency 
     Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) shall apply to a foreign 
     person that violates, attempts to violate, conspires to 
     violate, or causes a violation of paragraph (1) to the same 
     extent that such penalties apply to a person that commits an 
     unlawful act described in subsection (a) of such section 206.
       (e) Waiver.--The President may waive the application of 
     sanctions under this section with respect to a foreign person 
     identified in the report required under subsection (a)(1) if 
     the President determines and certifies to the appropriate 
     congressional committees that such a waiver is in the 
     national interest of the United States.
       (f) Exceptions.--
       (1) Exception for intelligence activities.--Sanctions under 
     this section shall not apply to any activity subject to the 
     reporting requirements under title V of the National Security 
     Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3091 et seq.) or any authorized 
     intelligence activities of the United States.
       (2) Exception to comply with international obligations and 
     for law enforcement activities.--Sanctions under subsection 
     (c)(2) shall not apply with respect to an alien if admitting 
     or paroling the alien into the United States is necessary--
       (A) to permit the United States to comply with the 
     Agreement regarding the Headquarters of the United Nations, 
     signed at Lake Success June 26, 1947, and entered into force 
     November 21, 1947, between the United Nations and the United 
     States, or other applicable international obligations; or
       (B) to carry out or assist law enforcement activity in the 
     United States.
       (g) Termination of Sanctions.--The President may terminate 
     the application of sanctions under this section with respect 
     to a foreign person if the President determines and reports 
     to the appropriate congressional committees not less than 15 
     days before the termination takes effect that--
       (1) information exists that the person did not engage in 
     the activity for which sanctions were imposed;
       (2) the person has been prosecuted appropriately for the 
     activity for which sanctions were imposed;
       (3) the person has credibly demonstrated a significant 
     change in behavior, has paid an appropriate consequence for 
     the activity for which sanctions were imposed, and has 
     credibly committed to not engage in an activity described in 
     subsection (a)(1) in the future; or
       (4) the termination of the sanctions is in the national 
     security interests of the United States.
       (h) Sunset.--This section, and any sanctions imposed under 
     this section, shall terminate on the date that is 5 years 
     after the date of the enactment of this Act.
       (i) Definitions of Admission; Admitted; Alien.--In this 
     section, the terms ``admission'', ``admitted'', and ``alien'' 
     have the meanings given those terms in section 101 of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101).

     SEC. 9. DISCLOSURES TO THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION 
                   OF CERTAIN ACTIVITIES RELATED TO THE XINJIANG 
                   UYGHUR AUTONOMOUS REGION.

       (a) Policy Statement.--It is the policy of the United 
     States to protect American investors, through stronger 
     disclosure requirements, alerting them to the presence of 
     Chinese and other companies complicit in gross violations of 
     human rights in United States capital markets, including 
     American and foreign companies listed on United States 
     exchanges that enable the mass internment and population 
     surveillance of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and other Muslim 
     minorities and source products made with forced labor in the 
     Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous

[[Page H7498]]

     Region of China. Such involvements represent clear, material 
     risks to the share values and corporate reputations of 
     certain of these companies and hence to prospective American 
     investors, particularly given that the United States 
     Government has employed sanctions and export restrictions to 
     target individuals and entities contributing to human rights 
     abuses in the People's Republic of China.
       (b) Disclosure of Certain Activities Relating to the 
     Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.--
       (1) In general.--Section 13 of the Securities Exchange Act 
     of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78m) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new subsection:
       ``(s) Disclosure of Certain Activities Relating to the 
     Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.--
       ``(1) In general.--Each issuer required to file an annual 
     or quarterly report under subsection (a) shall disclose in 
     that report the information required by paragraph (2) if, 
     during the period covered by the report, the issuer or any 
     affiliate of the issuer--
       ``(A) knowingly engaged in an activity with an entity or 
     the affiliate of an entity engaged in creating or providing 
     technology or other assistance to create mass population 
     surveillance systems in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region 
     of China, including any entity included on the Department of 
     Commerce's `Entity List' in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous 
     Region;
       ``(B) knowingly engaged in an activity with an entity or an 
     affiliate of an entity building and running detention 
     facilities for Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and other members of 
     Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous 
     Region;
       ``(C) knowingly engaged in an activity with an entity or an 
     affiliate of an entity described in section 7(c)(1) of the 
     Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, including--
       ``(i) any entity engaged in the `pairing-assistance' 
     program which subsidizes the establishment of manufacturing 
     facilities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region; or
       ``(ii) any entity for which the Department of Homeland 
     Security has issued a `Withhold Release Order' under section 
     307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307); or
       ``(D) knowingly conducted any transaction or had dealings 
     with--
       ``(i) any person the property and interests in property of 
     which were sanctioned by the Secretary of State for the 
     detention or abuse of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, or other 
     members of Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uyghur 
     Autonomous Region;
       ``(ii) any person the property and interests in property of 
     which are sanctioned pursuant to the Global Magnitsky Human 
     Rights Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 2656 note); or
       ``(iii) any person or entity responsible for, or complicit 
     in, committing atrocities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous 
     Region.
       ``(2) Information required.--
       ``(A) In general.--If an issuer described under paragraph 
     (1) or an affiliate of the issuer has engaged in any activity 
     described in paragraph (1), the information required by this 
     paragraph is a detailed description of each such activity, 
     including--
       ``(i) the nature and extent of the activity;
       ``(ii) the gross revenues and net profits, if any, 
     attributable to the activity; and
       ``(iii) whether the issuer or the affiliate of the issuer 
     (as the case may be) intends to continue the activity.
       ``(B) Exception.--The requirement to disclose information 
     under this paragraph shall not include information on 
     activities of the issuer or any affiliate of the issuer 
     activities relating to--
       ``(i) the import of manufactured goods, including 
     electronics, food products, textiles, shoes, and teas, that 
     originated in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region; or
       ``(ii) manufactured goods containing materials that 
     originated or are sourced in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous 
     Region.
       ``(3) Notice of disclosures.--If an issuer reports under 
     paragraph (1) that the issuer or an affiliate of the issuer 
     has knowingly engaged in any activity described in that 
     paragraph, the issuer shall separately file with the 
     Commission, concurrently with the annual or quarterly report 
     under subsection (a), a notice that the disclosure of that 
     activity has been included in that annual or quarterly report 
     that identifies the issuer and contains the information 
     required by paragraph (2).
       ``(4) Public disclosure of information.--Upon receiving a 
     notice under paragraph (3) that an annual or quarterly report 
     includes a disclosure of an activity described in paragraph 
     (1), the Commission shall promptly--
       ``(A) transmit the report to--
       ``(i) the President;
       ``(ii) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee 
     on Financial Services of the House of Representatives; and
       ``(iii) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the 
     Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the 
     Senate; and
       ``(B) make the information provided in the disclosure and 
     the notice available to the public by posting the information 
     on the Internet website of the Commission.
       ``(5) Investigations.--Upon receiving a report under 
     paragraph (4) that includes a disclosure of an activity 
     described in paragraph (1), the President shall--
       ``(A) make a determination with respect to whether any 
     investigation is needed into the possible imposition of 
     sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights 
     Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 2656 note) or section 8 of the 
     Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act or whether criminal 
     investigations are warranted under statutes intended to hold 
     accountable individuals or entities involved in the 
     importation of goods produced by forced labor, including 
     under section 545, 1589, or 1761 of title 18, United States 
     Code; and
       ``(B) not later than 180 days after initiating any such 
     investigation, make a determination with respect to whether a 
     sanction should be imposed or criminal investigations 
     initiated with respect to the issuer or the affiliate of the 
     issuer (as the case may be).
       ``(6) Atrocities defined.--In this subsection, the term 
     `atrocities' has the meaning given the term in section 6(2) 
     of the Elie Wiesel Genocide and Atrocities Prevention Act of 
     2018 (Public Law 115-441; 22 U.S.C. 2656 note).''.
       (c) Sunset.--Section 13(s) of the Securities Exchange Act 
     of 1934, as added by subsection (b), is repealed on the 
     earlier of--
       (1) the date that is 8 years after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act; or
       (2) the date on which the President submits to the 
     appropriate congressional committees a determination that the 
     Government of the People's Republic of China has ended mass 
     internment, forced labor, and any other gross violations of 
     human rights experienced by Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and 
     members of other Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang 
     Uyghur Autonomous Region.
       (d) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (b) 
     shall take effect with respect to reports required to be 
     filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission after the 
     date that is 180 days after the date of the enactment of this 
     Act.

     SEC. 10. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
     ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
       (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on 
     Financial Services, and the Committee on Ways and Means of 
     the House of Representatives; and
       (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on 
     Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and the Committee on 
     Finance of the Senate.
       (2) Atrocities.--The term ``atrocities'' has the meaning 
     given the term in section 6(2) of the Elie Wiesel Genocide 
     and Atrocities Prevention Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-441; 22 
     U.S.C. 2656 note).
       (3) Crimes against humanity.--The term ``crimes against 
     humanity'' includes, when committed as part of a widespread 
     or systematic attack directed against any civilian 
     population, with knowledge of the attack--
       (A) murder;
       (B) deportation or forcible transfer of population;
       (C) torture;
       (D) extermination;
       (E) enslavement;
       (F) rape, sexual slavery, or any other form of sexual 
     violence of comparable severity;
       (G) persecution against any identifiable group or 
     collectivity on political, racial, national, ethnic, 
     cultural, religious, gender, or other grounds that are 
     universally recognized as impermissible under international 
     law; and
       (H) enforced disappearance of persons.
       (4) Forced labor.--The term ``forced labor'' has the 
     meaning given the term in section 307 of the Tariff Act of 
     1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307).
       (5) Foreign person.--The term ``foreign person'' means a 
     person that is not a United States person.
       (6) Person.--The term ``person'' means an individual or 
     entity.
       (7) Mass population surveillance system.--The term ``mass 
     population surveillance system'' means installation and 
     integration of facial recognition cameras, biometric data 
     collection, cell phone surveillance, and artificial 
     intelligence technology with the ``Sharp Eyes'' and 
     ``Integrated Joint Operations Platform'' or other 
     technologies that are used by Chinese security forces for 
     surveillance and big-data predictive policing.
       (8) United states person.--The term ``United States 
     person'' means--
       (A) a United States citizen or an alien lawfully admitted 
     for permanent residence to the United States; or
       (B) an entity organized under the laws of the United States 
     or any jurisdiction within the United States, including a 
     foreign branch of such an entity.

     SEC. 11. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS..

       The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of 
     complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall 
     be determined by reference to the latest statement titled 
     ``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation'' for this Act, 
     submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the 
     Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such 
     statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Meeks) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. McCaul) each will 
control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York.


                             General Leave

  Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members

[[Page H7499]]

have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on H.R. 1155.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1155, the Uyghur Forced 
Labor Prevention Act introduced by my good friend, colleague, and 
chairman of the Rules Committee, Mr. McGovern.
  Let me also thank Speaker Pelosi for bringing this crucial measure to 
the floor, and her unwavering dedication to human rights issues in 
China over the course of her public life.
  This necessary and bold measure reinforces this body's commitment to 
our values by responding to the PRC's human rights violations and 
imposing concrete costs on the PRC for the use of Uyghur forced labor.
  Since 2017, the People's Republic of China has systematically carried 
out mass detention, torture, political indoctrination, restrictions on 
religious attractions, and inhumane atrocities against Uyghurs and 
members of other ethnic and religious minority groups in Xinjiang.
  We have seen the People's Republic of China expand its extensive 
program of repression and transform it into a system of state-sponsored 
forced labor. Under the guise of vocational training or poverty 
alleviation, authorities in Xinjiang have forced thousands of adults 
and children to work against their will and under threat of punishment 
to produce goods and raw materials that are then woven into 
international supply chains and into our homes.
  According to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, it has been 
conservatively estimated that more than 80,000 Uyghurs were transferred 
out of Xinjiang to work in factories across China between the years of 
2017 and 2019, with some of them being sent directly from detention 
centers. Some analysts estimate that over 100,000 ex-detainees in 
Xinjiang are working in conditions of forced labor today.
  I have seen firsthand the benefits of the American companies engaging 
in China. Most American companies pay above-market wages and have 
better corporate social responsibility practices than their domestic 
counterparts. It would be inconsistent with core and crucial American 
values for this body not to take a stand against forced labor, and to 
stand up for the persecuted Uyghurs.
  Many brave companies have already spoken out and made ethical choices 
detrimental to their bottom line, and this bill ensures that corporate 
actors that have lived their values are not at a competitive 
disadvantage in the American marketplace.
  This bill, which has passed the House before, prohibits the import of 
goods and merchandise from Xinjiang unless the importer can prove the 
products did not come from forced labor, imposes sanctions on officials 
facilitating the use of forced labor against Chinese ethnic minorities, 
adds important financial disclosures for public companies that do 
business in the region, and calls for a diplomatic strategy to address 
forced labor in Xinjiang.
  This is a straightforward bill. It signals that forced labor has no 
place on this planet. It signals that products made using forced labor 
in Xinjiang have no place in the American marketplace. In 2021, for any 
country to utilize forced labor systematically and to oppress and 
exploit a population is simply unconscionable.
  With the passage of this bipartisan measure, the House would hold 
accountable those responsible for perpetrating these heinous crimes 
that have irrevocably threatened the lives of over 1.8 million Uyghurs 
and Muslim minorities in Xinjiang and ensure Americans and American 
companies are not complicit in the Chinese Communist Party's human 
rights atrocities.
  This legislation is critical to showing that we are putting human 
rights at the center of our foreign policy and economic policy. Mr. 
Speaker, I support and urge my colleagues to do the same.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McCAUL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to start by thanking Chairman Meeks and Chairman 
McGovern for bringing this important human rights legislation to this 
floor. It is high time.
  I want to start this debate with the simple truth that we cannot 
afford to forget. Truly, free trade cannot involve slave labor.
  Today, the Chinese Communist Party is using the forced labor of the 
Uyghurs and other minorities to help bankroll its genocide against 
these very same groups.

                              {time}  1330

  The repression taking place right now in Xinjiang is breathtaking in 
its scope and its brutality. It involves the detention of more than 1 
million people in concentration camps. It also involves surveillance 
and intensive brainwashing on a massive scale. It involves breaking up 
families and taking children from their parents. And it involves forced 
sterilization and forced abortions.
  This should be a terrifying warning not only to China's neighbors and 
to the American people but also to the world. The Chinese Communist 
Party is fundamentally focused on expanding its power and its 
authoritarian style of government. It views things that it does not 
control, like religion, cultural identity, and the yearning of all 
people for freedom, as threats that must be destroyed. Because we have 
drawn the CCP into many of our most critical supply chains, it has the 
ability to hold our national security hostage while it uses U.S. 
consumers to subsidize its atrocities.
  As many as one in five cotton garments globally are potentially 
tainted with Uyghur slave labor. Last year alone, U.S. Customs and 
Border Protection seized a 13-ton shipment of human hair that 
originated in Xinjiang's forced labor system. It is brazen, and it is 
sickening.
  We must refuse to be complicit in the CCP's genocide against the 
Uyghurs, and for that reason, I support the measure before us today.
  I wish we could have taken this up earlier. After sending a letter to 
the Speaker, we are finally at the day where we are now. Last Congress, 
this legislation went straight to the floor. Two weeks ago, 10 members 
of the Foreign Affairs Committee joined me in a letter urging the 
Speaker to move this bill. I am grateful that our message was received. 
But we could send this legislation to the President's desk today by 
taking up the Senate version. Instead, we are setting this bill up for 
further legislative gridlock by passing a conflicting version, although 
I do applaud Chairman McGovern's efforts in this issue.
  Mr. Speaker, going forward, I hope the majority in both Chambers will 
move this to final passage regardless of pressure from the 
administration to not advance the American values we all share.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from the 
great State of Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern), the sponsor of this bill.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Chairman Meeks for 
yielding me the time and for his incredible leadership on this issue. I 
also want to thank Ranking Minority Member McCaul for his leadership.
  Mr. Speaker, many products used every day by people all over our 
country, including clothing, food, and shoes, are made using forced 
labor, the forced labor of Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities held by 
the Chinese Government across a network of internment camps.
  It has been illegal to import forced labor products into the United 
States for more than 90 years, but it is exceedingly difficult to spot 
them since Chinese producers often mix together products that are the 
result of both involuntary and voluntary labor. Moreover, the lack of 
Chinese Government transparency and the police state atmosphere in 
Xinjiang make auditing of product sourcing unreliable if not 
impossible, according to the administration's ``Xinjiang Supply Chain 
Business Advisory.''
  Mr. Speaker, the imperative to act is clear. This is not a partisan 
issue. It is a human rights issue. It is a moral issue.
  There is already strong, diverse, bipartisan, and bicameral support 
for

[[Page H7500]]

this legislation on both sides of the Capitol. That includes my 
colleagues on the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, 
Representative Chris Smith and Senator Marco Rubio, the author of the 
Senate bill.
  I, too, want to especially thank Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her 
longtime advocacy for human rights in China and for her leadership in 
getting this bill to the House floor today. I want to thank Chairman 
Richard Neal, Chairman   Gregory Meeks, and Chairwoman Maxine Waters 
for their support in their committees.
  The House of Representatives passed this bill in September 2020 by a 
vote of 406-3, but, sadly, the Senate did nothing. It never took it up. 
The Senate now passed a version of this bill in July. It is time for us 
to get this done.
  Two years ago, the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, of 
which I serve as the co-chair, held a hearing and an expert roundtable 
and issued a groundbreaking staff report. This legislation would not be 
possible without the hardworking staff of that Commission.
  Our findings of systematic and widespread forced labor in Xinjiang 
are based on testimony from camp detainees, satellite imagery of 
factories being built at internment camps, and public and leaked 
Chinese Government documents.
  Forced labor was one of the justifications cited by the State 
Department, first by Secretary Pompeo and then reiterated by Secretary 
Blinken, in determining that the Chinese Government was committing 
genocide against Uyghurs and members of other Muslim ethnic minority 
groups.
  Forced labor was listed by the United States Holocaust Memorial 
Museum in its November 2021 report finding that the Chinese Government 
had committed crimes against humanity in Xinjiang.
  The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act prohibits imports from 
Xinjiang to the U.S. by creating a rebuttable presumption that all 
goods produced in the region are made with forced labor unless U.S. 
Customs and Border Protection certifies by clear and convincing 
evidence that goods were not produced with forced labor.
  Mr. Speaker, in 2 months, the Chinese Government will host the Winter 
Olympics in the middle of a genocide. This is unconscionable. We asked 
the International Olympic Committee to postpone and move the games. 
They refused. Instead, the IOC made ANTA, a Chinese company implicated 
in slave labor, its official sportswear uniform supplier.

  I am pleased that the Biden administration has decided not to send 
American diplomats to the Olympics, but Congress needs to do its part 
by passing this bill before the Olympics start. We must take a clear 
moral position to stand with those who are suffering from forced labor 
and not with the Chinese Government, the IOC, and the big corporations 
who profit off the exploitation of slave labor. Shame on them. No more 
business as usual.
  We must pass and put into law the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. 
I urge all of my colleagues to support this. If the United States of 
America stands for anything, we need to stand out loud and four-square 
for human rights.
  Mr. McCAUL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from New 
Jersey (Mr. Smith), the ranking member of the Foreign Affairs 
Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, and Global Human Rights. He also 
is the co-chair of the China Commission and has been a champion for 
human rights in China for three decades.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I thank my good friend for 
yielding. I thank Mr. McCaul for his extraordinary leadership on China, 
including his Commission that has made many, many recommendations. I 
want to thank Chairman Meeks for his leadership as well and, of course, 
Chairman McGovern, with whom I have worked on this bill, for his 
leadership.
  Mr. Speaker, I chaired a Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission hearing 
in May titled ``China, Genocide and the Olympics,'' which helped 
further underscore why H.R. 1155, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention 
Act, which I have cosponsored with  Jim McGovern, is so important and 
so necessary.
  At that hearing, we heard testimony from Rayhan Asat, whose brother, 
Ekpar, a Muslim Uyghur, at last report is still incarcerated in a 
concentration camp in Xinjiang. Ekpar is a tech entrepreneur, media 
founder, and philanthropist who won recognition both inside of China 
and outside. Indeed, our State Department thought so highly of him that 
he was part of the International Visitors Leadership Program.
  But upon his return, because he was a Muslim Uyghur, the Chinese 
authorities arrested him and disappeared him into a concentration camp 
where he has remained for 5\1/2\ years.
  What happens, Mr. Speaker, to those swallowed up in these horrific 
concentration camps?
  That is something we heard about in another Lantos Commission hearing 
this past July where Gulzira, a survivor, told us what goes on each and 
every day. In addition to her horrific, firsthand description of 
unspeakable physical abuse, organized forced prostitution, rape, and 
every gross violation of human rights imaginable, she also gave a 
firsthand account of a forced labor factory in which she made gloves 
for export for 1\1/2\ years. Gulzira is one of the lucky ones because 
she was released when Radio Free Asia broadcast her plight to the 
world.
  Mr. Speaker, there are millions of stories like hers waiting to be 
told, truly nightmarish accounts of President Xi Jinping's genocide. 
And make no mistake about it, this is Xi Jinping's genocide. He is 
personally responsible for having ordered it.
  The rape and sexual abuse of women being held in so-called internment 
camps, forced abortion, and involuntary sterilization to prevent the 
birth of Uyghur children are in direct violation of Article II(d) of 
the U.N. Genocide Convention, which states in part that genocide 
includes imposing measures intended to prevent births within a group.
  Forced labor on a massive scale that allows Chinese companies to 
profit--and profit big time--from modern-day slavery is also absolutely 
pervasive in Xinjiang. Documents obtained by The New York Times and the 
International Consortium of Investigative Journalists exposed just how 
cruel these plans are, originating, again, with Xi Jinping himself who 
early next year will be hosting the Olympic Games, which is outrageous.
  The leaked documents show how Xi directed the crackdowns, saying that 
the Communist Party must put the ``organs of dictatorship'' to work and 
show ``absolutely no mercy'' in dealing with Uyghurs and other 
predominantly Muslim minorities.
  In one speech, President Xi said: ``The weapons of the people's 
democratic dictatorship must be wielded without any hesitation or 
wavering.''
  Mr. Speaker, I am deeply concerned by a report from Josh Rogin in The 
Washington Post just last week stating how the Biden administration and 
Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman sought to undermine the Uyghur 
Forced Labor Prevention Act, which passed the Senate last July and the 
House last Congress 406-3. According to Josh Rogin: ``Biden 
administration officials have been quietly telling lawmakers to slow 
down. . . . Sherman made it clear that the administration prefers a 
more targeted and deliberative approach to determining which goods are 
the products of forced labor.''
  Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record Josh Rogin's column from The 
Washington Post, ``Opinion: Congress needs to act on Xi Jinping's 
genocide now.''

                [From the Global Opinions, Dec. 2, 2021]

      Opinion: Congress Needs To Act on XI Jinping's Genocide Now

                       (By Josh Rogin, Columnist)

       This week, a private U.K.-based investigative panel 
     released what it says are classified Chinese government 
     documents that appear to show how Chinese President Xi 
     Jinping personally laid the groundwork for systematic forced 
     assimilation of ethnic minorities in Xinjiang. It's the most 
     damning proof to date of the ongoing Uyghur genocide. So why 
     can't Congress pass a simple bill to stop the products 
     connected to that genocide from ending up in U.S. homes and 
     businesses?
       Yet the documents, which likely come from the same tranche 
     of leaked Chinese Communist Party communications revealed by 
     the New York Times over two years ago, add to the already 
     abundant evidence that the Chinese government's mass 
     internment, mass forced labor, forced population control, 
     family destruction and cultural erasure of the Uyghurs fit 
     the United Nation's definition of genocide as ``a crime 
     committed with the intent to destroy a national, ethnic, 
     racial or religious group, in whole or in part.''

[[Page H7501]]

       Yet, the Democrat-led Congress can't seem to get the Uyghur 
     Forced Labor Prevention Act, which passed the Senate 
     unanimously in July, to President Biden's desk. Pointing to 
     procedural issues and promises of future action, Democratic 
     leadership in both the House and Senate can't seem to agree 
     on a strategy to pass the bill through both chambers, despite 
     publicly claiming they support it.
       On Wednesday, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), the co-sponsor of 
     the, Senate's version of the bill, pushed to add it as an 
     amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, a must-
     pass piece of legislation.
       Senate Democrats objected under a procedural rule that bars 
     amendments that affect appropriations. Rubio called that a 
     dodge. ``This is about the fact that they don't want this 
     bill to pass over at the House,'' Rubio said on the Senate 
     floor, referring directly to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
       Rubio also said U.S. corporations that profit from forced 
     labor in China, such as Apple and Nike, have been lobbying 
     against the bill, which is true. On Thursday, Pelosi denied 
     Rubia's accusations of stalling and promised her chamber 
     would pass the House's version of the legislation, introduced 
     by Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), which the House passed last 
     year 406 to 3. In an interview, McGovern told me his bill 
     will be voted on and likely passed again in the House next 
     week. But if and when that happens, that won't be the end. 
     The two chambers will still have passed two different 
     versions of the bill, with no firm plan for how to reconcile 
     them.
       Meanwhile, Biden administration officials have been quietly 
     telling lawmakers to slow down. Administration sources 
     confirmed that in an October call between Deputy Secretary of 
     State Wendy R. Sherman and Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), the 
     other co-sponsor, Sherman made it clear that the 
     administration prefers a more targeted and deliberative 
     approach to determining which goods are the products of 
     forced labor. She also told Merkley that getting allied buy-
     in was critical and more effective than unilateral action.
       ``To be clear, the Department of State is not opposing this 
     amendment,'' a State Department spokesman told me. ``We share 
     the Congress' concerns about forced labor in Xinjiang.'' In 
     other words, while the administration supports the 
     legislation in public, they are asking Democrats to 
     essentially water it down in private. Sherman's specific 
     criticism relates to a part of the bill that would require a 
     presumption that all products coming from Xinjiang are 
     tainted by forced labor unless the importer can prove 
     otherwise. This happens to be the exact provision 
     corporations are also objecting to. Maybe it's a coincidence.
       ``It isn't partisan or in any way controversial for the 
     U.S. to be unequivocally, resoundingly opposed to genocide 
     and slave labor,'' Merkley told me. ``The Senate passed this 
     legislation in July, and it's time to get it over the finish 
     line.''
       There is a legitimate concern that supply chains for 
     everything from solar panels to sneakers could be affected by 
     the bill. But our dependency on products from an area where 
     genocide is occurring is the root of the problem. Passing the 
     bill now would send industry a clear signal to speed up what 
     they are already doing, which is to stop doing business in 
     areas riddled with forced labor. Also, forced labor products 
     from China put U.S. manufacturers at a severe disadvantage. 
     ``We must shine a light on the inhumane practice of forced 
     labor, hold the perpetrators accountable and stop this 
     exploitation,'' Pelosi said while passing the bill last year. 
     ``And we must send a clear message to Beijing: These abuses 
     must end now.''
       Another year has gone and the bill still lingers. Pelosi 
     has been a champion for human rights in China for decades, 
     but the fight is not over and the ball is in her court. 
     Overall, it's up to both parties and both chambers to act to 
     stop a genocide now. There's no good reason to delay.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. We have no access, Mr. Speaker, to the 
concentration camps in Xinjiang. We have no idea the supply chains. It 
is closed. It is a dictatorship. There are no onsite inspections. 
Again, we are talking genocide against these Muslims who are being 
wiped off the face of the Earth.
  The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act prohibits imports from 
Xinjiang to the United States by creating a rebuttable presumption. 
That is the core of this bill, that all goods produced in the region 
are made with forced labor unless U.S. Customs and Border Protection 
certifies by clear and convincing evidence that goods were not produced 
with forced labor. So the rebuttable presumption is the key to this 
legislation.
  It is very workable. As my good friend and colleague noted, cotton, 
solar panels, and so many other things are produced there. We need to 
know. We need to stop them from coming here.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
  Mr. McCAUL. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman an additional 1 
minute.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Again, if these companies can prove that it 
is not made by forced labor, not made as part of this genocide, then it 
would be welcomed here. But we know that is unlikely to happen.
  My hope is that we will unite--Republican and Democrat, Democrat and 
Republican--around this bill and get it to the President as soon as 
humanly possible.
  Delay is denial. People are being slaughtered each and every day in 
Xinjiang, and we can do something, maybe not a whole lot, but something 
to mitigate and stop this.
  Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from the 
great State of New York (Mr. Suozzi), who is on the Ways and Means 
Committee.
  Mr. SUOZZI. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman and everyone who has 
worked so hard on this, including Chairman McGovern.
  Mr. Speaker, I stand before you as chair of the Congressional Uyghur 
Caucus and as a member of the Congressional-Executive Commission on 
China to support passage of the bipartisan Uyghur Forced Labor 
Prevention Act.
  We need to wake up from our torpor. It has been reported for years, 
but I don't think most Americans realize exactly what is going on in 
China.
  It was almost 50 years ago that Nixon went to China, and we have 
always believed that the more the Chinese Government and the people 
were exposed to the United States and the West, our way of life, our 
democracy, and our economic system, the more they would become like us, 
the more they would adopt concepts of freedom of expression, free 
markets, and minority rights.
  Well, that simply hasn't happened. Everyone in this body has seen 
reliable reports and clear documentation of crimes against humanity: 
forced labor, forced sterilization, mass surveillance, government-run 
detention camps, mass detention, sexual violence, and torture against 
the Uyghur people.

                              {time}  1345

  The Chinese Communist Party is even forcing people to eat pork during 
Ramadan, even though it violates people's religion.
  It is hard to imagine that in today's world, that forced labor camps 
are happening, and we know about it. And today, we are standing up to 
do something about it.
  The Chinese Communist Party must be held accountable. We have rules 
in place now that say you can't use forced labor. But this bill is a 
major step forward in mandating that everything that comes out of 
Xinjiang in China will be presumed to be using forced labor and, 
therefore, ineligible to be sold into the U.S. supply chain. This is 
going to have a tremendous impact.
  An overwhelming amount of cotton in the world comes from China, for 
example. Mr. Speaker, 84 percent of that cotton that comes from China 
comes from the Xinjiang region. Some people are going to say, Oh, my 
gosh, if we don't do business with Xinjiang, then the cost of products 
are going to go up. Well, that is too damn bad. This should shock 
everyone's conscience.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
  Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman an additional 30 
seconds.
  Mr. SUOZZI. Mr. Speaker, we have to do everything we can to stand up 
for our values. The world is watching us, and it starts with the Uyghur 
Forced Labor Prevention Act becoming law. Let's do this, and let's do 
it together.
  We recognize here in our country that we went through a period of 
slavery. That is why it is so offensive to us now to see slavery 
actually happening in the world as we speak, where both 
administrations, the prior administration and this administration, have 
both said this is genocide. Standing up together in a bipartisan way is 
so important.
  Mr. McCAUL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Tennessee (Mr. Burchett), a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs.
  Mr. BURCHETT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the Republican lead, Mr. McCaul, 
for yielding. And Chairman Meeks, you are a force in the House 
gymnasium. You are a force on the House floor, and I appreciate you, 
brother.
  The Chinese Communist Party does anything it can to get ahead of the 
United States, Mr. Speaker. It steals

[[Page H7502]]

our intellectual property and uses Uyghur slave labor to manufacture 
products. It is threatening the freedom of folks from Taiwan to Hong 
Kong. Our government needs to stand up to them.
  Today, we are acknowledging some of the Chinese Communist Party's 
horrible, horrible behaviors. It is not enough. Additional action is 
needed, Mr. Speaker.
  The Chinese Communist Party knows there are no consequences for its 
behavior. That needs to change. It starts with the Biden 
administration. They need to do more than just finger-wagging to 
effectively counter China. This administration needs to make it clear 
to the Chinese Communist Party that bad behavior will be met with 
action, not empty words.
  President Biden also needs to set aside his climate agenda when 
addressing the Chinese Communist Party. His administration tried to 
kill the Uyghur Forced Labor Protection Act because the Uyghurs mine 
the polysilicon for our solar panels. It is gross that this 
administration wants to let Uyghur slavery slide to advance its climate 
agenda.
  I am glad we have these bills on the floor today. It is a start, but 
more work needs to be done. I hope in the Foreign Affairs Committee, 
both parties can work together and hold the Chinese Communist Party 
accountable, Mr. Speaker.
  Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I proudly yield 2 minutes to the gentleman 
from the great State of Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer).
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman's courtesy.
  Congress passed a law almost a century ago prohibiting the 
importation of goods made with forced labor. But, you know, it was 
really never enforced.
  That changed in 2016, potentially, when we passed legislation to 
eliminate the consumptive demand loophole that allowed people a way 
around. Well, it is time that we finish the job.
  Nothing is more chilling than what the Chinese are doing to the 
Uyghur people. I have chaired meetings of our Trade Subcommittee that 
were really appalling. It is Orwellian in terms of what they are doing 
to detain Uyghurs in internment, re-education, slave labor camps; that 
international concern the Chinese think will just remain on the 
sideline.
  Now, there are many American companies that are attempting to deal 
with this, but we need to do more. We need to strengthen their resolve, 
and we need to be able to get the attention of the Chinese Government.
  A stronger regime is absolutely necessary. Crimes against humanity 
require a response. We must not just vote our support for the Uyghur 
people and other minorities across China. We need to make sure that 
we are clear about who gets the benefit of the doubt.

  More than a million Uyghurs have been enslaved; half of them forced 
to harvest cotton, one of the Xinjiang region's largest exports. When 
American consumers buy a shirt, they shouldn't have questions about 
whether or not that was made with forced labor.
  I strongly support this legislation to ensure that American dollars 
aren't inadvertently contributing to forced labor. That is the language 
that the Chinese understand; denying them access to our markets and 
making sure that people are responsible for their supply chain.
  This legislation, I think, is a great start. I am pleased that there 
is bipartisan support for it. I hope we enact it, and then we work 
together to make sure that it is enforced.
  Mr. McCAUL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
South Carolina (Mr. Rice), a member of the Committee on Ways and Means.
  Mr. RICE of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, China is a global thief. We 
all know it. They steal American intellectual property. They steal 
American jobs using currency manipulation, illegal subsidies, and 
product dumping to kill American competition. And worst of all, they 
produce products with slave labor.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1155, the Uyghur Forced 
Labor Prevention Act. H.R. 1155's central provision establishes a 
rebuttable presumption that all goods made in China's Xinjiang Uyghur 
Autonomous Region are produced with forced labor.
  Since 2017, China has arbitrarily detained and persecuted over 1 
million Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in extrajudicial, mass re-
education camps in Xinjiang. We know that China is seeking to profit 
from the oppression by subsidizing companies to build factories near 
these mass internment sites.
  H.R. 1155 leverages the power of our enormous market to send China a 
message that it cannot use its policies of repression to subsidize its 
exports. We must work with our allies to ensure that all global markets 
are closed to the products of Chinese theft and repression.
  A core and essential provision of this bill is a rebuttable 
presumption that leads to an import prohibition. In 2016, the Ways and 
Means Committee led the way on a bipartisan basis in eliminating the 
consumptive demand loophole from the outright ban on products made with 
forced labor in Section 307 of the 1930 Tariff Act.
  A few years later, we have worked with our USMCA partners to extend 
the U.S. ban on products produced with forced labor throughout North 
America. We are now leading the world in combating forced labor in 
Xinjiang.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
  Mr. McCAUL. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman an additional 30 
seconds.
  Mr. RICE of South Carolina. For that reason, we wish that our 
Democratic colleagues on the Ways and Means Committee had worked with 
us to update the bill from the version that passed 14 months ago to 
ensure that it establishes the most effective mechanism for blocking 
imports from Xinjiang, while providing much-needed clarity to 
facilitate trade by good actors.
  Just as importantly, we know that China has anticipated this ban by 
expanding this practice beyond Xinjiang. We need to work closely with 
our colleagues in the Senate to ensure that the version of the bill 
that becomes law can better assist importers to identify and 
proactively eradicate goods produced with forced labor from their 
supply chains, whether they arise in Xinjiang or in other locations.
  This bill is just the beginning, but it sends a strong signal to 
China that it cannot launder its policies of persecution and repression 
in a global market.
  Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I proudly yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman 
from the great State of Virginia (Ms. Wexton).
  Ms. WEXTON. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Meeks, Speaker Pelosi, and 
Chairman McGovern for bringing this important legislation to the floor 
and shining a light on the atrocities taking place in Xinjiang.
  I represent the largest Uyghur diaspora in the U.S. and this 
legislation is critically important to the Uyghur community.
  I am proud to be an original cosponsor of this legislation that will 
prohibit the importation of goods from Xinjiang unless it can be proven 
by clear and convincing evidence that they were not made with forced 
labor.
  Despite international condemnation, the Chinese Government's brutal 
campaign of repressive surveillance, mass detention, forced labor, and 
even genocide, is rapidly expanding, and we must take steps to ensure 
that U.S. companies and consumers are not complicit in the abuses.
  This legislation will hold the PRC accountable for these heinous acts 
and will make it clear that the U.S. will not turn a blind eye to the 
plight of the Uyghurs. I urge my colleagues to support this 
legislation.
  Mr. McCAUL. Mr. Speaker, I am prepared to close. I yield myself the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. Speaker, I know there is another bill by Senator Rubio. I hope 
this bill, when it passes, can be worked out in the Senate, and I hope 
the administration will not slow-roll this important measure, as has 
been reported.
  Out of this region we have batteries and solar panels. When Secretary 
John Kerry testified, he admitted that Xinjiang's solar panel 
production presents a problem for U.S. climate strategy, and I agree 
with him.
  In recent years, the world has stood by as the Chinese Communist 
Party has detained more than 1 million ethnic minorities in 
concentration camps where they are tortured, brainwashed, and put into 
forced labor. This is all a

[[Page H7503]]

part of a deliberate program by the CCP to wipe out their ethnic 
identity, their religion, and their culture, anything that might 
compete with the Communist Party for their loyalties and affection.

  We have a moral duty to speak out against these horrifying crimes; 
but we have an even greater duty to avoid funding this genocide by 
paying for slave labor in Xinjiang.
  Many American companies have built their businesses on values that 
include respect for basic human rights. The United States must continue 
to lead the world in setting corporate responsibility standards. There 
can no longer be business as usual with China. China is watching and 
the world is watching.
  I support this bill, Mr. Speaker, and I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
  I am happy that this bipartisan effort dealing with the Uyghur Forced 
Labor Prevention Act is an opportunity for this body to send a 
resounding message to the world that we are engaged in a strategic 
competition with China around the world. And our stance on this issue, 
I believe, will define why our system is better.
  But I must reply to some comments.
  One, the comment that President Biden is holding us up. Well, I am 
the chair of this committee, he has never told me to hold up anything. 
In fact, he wants to move forward.
  In fact, it is President Biden who has sanctioned officials 
responsible for genocide and issued supply chain advisories in 
Xinjiang.
  The fact of the matter is, I think our bill is far superior. You go 
to the Senate side, the Senate says, this should take 300 days to stop. 
Our bill says 120 days.
  For me, this is a personal situation. So I would wish that some of my 
colleagues who, rightfully, want to make sure that we send a strong 
message to the world that we are not going to stand for genocide. We 
are not going to stand for slave labor.
  But it is best if they would join us about injustice in America. It 
is best if we fought together to make sure that when President Trump 
talked about a Muslim ban in the United States of America--that wasn't 
Joe Biden--we can't do it in America. That is the best way to lead.

                              {time}  1400

  When we talk about moving, I want to condemn it everywhere. Dr. King 
said: Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.
  We should lead by example collectively. We should lead by going 
forward with voting rights. We should lead by talking about reparations 
for those who were enslaved in America. We should lead by talking about 
the genocide that took place to Native Americans. We should lead by 
talking about the injustice in housing. We should lead by talking about 
civil rights.
  So we have got to come together and stop it everywhere, and that is 
what this bill does. It sends a strong message. I want to be that 
example.
  This just happens to be personal, so I had to say it. I don't like to 
put politics in these things, but I do like to tell the truth.
  Mr. Speaker, we have got to work together. I want to thank especially 
Mr. McCaul. I have got to say this, too, in closing. I have got to say 
this in closing, because Mr. McCaul is my friend, and we work very 
closely together. I know his spirit and his heart, and he stands up. I 
look forward on this committee to continue to do that.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. 
Pelosi), the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives.
  Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, I salute the distinguished chairman of the 
Foreign Affairs Committee for his leadership in bringing this 
legislation to the floor. It is historic.
  I want to join him in saluting Mr. McCaul, who has been a champion 
for human rights. We have worked together for years on these subjects. 
I thank them both for their leadership.
  As has been recognized earlier, Mr. Speaker, this week marks a 
momentous milestone in human history. Seventy-three years ago tomorrow, 
the international community convened in Paris to approve the United 
Nations Genocide Convention.
  In doing so, the world forged an historic commitment to always 
condemn and combat the crime of genocide, which they had defined 2 
years prior as: ``a denial of the right of existence,'' which ``shocks 
the conscience of mankind'' and is ``a matter of international 
concern.''
  Today, in some ways, we are falling short on that promise.
  In its latest Human Rights Report, our own State Department has 
definitively declared that the barbaric oppression of the Uyghurs by 
the Government of China amounts to genocide. We salute the 
administration for that recognition.
  New research by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum sheds 
light on these crimes, with a survivor describing Beijing's intentions 
as: ``to make us slowly disappear, so slowly that no one would 
notice.''
  Indeed, the erasure of the Uyghurs is precisely the definition of 
genocide from three-quarters of a century ago.
  That is why, with the strong bipartisan package of legislation we 
will pass today, the House takes yet another bold, bipartisan step to 
counter these crimes against humanity.
  We are honoring the challenge to our conscience, and I thank Chairman 
Meeks and Ranking Member McCaul. Congress and the country are grateful 
to the relentless leaders of the legislation before us.
  At the helm of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, as 
well as the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, Chairman  Jim McGovern 
has long served as a voice for the voiceless, not only in China, but 
around the world.
  With his Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, we are taking decisive 
action against the exploitation of the Uyghur people. We are stepping 
up to the plate.
  I salute, again, Congressman   Michael McCaul for a resounding 
resolution condemning the genocide of the Uyghurs in China.
  Thank you to Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton for her resolution 
demanding that Beijing immediately guarantee the safety and freedom of 
tennis star Peng Shuai.
  I also thank Chairman   Gregory Meeks, Chairman Richard Neal, and 
Chairwoman Maxine Waters for their longstanding leadership in the 
House's fight against forced labor.
  Together, this legislation, which we will pass today, makes 
unequivocally clear the House's firm commitment to human rights in 
China and does so in a bipartisan way.
  That has always been the case over time. Chris Smith and I have been 
working on these issues for decades together, with others such as Frank 
Wolf, who was here before him, and with many others on both sides of 
the aisle.
  Right now, Beijing is orchestrating a brutal and accelerating 
campaign of repression against the Uyghur people and other Muslim 
minorities.
  In Xinjiang and across China, millions are enduring outrageous human 
rights abuses, from mass surveillance and discriminatory policing to 
mass torture, including solitary confinement and forced sterilization, 
to intimidation of journalists and activists who have dared to expose 
the truth. And the Chinese Government's exploitation of forced labor 
reaches across the oceans to our shores and across the world.
  They always say that the most horrible form of torture to a prisoner, 
or somebody in one of these camps, is to say to them: Nobody knows you 
are even here; nobody even cares about you. We want those people, the 
Uyghurs and others oppressed in China, to know that we do care about 
them, we know many of them by name, and we will never forget our 
responsibility to act upon the actions that the Chinese Government is 
engaged in.
  That is why the Uyghur Forced Labor Protection Act employs America's 
great economic might to combat this brutality and hold the perpetrators 
accountable by blocking certain imports produced with forced labor, 
leveling sanctions against the perpetrators, and imposing disclosure 
requirements on companies engaged in Xinjiang.
  With this strong, bipartisan legislation, we are better able to fight 
forced labor, we shine a bright light on this pattern of abuse, and we 
send Beijing a clear message that this genocide must end now.

[[Page H7504]]

  As we focus on this genocide against the Uyghurs, we must also 
remember Beijing's decades-long assault on human rights.
  Those of us who have long been in this fight for human rights in 
China have seen a regime of terror and repression that has only 
intensified: from Tibet to Taiwan; to assaults on basic freedoms in 
Hong Kong and beyond; to jailing of journalists and detaining of 
dissidents; and more.
  In Congress, for decades, we have taken strong bipartisan actions 
fighting for human rights in China.
  That is why, in 1991, Democrats and Republicans stood up together for 
free speech during a visit to Tiananmen Square just 2 years after the 
government's infamous crackdown.
  That is why, in 1993, in a bipartisan way, we convinced the world 
that China's dismal record on human rights disqualified the nation from 
hosting the 2000 Olympic Games.
  That is why, in 2000, I took to this floor to urge my colleagues to 
block China from the World Trade Organization, arguing that we should 
not put deals ahead of ideals. China has not honored the agreement.
  That is why, in 2015, working together, we had a Congressional 
delegation to Tibet to see the aspirations in the eyes of the 
schoolchildren who have endured China's and Beijing's intimidation.
  That is why, in 2019, working together, we sounded the alarms as the 
Chinese Government locked up pro-democracy demonstrators in Hong Kong.
  Democrats and Republicans, House and Senate, have come together to 
enact strong policies standing up for human rights in China, including: 
the Tibet Policy and Support Act, the Hong Kong Human Rights and 
Democracy Act, and the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act; all enacted into 
law, signed into law.
  For decades, many of us have fought against what they call normal 
trade relations with China, because, as the world's strongest economy, 
America has a moral duty to tie our trade relations with human rights.
  When China joined the WTO 20 years ago this week, the world gave 
Beijing a blank check to prosper from its abuses while simply hoping it 
would change its behavior.
  Many of us knew then, as we still know today, that this approach was 
fated for failure. Today's legislation will help right this wrong.
  We must respond with more than legislation. We must show leadership.
  As House Speaker, I applaud and support President Biden's strong 
leadership in announcing there will be no official U.S. presence at the 
2022 Winter Olympics.
  Allowing a country with an abysmal human rights record to host the 
games makes a mockery of the Olympic Charter, which states that the 
games should seek to foster ``respect for universal and fundamental 
ethical principles.''
  Make no mistake: our athletes can and should be celebrated. But this 
year, we should celebrate them from home. They can be there; we should 
be home.
  As noted, when I called for the diplomatic boycott last May, the 
world must not reward more than three decades of abusive and repressive 
actions by the Chinese Government by giving our official imprimatur to 
China.
  I thank Mr. McCaul for his leadership, particularly in calling out 
the Olympic Committee for making this choice.
  Mr. Speaker, today we have an opportunity to forge further progress 
in the fight for human rights in China, a fight that many of us have 
been extraordinarily proud to help lead over our careers in Congress.
  Mr. Speaker, if we do not speak out for human rights in China because 
of commercial or economic ties, we lose all moral authority to speak 
out against human rights violations anywhere in the world.
  We must never fail to live up to our sacred duty to safeguard the 
dignity and worth of every person and build a better future for 
generations to come.
  Proudly, this legislation, all of it--Mr. McCaul's, Mr. McGovern's, 
and Ms. Wexton's leadership, the leadership of the chairman, Mr. Meeks, 
and ranking member, Mr. McCaul, of the committee--has earned 
overwhelming bipartisan support when we passed it in the House last 
year. I hope we will do so again this year.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge a strong vote for the Uyghur Forced Labor 
Prevention Act and the other legislation that is before us this 
afternoon and do so asking for a very strong bipartisan vote so that we 
know that we will have the numbers to send a message to the Chinese 
Government that this is bipartisan, bicameral, on both sides of the 
Capitol, and a view shared by the President of the United States. I ask 
for an ``aye'' vote all around.
  Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I just have these last remarks.
  I also want to thank Mr. Smith. As indicated by the Speaker, from the 
time that I have been in Congress, his focus has been on human rights 
around the world. As the Speaker indicated, and as I indicated with Mr. 
McCaul and you will see coming up with these other bills, we have 
worked collectively, leaving politics out of it, focused on leading the 
world. That is what I look forward to, locking arms, sending that 
message around the world that we are not going to allow slave labor to 
flourish and to exist on this planet.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. BRADY. Mr. Speaker, ending forced labor--and holding China 
accountable for these gross abuses of human rights--must be a global 
effort. America should lead the world in halting China's brutality, and 
all democracies around the world should join us.
  As I've said many times, this is a completely bipartisan issue, as 
demonstrated by the overwhelming bipartisan vote in the House on a 
similar bill in September 2020. The United States has no tolerance for 
China's human rights abuses, in Xinjiang or anywhere.
  There are real challenges to further tighten the dragnet around China 
and force it to eliminate atrocities, while supporting legitimate 
trade. All of us agree: we want to create opportunities for our 
producers to comply with the law while removing forced labor from our 
global supply chains.
  And just as important, we must urge our trading partners to work with 
us. Inexplicably, this entirely bipartisan issue has been pushed to the 
back burner, with Democrats delaying consideration for 14 months. And 
Ways & Means did not mark this bill up or update the trade provisions 
in any way. This is difficult to understand, because a core provision 
of this bill, which is the rebuttable presumption that importation of 
goods made in Xinjiang must be blocked because they are made with 
forced labor, is clearly in our Committee's jurisdiction.
  This issue is not only bipartisan. It's bicameral. Both the House and 
the Senate have strong bills that send a clear and unequivocal message: 
the United States has zero tolerance for these abuses.
  While I'm disappointed that this was delayed, taking strong action 
today is an important step.
  Republicans support strong and effective legislation that addresses 
China's atrocities while supporting legitimate trade, and I look 
forward to working with the Senate to perfect our approach and enact 
this bill into law promptly.
  It is vital that we stop the scourge of modern-day slavery in China.

                              {time}  1415

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Espaillat). The question is on the 
motion offered by the gentleman from New York (Mr. Meeks) that the 
House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1155, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to section 3(s) of House Resolution 
8, the yeas and nays are ordered.
  Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further proceedings on this motion 
are postponed.

                          ____________________