[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3687 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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117th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 3687
To require the Secretary of Commerce to establish the Manufacturing
Communities Support Program, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 17, 2022
Mrs. Gillibrand (for herself, Mr. Moran, Ms. Klobuchar, Mrs. Capito,
Mrs. Feinstein, Ms. Collins, Mr. Blumenthal, and Mr. Kelly) introduced
the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee
on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Secretary of Commerce to establish the Manufacturing
Communities Support Program, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Made in America Manufacturing
Communities Act of 2022''.
SEC. 2. MANUFACTURING COMMUNITIES.
(a) Definitions.--
(1) Eligible consortium.--The term ``eligible consortium''
means a consortium that meets the eligibility criteria
established by the Secretary under subsection (c)(2)(A).
(2) Manufacturing community.--The term ``manufacturing
community'' means an eligible consortium designated by the
Secretary under subsection (c)(1).
(3) Nonprofit organization.--The term ``nonprofit
organization'' means an organization exempt from taxation and
described in paragraph (3), (5), or (6) of section 501(c) of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
(4) Program.--The term ``Program'' means the Manufacturing
Communities Support Program established under subsection
(b)(1).
(5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Commerce.
(6) Small business concern.--The term ``small business
concern'' means the term as defined under section 3 of the
Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632).
(b) Program Authorized.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall establish a program to
be known as the ``Manufacturing Communities Support Program'',
under which the Secretary shall designate and support eligible
consortiums as manufacturing communities.
(2) Purpose.--The purpose of the Program shall be to
strengthen the manufacturing base of the United States by
making long-term investments in manufacturing communities by
supporting--
(A) critical skills;
(B) facilities;
(C) research and development; and
(D) small business concerns.
(c) Designation of Manufacturing Communities.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall designate an eligible
consortium as a manufacturing community through a competitive
process.
(2) Eligible consortiums.--
(A) In general.--The Secretary shall establish
criteria for a consortium to be eligible for a
designation as a manufacturing community under
paragraph (1).
(B) Considerations.--In developing eligibility
criteria under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall
consider the merits of--
(i) including members from academia,
commercial industry, nonprofit organizations,
and State and local governmental organizations;
(ii) supporting efforts in geographical
regions that have capabilities in key
technologies or manufacturing base supply
chains that the Secretary determines to be
critical to codifying the supply chains of the
United States; and
(iii) the optimal composition and size of a
consortium to promote effectiveness,
collaboration, and efficiency.
(3) Duration.--Each designation under paragraph (1) shall
be for a 5-year period.
(4) Renewal.--
(A) In general.--The Secretary may renew a
designation made under paragraph (1) for not more than
2 additional 2-year periods.
(B) Criteria for renewal.--
(i) In general.--The Secretary shall
establish criteria for the renewal of a
designation under subparagraph (A).
(ii) Considerations.--In establishing
criteria for a renewal under clause (i) the
Secretary shall consider, with respect to the
manufacturing community seeking a renewal--
(I) the performance of the
manufacturing community in meeting the
established goals of the Program;
(II) the progress the manufacturing
community has made with respect to
project-specific metrics, particularly
with respect to metrics designed to
help manufacturing communities track
their own progress;
(III) whether any changes to the
composition of the manufacturing
community or revisions of the plan of
the manufacturing community would
improve the capabilities of the
manufacturing base of the United
States; and
(IV) any other criteria the
Secretary determines appropriate.
(5) Application for designation.--
(A) In general.--An eligible consortium seeking a
designation under paragraph (1) shall submit an
application to the Secretary at such time and in such
manner as the Secretary may require.
(B) Considerations.--In developing application
procedures under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall
consider the inclusion of, with respect to an eligible
consortium--
(i) a description of the regional
boundaries of the eligible consortium and the
manufacturing capacity of the region;
(ii) an evidence-based plan for enhancing
the manufacturing base in the United States
through the efforts of the eligible consortium;
(iii) the investments the eligible
consortium proposes and the strategy of the
eligible consortium to address gaps in the
manufacturing base of the United States;
(iv) a description of the outcome-based
metrics, benchmarks, and milestones that will
track and the evaluation methods that will be
used to gauge performance of the eligible
consortium;
(v) a plan to ensure that members of the
eligible consortium are representative of the
proposed location of the manufacturing
community;
(vi) a community that had previously
received a designation by the Investing in
Manufacturing Communities Partnership of the
Economic Development Administration; and
(vii) any other matters the Secretary
determines appropriate.
(C) Strategic planning assistance.--The Secretary
shall provide strategic planning assistance for
eligible consortiums that lack experience applying for
Federal assistance to ensure such eligible consortiums
may submit an application that meets the procedures
established by the Secretary under this paragraph.
(d) Financial and Technical Assistance.--
(1) In general.--As appropriate and for purposes of the
Program, the Secretary may award financial or technical
assistance to a member of an eligible consortium that has been
designated as a manufacturing community.
(2) Use of funds.--A recipient of financial or technical
assistance under paragraph (1) shall use the financial or
technical assistance to support an investment that will improve
the manufacturing base of the United States.
(3) Investments supported.--Investments supported under
this subsection may include activities relating to--
(A) equipment or facility upgrades;
(B) workforce training, retraining, or recruitment
and retention, including for women, underrepresented
minorities, and veterans;
(C) business incubators;
(D) advanced research and commercialization,
including with Federal laboratories and depots;
(E) supply chain development; and
(F) assistance for small business concerns.
(e) Other Federal Assistance.--The Secretary may make a Federal
point of contact available to each eligible consortium designated as a
manufacturing community to help such consortium and the members of such
consortium access Federal financial and technical assistance.
(f) Receipt of Transferred Funds.--The Secretary may accept amounts
transferred to the Secretary from the head of an agency or a State or
local governmental organization to carry out this section.
(g) Report.--Not later than 6 years after the date of the enactment
of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Congress, and make
publicly available, a report that identifies the best practices for an
eligible consortium--
(1) to be designated as a manufacturing community; and
(2) to renew the manufacturing community designation.
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