114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 985 

AN ACT 

To enable concrete masonry products manufacturers to establish, finance, and carry out a coordinated program of 

research, education, and promotion to improve, maintain, 

and develop markets for concrete masonry products. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Concrete Masonry 

3 Products Research, Education, and Promotion Act of 

4 2015’’. 

5 SEC. 2. DECLARATION OF POLICY. 

6 (a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to author7 ize the establishment of an orderly program for devel8 oping, financing, and carrying out an effective, contin9 uous, and coordinated program of research, education, and 

10 promotion, including funds for marketing and market re11 search activities, that is designed to— 

12 (1) strengthen the position of the concrete ma13 sonry products industry in the domestic market14 place; 

15 (2) maintain, develop, and expand markets and 

16 uses for concrete masonry products in the domestic 

17 marketplace; and 

18 (3) promote the use of concrete masonry prod19 ucts in construction and building. 

20 (b) LIMITATION.—Nothing in this Act may be con21 strued to provide for the control of production or otherwise 

22 limit the right of any person to manufacture concrete ma23 sonry products. 

24 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

25 For the purposes of this Act: 
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1 (1) BLOCK MACHINE.—The term ‘‘block ma2 chine’’ means a piece of equipment that utilizes vi3 bration and compaction to form concrete masonry 

4 products. 

5 (2) BOARD.—The term ‘‘Board’’ means the 

6 Concrete Masonry Products Board established under 

7 section 5. 

8 (3) CAVITY.—The term ‘‘cavity’’ means the 

9 open space in the mold of a block machine capable 

10 of forming a single concrete masonry unit having 

11 nominal plan dimensions of 8 inches by 16 inches. 

12 (4) COMMERCE.—The term ‘‘commerce’’ in13 cludes interstate, foreign, and intrastate commerce. 

14 (5) CONCRETE MASONRY PRODUCTS.—The 

15 term ‘‘concrete masonry products’’ refers to a broad16 er class of products, including concrete masonry 

17 units as well as hardscape products such as concrete 

18 pavers and segmental retaining wall units, manufac19 tured on a block machine using dry-cast concrete. 

20 (6) CONCRETE MASONRY UNIT.—The term 

21 ‘‘concrete masonry unit’’ means a concrete masonry 

22 product that is a manmade masonry unit having an 

23 actual width of 3 inches or greater and manufac24 tured from dry-cast concrete using a block machine. 
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1 Such term includes concrete block and related con2 crete units used in masonry applications. 

3 (7) CONFLICT OF INTEREST.—The term ‘‘con4 flict of interest’’ means, with respect to a member 

5 or employee of the Board, a situation in which such 

6 member or employee has a direct or indirect finan7 cial or other interest in a person that performs a 

8 service for, or enters into a contract with, for any9 thing of economic value. 

10 (8) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 

11 means the Department of Commerce. 

12 (9) DRY-CAST CONCRETE.—The term ‘‘dry-cast 

13 concrete’’ means a composite material that is com14 posed essentially of aggregates embedded in a bind15 ing medium composed of a mixture of cementitious 

16 materials (including hydraulic cement, pozzolans, or 

17 other cementitious materials) and water of such a 

18 consistency to maintain its shape after forming in a 

19 block machine. 

20 (10) EDUCATION.—The term ‘‘education’’ 

21 means programs that will educate or communicate 

22 the benefits of concrete masonry products in safe 

23 and environmentally sustainable development, ad24 vancements in concrete masonry product technology 

25 and development, and other information and pro-
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1 grams designed to generate increased demand for 

2 commercial, residential, multi-family, and institu3 tional projects using concrete masonry products and 

4 to generally enhance the image of concrete masonry 

5 products. 

6 (11) MACHINE CAVITIES.—The term ‘‘machine 

7 cavities’’ means the cavities with which a block ma8 chine could be equipped. 

9 (12) MACHINE CAVITIES IN OPERATION.—The 

10 term ‘‘machine cavities in operation’’ means those 

11 machine cavities associated with a block machine 

12 that have produced concrete masonry units within 

13 the last 6 months of the date set for determining eli14 gibility and is fully operable and capable of pro15 ducing concrete masonry units. 

16 (13) MANUFACTURER.—The term ‘‘manufac17 turer’’ means any person engaged in the manufac18 turing of commercial concrete masonry products in 

19 the United States. 

20 (14) MASONRY UNIT.—The term ‘‘masonry 

21 unit’’ means a noncombustible building product in22 tended to be laid by hand or joined using mortar, 

23 grout, surface bonding, post-tensioning or some com24 bination of these methods. 
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1 (15) ORDER.—The term ‘‘order’’ means an 

2 order issued under section 4. 

3 (16) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ means any 

4 individual, group of individuals, partnership, cor5 poration, association, cooperative, or any other enti6 ty. 

7 (17) PROMOTION.—The term ‘‘promotion’’ 

8 means any action, including paid advertising, to ad9 vance the image and desirability of concrete masonry 

10 products with the express intent of improving the 

11 competitive position and stimulating sales of con12 crete masonry products in the marketplace. 

13 (18) RESEARCH.—The term ‘‘research’’ means 

14 studies testing the effectiveness of market develop15 ment and promotion efforts, studies relating to the 

16 improvement of concrete masonry products and new 

17 product development, and studies documenting the 

18 performance of concrete masonry. 

19 (19) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

20 means the Secretary of Commerce. 

21 (20) UNITED STATES.—The term ‘‘United 

22 States’’ means the several States and the District of 

23 Columbia. 

24 SEC. 4. ISSUANCE OF ORDERS. 

25 (a) IN GENERAL.— 
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1 (1) ISSUANCE.—The Secretary, subject to the 

2 procedures provided in subsection (b), shall issue or3 ders under this Act applicable to manufacturers of 

4 concrete masonry products. 

5 (2) SCOPE.—Any order shall be national in 

6 scope. 

7 (3) ONE ORDER.—Not more than one order 

8 shall be in effect at any one time. 

9 (b) PROCEDURES.— 

10 (1) DEVELOPMENT OR RECEIPT OF PROPOSED

11 ORDER.—A proposed order with respect to the ge12 neric research, education, and promotion with re13 gards to concrete masonry products may be— 

14 (A) proposed by the Secretary at any time; 

15 or 

16 (B) requested by or submitted to the Sec17 retary by— 

18 (i) an existing national organization of 

19 concrete masonry product manufacturers; 

20 or 

21 (ii) any person that may be affected 

22 by the issuance of an order. 

23 (2) PUBLICATION OF PROPOSED ORDER.—If 

24 the Secretary determines that a proposed order re25 ceived in accordance with paragraph (1)(B) is con-
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1 sistent with and will effectuate the purpose of this 

2 Act, the Secretary shall publish such proposed order 

3 in the Federal Register not later than 90 days after 

4 receiving the order, and give not less than 30 days 

5 notice and opportunity for public comment on the 

6 proposed order. 

7 (3) ISSUANCE OF ORDER.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—After notice and oppor9 tunity for public comment are provided in ac10 cordance with paragraph (2), the Secretary 

11 shall issue the order, taking into consideration 

12 the comments received and including in the 

13 order such provisions as are necessary to ensure 

14 that the order is in conformity with this Act. 

15 (B) EFFECTIVE DATE.—If there is an af16 firmative vote in a referendum as provided in 

17 section 7, the Secretary shall issue the order 

18 and such order shall be effective not later than 

19 140 days after publication of the proposed 

20 order. 

21 (c) AMENDMENTS.—The Secretary may, from time to 

22 time, amend an order. The provisions of this Act applica23 ble to an order shall be applicable to any amendment to 

24 an order. 
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1 SEC. 5. REQUIRED TERMS IN ORDERS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Any order issued under this Act 

3 shall contain the terms and provisions specified in this sec4 tion. 

5 (b) CONCRETE MASONRY PRODUCTS BOARD.— 

6 (1) ESTABLISHMENT AND MEMBERSHIP.— 

7 (A) ESTABLISHMENT.—The order shall 

8 provide for the establishment of a Concrete Ma9 sonry Products Board to carry out a program 

10 of generic promotion, research, and education 

11 regarding concrete masonry products. 

12 (B) MEMBERSHIP.— 

13 (i) NUMBER OF MEMBERS.—The 

14 board shall consist of not less than 15 and 

15 not more than 25 members. 

16 (ii) APPOINTMENT.—The members of 

17 the Board shall be appointed by the Sec18 retary from nominations submitted as pro19 vided in the order. 

20 (iii) COMPOSITION.—The Board shall 

21 consist of manufacturers. No employee of 

22 an industry trade organization exempt 

23 from tax under paragraphs (3) or (6) of 

24 section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue 

25 Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 501(c)) rep26 resenting the concrete masonry industry or 
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1 related industries shall serve as a member 

2 of the Board and no member of the Board 

3 may serve concurrently as an officer of the 

4 board of directors of a national concrete 

5 masonry products industry trade associa6 tion. Only two individuals from any single 

7 company or its affiliates may serve on the 

8 Board at any one time. 

9 (2) DISTRIBUTION OF APPOINTMENTS.— 

10 (A) REPRESENTATION.—To ensure fair 

11 and equitable representation of the concrete 

12 masonry products industry, the composition of 

13 the Board shall reflect the geographical dis14 tribution of the manufacture of concrete ma15 sonry products in the United States, the types 

16 of concrete masonry products manufactured, 

17 and the range in size of manufacturers in the 

18 United States. 

19 (B) ADJUSTMENT IN BOARD REPRESENTA20 TION.—Three years after the assessment of 

21 concrete masonry products commences pursuant 

22 to an order, and at the end of each 3-year pe23 riod thereafter, the Board, subject to the review 

24 and approval of the Secretary, shall, if war25 ranted, recommend to the Secretary the re-
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1 apportionment of the Board membership to re2 flect changes in the geographical distribution of 

3 the manufacture of concrete masonry products 

4 and the types of concrete masonry products 

5 manufactured. 

6 (3) NOMINATIONS PROCESS.—The Secretary 

7 may make appointments from nominations by manu8 facturers pursuant to the method set forth in the 

9 order. 

10 (4) FAILURE TO APPOINT.—If the Secretary 

11 fails to make an appointment to the Board within 

12 60 days of receiving nominations for such appoint13 ment, the first nominee for such appointment shall 

14 be deemed appointed, unless the Secretary provides 

15 reasonable justification for the delay to the Board 

16 and to Congress and provides a reasonable date by 

17 which approval or disapproval will be made. 

18 (5) ALTERNATES.—The order shall provide for 

19 the selection of alternate members of the Board by 

20 the Secretary in accordance with procedures speci21 fied in the order. 

22 (6) TERMS.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—The members and any 

24 alternates of the Board shall each serve for a 

25 term of 3 years, except that members and any 
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1 alternates initially appointed to the Board shall 

2 serve for terms of not more than 2, 3, and 4 

3 years, as specified by the order. 

4 (B) LIMITATION ON CONSECUTIVE

5 TERMS.—A member or an alternate may serve 

6 not more than 2 consecutive terms. 

7 (C) CONTINUATION OF TERM.—Notwith8 standing subparagraph (B), each member or al9 ternate shall continue to serve until a successor 

10 is appointed by the Secretary. 

11 (D) VACANCIES.—A vacancy arising before 

12 the expiration of a term of office of an incum13 bent member or alternate of the Board shall be 

14 filled in a manner provided for in the order. 

15 (7) DISQUALIFICATION FROM BOARD SERV16 ICE.—The order shall provide that if a member or 

17 alternate of the Board who was appointed as a man18 ufacturer ceases to qualify as a manufacturer, such 

19 member or alternate shall be disqualified from serv20 ing on the Board. 

21 (8) COMPENSATION.— 

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—Members and any al23 ternates of the Board shall serve without com24 pensation. 
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1 (B) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—If approved by 

2 the Board, members or alternates shall be reim3 bursed for reasonable travel expenses, which 

4 may include per diem allowance or actual sub5 sistence incurred while away from their homes 

6 or regular places of business in the performance 

7 of services for the Board. 

8 (c) POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE BOARD.—The 

9 order shall specify the powers and duties of the Board, 

10 including the power and duty— 

11 (1) to administer the order in accordance with 

12 its terms and conditions and to collect assessments; 

13 (2) to develop and recommend to the Secretary 

14 for approval such bylaws as may be necessary for 

15 the functioning of the Board and such rules as may 

16 be necessary to administer the order, including ac17 tivities authorized to be carried out under the order; 

18 (3) to meet, organize, and select from among 

19 members of the Board a chairperson, other officers, 

20 and committees and subcommittees, as the Board 

21 determines appropriate; 

22 (4) to establish regional organizations or com23 mittees to administer regional initiatives; 

24 (5) to establish working committees of persons 

25 other than Board members; 
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1 (6) to employ such persons, other than the 

2 members, as the board considers necessary, and to 

3 determine the compensation and specify the duties 

4 of the persons; 

5 (7) to prepare and submit for the approval of 

6 the Secretary, before the beginning of each fiscal 

7 year, rates of assessment under section 6 and an an8 nual budget of the anticipated expenses to be in9 curred in the administration of the order, including 

10 the probable cost of each promotion, research, and 

11 information activity proposed to be developed or car12 ried out by the Board; 

13 (8) to borrow funds necessary for the startup 

14 expenses of the order; 

15 (9) to carry out generic research, education, 

16 and promotion programs and projects relating to 

17 concrete masonry products, and to pay the costs of 

18 such programs and projects with assessments col19 lected under section 6; 

20 (10) subject to subsection (e), to enter into con21 tracts or agreements to develop and carry out pro22 grams or projects of research, education, and pro23 motion relating to concrete masonry products; 

24 (11) to keep minutes, books, and records that 

25 reflect the actions and transactions of the Board, 
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1 and promptly report minutes of each Board meeting 

2 to the Secretary; 

3 (12) to receive, investigate, and report to the 

4 Secretary complaints of violations of the order; 

5 (13) to furnish the Secretary with such infor6 mation as the Secretary may request; 

7 (14) to recommend to the Secretary such 

8 amendments to the order as the Board considers ap9 propriate; and 

10 (15) to provide the Secretary with advance no11 tice of meetings to permit the Secretary or the Sec12 retary’s representative to attend the meetings. 

13 (d) PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS; BUDGETS; EX14 PENSES.— 

15 (1) PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS.— 

16 (A) IN GENERAL.—The order shall require 

17 the Board to submit to the Secretary for ap18 proval any program or project of research, edu19 cation, or promotion relating to concrete ma20 sonry products. 

21 (B) STATEMENT REQUIRED.—Any edu22 cational or promotional activity undertaken with 

23 funds provided by the Board shall include a 

24 statement that such activities were supported in 

25 whole or in part by the Board. 
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1 (2) BUDGETS.— 

2 (A) SUBMISSION.—The order shall require 

3 the Board to submit to the Secretary for ap4 proval a budget of the anticipated expenses and 

5 disbursements of the Board in the implementa6 tion of the order, including the projected costs 

7 of concrete masonry products research, edu8 cation, and promotion programs and projects. 

9 (B) TIMING.—The budget shall be sub10 mitted before the beginning of a fiscal year and 

11 as frequently as may be necessary after the be12 ginning of the fiscal year. 

13 (C) APPROVAL.—If the Secretary fails to 

14 approve or reject a budget within 60 days of re15 ceipt, such budget shall be deemed approved, 

16 unless the Secretary provides to the Board and 

17 to Congress, in writing, reasonable justification 

18 for the delay and provides a reasonable date by 

19 which approval or disapproval will be made. 

20 (3) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.— 

21 (A) INCURRING EXPENSES.—The Board 

22 may incur the expenses described in paragraph 

23 (2) and other expenses for the administration, 

24 maintenance, and functioning of the Board as 

25 authorized by the Secretary. 
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1 (B) PAYMENT OF EXPENSES.—Expenses 

2 incurred under subparagraph (A) shall be paid 

3 by the Board using assessments collected under 

4 section 6, earnings obtained from assessments, 

5 and other income of the Board. Any funds bor6 rowed by the Board shall be expended only for 

7 startup costs and capital outlays. 

8 (C) LIMITATION ON SPENDING.—For fiscal 

9 years beginning 3 or more years after the date 

10 of the establishment of the Board, the Board 

11 may not expend for administration (except for 

12 reimbursement to the Secretary required under 

13 subparagraph (D)), maintenance, and func14 tioning of the Board in a fiscal year an amount 

15 that exceeds 10 percent of the assessment and 

16 other income received by the Board for the fis17 cal year. 

18 (D) REIMBURSEMENT OF SECRETARY.— 

19 The order shall require that the Secretary be 

20 reimbursed by the Board from assessments for 

21 all expenses incurred by the Secretary in the 

22 implementation, administration, and supervision 

23 of the order, including all referenda costs in24 curred in connection with the order. 

25 (e) CONTRACTS AND AGREEMENTS.— 
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The order shall provide that, 

2 with the approval of the Secretary, the Board may— 

3 (A) enter into contracts and agreements to 

4 carry out generic research, education, and pro5 motion programs and projects relating to con6 crete masonry products, including contracts and 

7 agreements with manufacturer associations or 

8 other entities as considered appropriate by the 

9 Secretary; 

10 (B) enter into contracts and agreements 

11 for administrative services; and 

12 (C) pay the cost of approved generic re13 search, education, and promotion programs and 

14 projects using assessments collected under sec15 tion 6, earnings obtained from assessments, and 

16 other income of the Board. 

17 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—Each contract or agree18 ment shall provide that any person who enters into 

19 the contract or agreement with the Board shall— 

20 (A) develop and submit to the Board a 

21 proposed program or project together with a 

22 budget that specifies the cost to be incurred to 

23 carry out the program or project; 

24 (B) keep accurate records of all of trans25 actions relating to the contract or agreement; 
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1 (C) account for funds received and ex2 pended in connection with the contract or 

3 agreement; 

4 (D) make periodic reports to the Board of 

5 activities conducted under the contract or 

6 agreement; and 

7 (E) make such other reports as the Board 

8 or the Secretary considers relevant. 

9 (3) FAILURE TO APPROVE.—If the Secretary 

10 fails to approve or reject a contract or agreement 

11 entered into under paragraph (1) within 60 days of 

12 receipt, the contract or agreement shall be deemed 

13 approved, unless the Secretary provides to the Board 

14 and to Congress, in writing, reasonable justification 

15 for the delay and provides a reasonable date by 

16 which approval or disapproval will be made. 

17 (f) BOOKS AND RECORDS OF BOARD.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The order shall require the 

19 Board to— 

20 (A) maintain such books and records 

21 (which shall be available to the Secretary for in22 spection and audit) as the Secretary may re23 quire; 
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1 (B) collect and submit to the Secretary, at 

2 any time the Secretary may specify, any infor3 mation the Secretary may request; and 

4 (C) account for the receipt and disburse5 ment of all funds in the possession, or under 

6 the control, of the Board. 

7 (2) AUDITS.—The order shall require the Board 

8 to have— 

9 (A) the books and records of the Board au10 dited by an independent auditor at the end of 

11 each fiscal year; and 

12 (B) a report of the audit submitted di13 rectly to the Secretary. 

14 (g) PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

16 the Board shall not engage in any program or 

17 project to, nor shall any funds received by the Board 

18 under this Act be used to— 

19 (A) influence legislation, elections, or gov20 ernmental action; 

21 (B) engage in an action that would be a 

22 conflict of interest; 

23 (C) engage in advertising that is false or 

24 misleading; 
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1 (D) engage in any promotion, research, or 

2 education that would be disparaging to other 

3 construction materials; or 

4 (E) engage in any promotion or project 

5 that would benefit any individual manufacturer. 

6 (2) EXCEPTIONS.—Paragraph (1) does not pre7 clude— 

8 (A) the development and recommendation 

9 of amendments to the order; 

10 (B) the communication to appropriate gov11 ernment officials of information relating to the 

12 conduct, implementation, or results of research, 

13 education, and promotion activities under the 

14 order except communications described in para15 graph (1)(A); or 

16 (C) any lawful action designed to market 

17 concrete masonry products directly to a foreign 

18 government or political subdivision of a foreign 

19 government. 

20 (h) PERIODIC EVALUATION.—The order shall require 

21 the Board to provide for the independent evaluation of all 

22 research, education, and promotion programs or projects 

23 undertaken under the order, beginning 5 years after the 

24 date of enactment of this Act and every 3 years thereafter. 
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1 The Board shall submit to the Secretary and make avail2 able to the public the results of each such evaluation. 

3 (i) OBJECTIVES.—The Board shall establish annual 

4 research, education, and promotion objectives and per5 formance metrics for each fiscal year subject to approval 

6 by the Secretary. 

7 (j) BIENNIAL REPORT.—Every 2 years the Board 

8 shall prepare and make publicly available a comprehensive 

9 and detailed report that includes an identification and de10 scription of all programs and projects undertaken by the 

11 Board during the previous 2 years as well as those planned 

12 for the subsequent 2 years and detail the allocation or 

13 planned allocation of Board resources for each such pro14 gram or project. Such report shall also include— 

15 (1) the Board’s overall financial condition; 

16 (2) a summary of the amounts obligated or ex17 pended during the 2 preceding fiscal years; and 

18 (3) a description of the extent to which the 

19 Board’s objectives were met according to the metrics 

20 required under subsection (i). 

21 (k) BOOKS AND RECORDS OF PERSONS COVERED BY

22 ORDER.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—The order shall require that 

24 manufacturers shall— 
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1 (A) maintain records sufficient to ensure 

2 compliance with the order and regulations; and 

3 (B) make the records described in subpara4 graph (A) available, during normal business 

5 hours, for inspection by employees or agents of 

6 the Board or the Department. 

7 (2) TIME REQUIREMENT.—Any record required 

8 to be maintained under paragraph (1) shall be main9 tained for such time period as the Secretary may 

10 prescribe. 

11 (3) CONFIDENTIALITY OF INFORMATION.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise 

13 provided in this paragraph, trade secrets and 

14 commercial or financial information that is 

15 privileged or confidential reported to, or other16 wise obtained by the Board or the Secretary (or 

17 any representative of the Board or the Sec18 retary) under this Act shall not be disclosed by 

19 any officers, employees, and agents of the De20 partment or the Board. 

21 (B) SUITS AND HEARINGS.—Information 

22 referred to in subparagraph (A) may be dis23 closed only if— 

24 (i) the Secretary considers the infor25 mation relevant; and 
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1 (ii) the information is revealed in a 

2 judicial proceeding or administrative hear3 ing brought at the direction or on the re4 quest of the Secretary or to which the Sec5 retary or any officer of the Department is 

6 a party. 

7 (C) GENERAL STATEMENTS AND PUBLICA8 TIONS.—This paragraph does not prohibit— 

9 (i) the issuance of general statements 

10 based on reports or on information relating 

11 to a number of persons subject to an order 

12 if the statements do not identify the infor13 mation furnished by any person; or 

14 (ii) the publication, by direction of the 

15 Secretary, of the name of any person vio16 lating any order and a statement of the 

17 particular provisions of the order violated 

18 by the person. 

19 (D) PENALTY.—Any officer, employee, or 

20 agent of the Department of Commerce or any 

21 officer, employee, or agent of the Board who 

22 willfully violates this paragraph shall be fined 

23 not more than $1,000 and imprisoned for not 

24 more than 1 year, or both. 
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1 (4) WITHHOLDING INFORMATION.—This sub2 section does not authorize the withholding of infor3 mation from Congress. 

4 SEC. 6. ASSESSMENTS. 

5 (a) ASSESSMENTS.—The order shall provide that as6 sessments shall be paid by a manufacturer if the manufac7 turer has manufactured concrete masonry products during 

8 a period of at least 180 days prior to the date the assess9 ment is to be remitted. 

10 (b) COLLECTION.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Assessments required under 

12 the order shall be remitted by the manufacturer to 

13 the Board in the manner prescribed by the order. 

14 (2) TIMING.—The order shall provide that as15 sessments required under the order shall be remitted 

16 to the Board not less frequently than quarterly. 

17 (3) RECORDS.—As part of the remittance of as18 sessments, manufacturers shall identify the total 

19 amount due in assessments on all sales receipts, in20 voices or other commercial documents of sale as a 

21 result of the sale of concrete masonry units in a 

22 manner as prescribed by the Board to ensure com23 pliance with the order. 

24 (c) ASSESSMENT RATES.—With respect to assess25 ment rates, the order shall contain the following terms: 
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1 (1) INITIAL RATE.—The assessment rate on 

2 concrete masonry products shall be $0.01 per con3 crete masonry unit sold. 

4 (2) CHANGES IN THE RATE.— 

5 (A) AUTHORITY TO CHANGE RATE.—The 

6 Board shall have the authority to change the 

7 assessment rate. A two-thirds majority of voting 

8 members of the Board shall be required to ap9 prove a change in the assessment rate. 

10 (B) LIMITATION ON INCREASES.—An in11 crease or decrease in the assessment rate with 

12 respect to concrete masonry products may not 

13 exceed $0.01 per concrete masonry unit sold. 

14 (C) MAXIMUM RATE.—The assessment 

15 rate shall not be in excess of $0.05 per concrete 

16 masonry unit. 

17 (D) LIMITATION ON FREQUENCY OF

18 CHANGES.—The assessment rate may not be in19 creased or decreased more than once annually. 

20 (d) LATE-PAYMENT AND INTEREST CHARGES.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Late-payment and interest 

22 charges may be levied on each person subject to the 

23 order who fails to remit an assessment in accordance 

24 with subsection (b). 
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1 (2) RATE.—The rate for late-payment and in2 terest charges shall be specified by the Secretary. 

3 (e) INVESTMENT OF ASSESSMENTS.—Pending dis4 bursement of assessments under a budget approved by the 

5 Secretary, the Board may invest assessments collected 

6 under this section in— 

7 (1) obligations of the United States or any 

8 agency of the United States; 

9 (2) general obligations of any State or any po10 litical subdivision of a State; 

11 (3) interest-bearing accounts or certificates of 

12 deposit of financial institutions that are members of 

13 the Federal Reserve System; or 

14 (4) obligations fully guaranteed as to principal 

15 and interest by the United States. 

16 (f) ASSESSMENT FUNDS FOR REGIONAL INITIA17 TIVES.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The order shall provide that 

19 no less than 50 percent of the assessments (less ad20 ministration expenses) paid by a manufacturer shall 

21 be used to support research, education, and pro22 motion programs and projects in support of the geo23 graphic region of the manufacturer. 

24 (2) GEOGRAPHIC REGIONS.—The order shall 

25 provide for the following geographic regions: 
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1 (A) Region I shall comprise Connecticut, 

2 Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maine, 

3 Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, 

4 New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode 

5 Island, Vermont, and West Virginia. 

6 (B) Region II shall comprise Alabama, 

7 Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, 

8 South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. 

9 (C) Region III shall comprise Illinois, Indi10 ana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Ne11 braska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, 

12 and Wisconsin. 

13 (D) Region IV shall comprise Arizona, Ar14 kansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, New Mex15 ico, Oklahoma, and Texas. 

16 (E) Region V shall comprise Alaska, Cali17 fornia, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Ne18 vada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyo19 ming. 

20 (3) ADJUSTMENT OF GEOGRAPHIC REGIONS.— 

21 The order shall provide that the Secretary may, 

22 upon recommendation of the Board, modify the com23 position of the geographic regions described in para24 graph (2). 
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1 SEC. 7. REFERENDA. 

2 (a) INITIAL REFERENDUM.— 

3 (1) REFERENDUM REQUIRED.—During the 60- 

4 day period immediately preceding the proposed effec5 tive date of the order issued under section 4, the 

6 Secretary shall conduct a referendum among manu7 facturers eligible under subsection (b)(2) subject to 

8 assessments under section 6. 

9 (2) APPROVAL OF ORDER NEEDED.—The order 

10 shall become effective only if the Secretary deter11 mines that the order has been approved by a major12 ity of manufacturers voting who also represent a 

13 majority of the machine cavities in operation of 

14 those manufacturers voting in the referendum. 

15 (b) VOTES PERMITTED.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each manufacturer eligible 

17 to vote in a referendum conducted under this section 

18 shall be entitled to cast one vote. 

19 (2) ELIGIBILITY.—For purposes of paragraph 

20 (1), a manufacturer shall be considered to be eligible 

21 to vote if the manufacturer has manufactured con22 crete masonry products during a period of at least 

23 180 days prior to the first day of the period during 

24 which voting in the referendum will occur. 

25 (c) MANNER OF CONDUCTING REFERENDA.— 
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Referenda conducted pursu2 ant to this section shall be conducted in a manner 

3 determined by the Secretary. 

4 (2) ADVANCE REGISTRATION.—A manufacturer 

5 who chooses to vote in any referendum conducted 

6 under this section shall register with the Secretary 

7 prior to the voting period, after receiving notice from 

8 the Secretary concerning the referendum under 

9 paragraph (4). 

10 (3) VOTING.—The Secretary shall establish pro11 cedures for voting in any referendum conducted 

12 under this section. The ballots and other information 

13 or reports that reveal or tend to reveal the identity 

14 or vote of voters shall be strictly confidential. 

15 (4) NOTICE.—Not later than 30 days before a 

16 referendum is conducted under this section with re17 spect to an order, the Secretary shall notify all man18 ufacturers, in such a manner as determined by the 

19 Secretary, of the period during which voting in the 

20 referendum will occur. The notice shall explain any 

21 registration and voting procedures established under 

22 this subsection. 

23 (d) SUBSEQUENT REFERENDA.—If an order is ap24 proved in a referendum conducted under subsection (a), 

25 the Secretary shall conduct a subsequent referendum— 
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1 (1) at the request of the Board, subject to the 

2 voting requirements of subsections (b) and (c), to 

3 ascertain whether eligible manufacturers favor sus4 pension, termination, or continuance of the order; or 

5 (2) effective beginning on the date that is 5 

6 years after the date of the approval of the order, and 

7 at 5-year intervals thereafter, at the request of 25 

8 percent or more of the total number of persons eligi9 ble to vote under subsection (b). 

10 (e) SUSPENSION OR TERMINATION.—If, as a result 

11 of a referendum conducted under subsection (d), the Sec12 retary determines that suspension or termination of the 

13 order is favored by a majority of all votes cast in the ref14 erendum as provided in subsection (a)(2), the Secretary 

15 shall— 

16 (1) not later than 180 days after the ref17 erendum, suspend or terminate, as appropriate, col18 lection of assessments under the order; and 

19 (2) suspend or terminate, as appropriate, pro20 grams and projects under the order as soon as prac21 ticable and in an orderly manner. 

22 (f) COSTS OF REFERENDA.—The Board established 

23 under an order with respect to which a referendum is con24 ducted under this section shall reimburse the Secretary 
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1 from assessments for any expenses incurred by the Sec2 retary to conduct the referendum. 

3 SEC. 8. PETITION AND REVIEW. 

4 (a) PETITION.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—A person subject to an order 

6 issued under this Act may file with the Secretary a 

7 petition— 

8 (A) stating that the order, any provision of 

9 the order, or any obligation imposed in connec10 tion with the order, is not established in accord11 ance with law; and 

12 (B) requesting a modification of the order 

13 or an exemption from the order. 

14 (2) HEARING.—The Secretary shall give the pe15 titioner an opportunity for a hearing on the petition, 

16 in accordance with regulations issued by the Sec17 retary. 

18 (3) RULING.—After the hearing, the Secretary 

19 shall make a ruling on the petition. The ruling shall 

20 be final, subject to review as set forth in subsection 

21 (b). 

22 (4) LIMITATION ON PETITION.—Any petition 

23 filed under this subsection challenging an order, any 

24 provision of the order, or any obligation imposed in 

25 connection with the order, shall be filed not less than 
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1 2 years after the effective date of the order, provi2 sion, or obligation subject to challenge in the peti3 tion. 

4 (b) REVIEW.— 

5 (1) COMMENCEMENT OF ACTION.—The district 

6 courts of the United States in any district in which 

7 a person who is a petitioner under subsection (a) re8 sides or conducts business shall have jurisdiction to 

9 review the ruling of the Secretary on the petition of 

10 the person, if a complaint requesting the review is 

11 filed no later than 30 days after the date of the 

12 entry of the ruling by the Secretary. 

13 (2) PROCESS.—Service of process in pro14 ceedings under this subsection shall be conducted in 

15 accordance with the Federal Rules of Civil Proce16 dure. 

17 (3) REMANDS.—If the court in a proceeding 

18 under this subsection determines that the ruling of 

19 the Secretary on the petition of the person is not in 

20 accordance with law, the court shall remand the 

21 matter to the Secretary with directions— 

22 (A) to make such ruling as the court shall 

23 determine to be in accordance with law; or 

24 (B) to take such further action as, in the 

25 opinion the court, the law requires. 
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1 (c) ENFORCEMENT.—The pendency of proceedings 

2 instituted under this section shall not impede, hinder, or 

3 delay the Attorney General or the Secretary from obtain4 ing relief under section 9. 

5 SEC. 9. ENFORCEMENT. 

6 (a) JURISDICTION.—A district court of the United 

7 States shall have jurisdiction to enforce, and to prevent 

8 and restrain any person from violating, this Act or an 

9 order or regulation issued by the Secretary under this Act. 

10 (b) REFERRAL TO ATTORNEY GENERAL.—A civil ac11 tion authorized to be brought under this section shall be 

12 referred to the Attorney General of the United States for 

13 appropriate action. 

14 (c) CIVIL PENALTIES AND ORDERS.— 

15 (1) CIVIL PENALTIES.—A person who willfully 

16 violates an order or regulation issued by the Sec17 retary under this Act may be assessed by the Sec18 retary a civil penalty of not more than $5,000 for 

19 each violation. 

20 (2) SEPARATE OFFENSE.—Each violation and 

21 each day during which there is a failure to comply 

22 with an order or regulation issued by the Secretary 

23 shall be considered to be a separate offense. 

24 (3) CEASE-AND-DESIST ORDERS.—In addition 

25 to, or in lieu of, a civil penalty, the Secretary may 
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1 issue an order requiring a person to cease and desist 

2 from violating the order or regulation. 

3 (4) NOTICE AND HEARING.—No order assessing 

4 a penalty or cease-and-desist order may be issued by 

5 the Secretary under this subsection unless the Sec6 retary provides notice and an opportunity for a hear7 ing on the record with respect to the violation. 

8 (5) FINALITY.—An order assessing a penalty or 

9 a cease-and-desist order issued under this subsection 

10 by the Secretary shall be final and conclusive unless 

11 the person against whom the order is issued files an 

12 appeal from the order with the appropriate district 

13 court of the United States. 

14 (d) ADDITIONAL REMEDIES.—The remedies provided 

15 in this Act shall be in addition to, and not exclusive of, 

16 other remedies that may be available. 

17 SEC. 10. INVESTIGATION AND POWER TO SUBPOENA. 

18 (a) INVESTIGATIONS.—The Secretary may conduct 

19 such investigations as the Secretary considers necessary 

20 for the effective administration of this Act, or to determine 

21 whether any person has engaged or is engaging in any 

22 act that constitutes a violation of this Act or any order 

23 or regulation issued under this Act. 

24 (b) SUBPOENAS, OATHS, AND AFFIRMATIONS.— 
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1 (1) INVESTIGATIONS.—For the purpose of con2 ducting an investigation under subsection (a), the 

3 Secretary may administer oaths and affirmations, 

4 subpoena witnesses, compel the attendance of wit5 nesses, take evidence, and require the production of 

6 any records that are relevant to the inquiry. The 

7 production of the records may be required from any 

8 place in the United States. 

9 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS.—For the pur10 pose of an administrative hearing held under section 

11 8(a)(2) or section 9(c)(4), the presiding officer may 

12 administer oaths and affirmations, subpoena wit13 nesses, compel the attendance of witnesses, take evi14 dence, and require the production of any records 

15 that are relevant to the inquiry. The attendance of 

16 witnesses and the production of the records may be 

17 required from any place in the United States. 

18 (c) AID OF COURTS.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of contumacy by, 

20 or refusal to obey a subpoena issued under sub21 section (b) to, any person, the Secretary may invoke 

22 the aid of any court of the United States within the 

23 jurisdiction of which the investigation or proceeding 

24 is conducted, or where the person resides or con-
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1 ducts business, in order to enforce a subpoena issued 

2 under subsection (b). 

3 (2) ORDER.—The court may issue an order re4 quiring the person referred to in paragraph (1) to 

5 comply with a subpoena referred to in paragraph 

6 (1). 

7 (3) FAILURE TO OBEY.—Any failure to obey 

8 the order of the court may be punished by the court 

9 as a contempt of court. 

10 (4) PROCESS.—Process in any proceeding 

11 under this subsection may be served in the United 

12 States judicial district in which the person being 

13 proceeded against resides or conducts business, or 

14 wherever the person may be found. 

15 SEC. 11. SUSPENSION OR TERMINATION. 

16 (a) MANDATORY SUSPENSION OR TERMINATION.— 

17 The Secretary shall suspend or terminate an order or a 

18 provision of an order if the Secretary finds that an order 

19 or provision of an order obstructs or does not tend to ef20 fectuate the purpose of this Act, or if the Secretary deter21 mines that the order or a provision of an order is not fa22 vored by a majority of all votes cast in the referendum 

23 as provided in section 7(a)(2). 

24 (b) IMPLEMENTATION OF SUSPENSION OR TERMI25 NATION.—If, as a result of a referendum conducted under 
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1 section 7, the Secretary determines that the order is not 

2 approved, the Secretary shall— 

3 (1) not later than 180 days after making the 

4 determination, suspend or terminate, as the case 

5 may be, collection of assessments under the order; 

6 and 

7 (2) as soon as practicable, suspend or termi8 nate, as the case may be, activities under the order 

9 in an orderly manner. 

10 SEC. 12. AMENDMENTS TO ORDERS. 

11 The provisions of this Act applicable to the order 

12 shall be applicable to any amendment to the order, except 

13 that section 8 shall not apply to an amendment. 

14 SEC. 13. EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS. 

15 This Act shall not affect or preempt any other Fed16 eral or State law authorizing research, education, and pro17 motion relating to concrete masonry products. 

18 SEC. 14. REGULATIONS. 

19 The Secretary may issue such regulations as may be 

20 necessary to carry out this Act and the power vested in 

21 the Secretary under this Act. 
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1 SEC. 15. LIMITATION ON EXPENDITURES FOR ADMINISTRA2 TIVE EXPENSES. 

3 Funds appropriated to carry out this Act may not 

4 be used for the payment of the expenses or expenditures 

5 of the Board in administering the order. 

6 SEC. 16. LIMITATIONS ON OBLIGATION OF FUNDS. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—In each fiscal year of the covered 

8 period, the Board may not obligate an amount greater 

9 than the sum of— 

10 (1) 73 percent of the amount of assessments es11 timated to be collected under section 6 in such fiscal 

12 year; 

13 (2) 73 percent of the amount of assessments 

14 actually collected under section 6 in the most recent 

15 fiscal year for which an audit report has been sub16 mitted under section 5(f)(2)(B) as of the beginning 

17 of the fiscal year for which the amount that may be 

18 obligated is being determined, less the estimate 

19 made pursuant to paragraph (1) for such most re20 cent fiscal year; and 

21 (3) amounts permitted in preceding fiscal years 

22 to be obligated pursuant to this subsection that have 

23 not been obligated. 

24 (b) EXCESS AMOUNTS DEPOSITED IN ESCROW AC25 COUNT.—Assessments collected under section 6 in excess 

26 of the amount permitted to be obligated under subsection 
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1 (a) in a fiscal year shall be deposited in an escrow account 

2 for the duration of the covered period. 

3 (c) TREATMENT OF AMOUNTS IN ESCROW AC4 COUNT.—During the covered period, the Board may not 

5 obligate, expend, or borrow against amounts required 

6 under subsection (b) to be deposited in the escrow account. 

7 Any interest earned on such amounts shall be deposited 

8 in the escrow account and shall be unavailable for obliga9 tion for the duration of the covered period. 

10 (d) RELEASE OF AMOUNTS IN ESCROW ACCOUNT.— 

11 After the covered period, the Board may withdraw and 

12 obligate in any fiscal year an amount in the escrow account that does not exceed 1 13 ⁄5th of the amount in the es14 crow account on the last day of the covered period. 

15 (e) SPECIAL RULE FOR ESTIMATES FOR PARTICULAR

16 FISCAL YEARS.— 

17 (1) RULE.—For purposes of subsection (a)(1), 

18 the amount of assessments estimated to be collected 

19 under section 6 in a fiscal year specified in para20 graph (2) shall be equal to 62 percent of the amount 

21 of assessments actually collected under such section 

22 in the most recent fiscal year for which an audit re23 port has been submitted under section 5(f)(2)(B) as 

24 of the beginning of the fiscal year for which the 

25 amount that may be obligated is being determined. 
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1 (2) FISCAL YEARS SPECIFIED.—The fiscal 

2 years specified in this paragraph are the 9th and 

3 10th fiscal years that begin on or after the date of 

4 the enactment of this Act. 

5 (f) COVERED PERIOD DEFINED.—In this section, the 

6 term ‘‘covered period’’ means the period that begins on 

7 the date of the enactment of this Act and ends on the 

8 last day of the 11th fiscal year that begins on or after 

9 such date of enactment. 

10 SEC. 17. STUDY AND REPORT BY THE GOVERNMENT AC11 COUNTABILITY OFFICE. 

12 Not later than 5 years and 8 years after the date 

13 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the 

14 United States shall prepare a study and submit to Con15 gress and the Secretary a report examining— 

16 (1) how the Board spends assessments col17 lected; 

18 (2) the extent to which the Board’s reported ac19 tivities help achieve its annual objectives; 

20 (3) any changes in demand for concrete ma21 sonry products relative to other building materials; 

22 (4) any impact of the Board’s activities on the 

23 market share of competing products; 

24 (5) any impact of the Board’s activities on the 

25 overall size of the market for building products; 
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1 (6) any impact of the Board’s activities on the 

2 total number of concrete masonry related jobs, in3 cluding manufacturing, sales, and installation; 

4 (7) any significant effects of the Board’s activi5 ties on downstream purchasers of concrete masonry 

6 products and real property into which concrete ma7 sonry products are incorporated; 

8 (8) effects on prices of concrete masonry prod9 ucts as a result of the Board’s activities; 

10 (9) the cost to the federal government of an in11 crease in concrete masonry product prices, if any, as 

12 a result of the program established by this Act; 

13 (10) the extent to which key statutory require14 ments are met; 

15 (11) the extent and strength of federal over16 sight of the program established by this Act; 

17 (12) the appropriateness of administering the 

18 program from within the Office of the Secretary of 

19 Commerce and the appropriateness of administering 

20 the program from within any division of the Depart21 ment of Commerce, including whether the Depart22 ment has the expertise, knowledge, or other capabili23 ties necessary to adequately administer the program; 

24 and 
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1 (13) any other topic that the Comptroller Gen2 eral considers appropriate. 

3 SEC. 18. STUDY AND REPORT BY THE DEPARTMENT OF 

4 COMMERCE. 

5 Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment 

6 of this Act, the Secretary shall prepare a study and submit 

7 to Congress a report examining the appropriateness and 

8 effectiveness of applying the commodity check-off program 

9 model (such as those programs established under sub10 chapter II of chapter 101 of title 7, United States Code) 

11 to a nonagricultural industry, taking into account the pro12 gram established by this Act and any other check-off pro13 gram involving a nonagricultural industry. 

Passed the House of Representatives November 14, 

2016. 

Attest: 

Clerk. 
114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 985 

AN ACT 

To enable concrete masonry products manufacturkets for concrete masonry products. motion to improve, maintain, and develop mar- nated program of research, education, and pro- ers to establish, finance, and carry out a coordi-