I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1185 
To amend titles 10 and 41, United States Code, to provide a contracting 
preference for contractors that retain American jobs and purchase goods 
and services in the United States, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 16, 2017 
Mr. RYAN of Ohio introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the 
Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently deter-
mined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 
as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To amend titles 10 and 41, United States Code, to provide 
a contracting preference for contractors that retain 
American jobs and purchase goods and services in the 
United States, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Retain Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds the following: 
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(1) Hundreds of American corporations are 
shipping thousands of jobs to foreign countries. 
(2) United States companies either send Amer-
ican jobs overseas, or choose to employ cheap over-
seas labor, instead of American workers. 
(3) Shifting of jobs occurs in all industry sec-
tors including manufacturing, services, supply chain, 
and all others. 
SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS. 
(a) CIVILIAN AGENCY CONTRACTS.— 
(1) AMENDMENT.—Chapter 47 of title 41, 
United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following new section: 
‘‘§ 4713. Preference for keeping jobs in the United 
States 
‘‘(a) PREFERENCE.—The head of an executive agen-
cy shall give a preference for an offeror that certifies to 
retain jobs performed in the United States (regardless of 
the citizenship of the employee) and uses products sub-
stantially manufactured in the United States and services 
provided in the United States for the contract for which 
an offer is made. 
‘‘(b) APPLICABILITY TO SUBCONTRACTS.—The pref-
erence described under subsection (a) applies to the award 
of a contract by an executive agency and the award of 
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any subcontract (at any tier) in the performance of such 
contract. 
‘‘(c) CERTIFICATION.—To be eligible for the pref-
erence described under subsection (a), an offeror shall 
submit a certification that confirms the offeror and any 
subcontractor (if applicable)— 
‘‘(1) has not relocated jobs from the United 
States to foreign countries in the preceding five 
years; 
‘‘(2) has not established foreign facilities to per-
form the same function that otherwise could have 
been performed in the United States with the inten-
tion of manufacturing or providing the same service 
and importing the same product or service back to 
the United States; 
‘‘(3) will not relocate jobs from the United 
States to foreign countries during the period of per-
formance of the contract; and 
‘‘(4) will use products substantially manufac-
tured in the United States and services provided in 
the United States under the contract. 
‘‘(d) EXCEPTION
TO
CERTIFICATION.—Notwith-
standing the requirements of the certification described 
under subsection (c), the head of an executive agency may 
except an offeror from any of the requirements if the ex-
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ception is fully described and justified and one or more 
of the following conditions apply: 
‘‘(1) The products are not manufactured in the 
United States in sufficient and reasonably available 
commercial quantities and are not of satisfactory 
quality. 
‘‘(2) There is an unreasonable cost associated 
with the use of products substantially manufactured 
in the United States or services provided in the 
United States. 
‘‘(3) The use of products substantially manu-
factured in the United States or services provided in 
the United States would be inconsistent with the 
public interest. 
‘‘(e) VIOLATION OF CERTIFICATION.—If the head of 
an executive agency determines that a contractor has sub-
mitted a false statement or violated any of the require-
ments of the certification described in subsection (c), the 
head of that executive agency shall terminate the contract 
for which the contractor received the preference described 
in subsection (a) and the contractor may not receive the 
preference for a period of not less than 5 years. 
‘‘(f) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than November 
1 of each year, the head of an executive agency shall sub-
mit to Congress a report that includes the names of the 
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contractors that have submitted a false statement or vio-
lated any of the requirements of the certification described 
in subsection (c) for the previous fiscal year. 
‘‘(g) APPLICABILITY TO PARENT COMPANIES AND 
SUBSIDIARIES.—For purposes of this section, any prohibi-
tion on receiving a preference under subsection (e) applied 
with respect to a contractor shall apply to any subsidiary 
or parent company of the contractor.’’. 
(2) TECHNICAL
AND
CONFORMING
AMEND-
MENT.—The table of sections at the beginning of 
chapter 47 of title 41, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following new 
item: 
‘‘4713. Preference for keeping jobs in the United States.’’. 
(b) DEFENSE CONTRACTS.— 
(1) AMENDMENT.—Chapter 137 of title 10, 
United States Code, is amended by inserting after 
section 2316 the following new section: 
‘‘§ 2317. Preference for keeping jobs in the United 
States 
‘‘(a) PREFERENCE.—The head of an agency shall 
give a preference for an offeror that certifies to retain jobs 
performed in the United States (regardless of the citizen-
ship of the employee) in the United States and uses prod-
ucts substantially manufactured in the United States and 
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services provided in the United States for the contract for 
which an offer is made. 
‘‘(b) APPLICABILITY TO SUBCONTRACTS.—The pref-
erence described under subsection (a) applies to the award 
of a contract by any agency named in section 2303 of this 
chapter and the award of any subcontract (at any tier) 
in the performance of such contract. 
‘‘(c) CERTIFICATION.—To be eligible for the pref-
erence described under subsection (a), an offeror shall 
submit a certification that confirms the offeror and any 
subcontractor (if applicable)— 
‘‘(1) has not relocated jobs from the United 
States to foreign countries in the preceding five 
years; 
‘‘(2) has not established foreign facilities to per-
form the same function that otherwise could have 
been performed in the United States with the inten-
tion of manufacturing or providing the same service 
and importing the same product or service back to 
the United States; 
‘‘(3) will not relocate jobs from the United 
States to foreign countries during the period of per-
formance of the contract; and 
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‘‘(4) will use products substantially manufac-
tured in the United States and services provided in 
the United States under the contract. 
‘‘(d) EXCEPTION
TO
CERTIFICATION.—Notwith-
standing the requirements of the certification described 
under subsection (c), the head of an agency may except 
an offeror from any of the requirements if the exception 
is fully described and justified and one or more of the fol-
lowing conditions apply: 
‘‘(1) The products are not manufactured in the 
United States in sufficient and reasonably available 
commercial quantities and are not of satisfactory 
quality. 
‘‘(2) There is an unreasonable cost associated 
with the use of products substantially manufactured 
in the United States or services provided in the 
United States. 
‘‘(3) The use of products substantially manu-
factured in the United States or services provided in 
the United States would be inconsistent with the 
public interest. 
‘‘(e) VIOLATION OF CERTIFICATION.—If the head of 
an agency determines that a contractor has submitted a 
false statement or violated any of the requirements of the 
certification described in subsection (c), the head of that 
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agency shall terminate the contract for which the con-
tractor received the preference described in subsection (a) 
and the contractor may not receive the preference for a 
period of not less than 5 years. 
‘‘(f) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than November 
1 of each year, the head of an agency shall submit to Con-
gress a report that includes the names of the contractors 
that have submitted a false statement or violated any of 
the requirements of the certification described in sub-
section (c) for the previous fiscal year. 
‘‘(g) APPLICABILITY TO PARENT COMPANIES AND 
SUBSIDIARIES.—For purposes of this section, any prohibi-
tion on receiving a preference under subsection (e) applied 
with respect to a contractor shall apply to any subsidiary 
or parent company of the contractor.’’. 
(2) TECHNICAL
AND
CONFORMING
AMEND-
MENT.—The table of sections at the beginning of 
chapter 137 of title 10, United States Code, is 
amended by inserting after the item relating to sec-
tion 2316 the following new item: 
‘‘2317. Preference for keeping jobs in the United States.’’. 
(c) REVISION OF FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULA-
TION.—The Federal Acquisition Regulation shall be re-
vised to implement the amendment made by this section. 
(d) EFFECTIVE DATE; APPLICABILITY.—The amend-
ments made by this section shall take effect on the date 
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of the enactment of this Act and shall apply with respect 
to any contract awarded on or after the date occurring 
180 days after such effective date. 
Æ 
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