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104TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2779
To provide for soft-metric conversion, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
DECEMBER 14, 1995
Mr. COX of California (for himself, Mr. HEFNER, Mr. CHAMBLISS, Mr.
FORBES, Mr. GOODLATTE, Mr. HILLEARY, Mr. JONES, Mr. LATHAM, Mr.
LINDER, Mr. ROHRABACHER, Mr. SHADEGG, Mr. SPRATT, Mr. TAYLOR
of North Carolina, and Mr. WICKER) introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on Science
A BILL
To provide for soft-metric conversion, 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 ‘‘Savings in Construc-
tion Act of 1995’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) The Metric Conversion Act of 1975 was en-
acted in order to set forth the policy of the United
States to convert to the metric system. Section 3 of
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that Act requires that each Federal agency use the
metric system of measurement in its procurements,
grants and other business related activities, unless
that use is likely to cause significant cost or loss of
markets to United States firms, such as when for-
eign competitors are producing competing products
in non-metric units.
(2) Currently, many Federal construction con-
tracting officers are requiring as a condition of ob-
taining Federal contracts that all bidders must agree
to use products measured in round metric units, ma-
terials which are known as ‘‘hard-metric’’ products.
This requires retooling, substantial capitalization
costs, and other expensive production changes for
most construction firms and suppliers to physically
change the size of the product.
(3) This ‘‘hard-metric’’ conversion requirement
is often being imposed only for the purpose of
achieving rounded numbers, and without regard to
whether that method is impractical or likely to cause
significant costs or a loss of markets to United
States firms.
(4) United States businesses that manufacture
basic construction products suffer great upheaval by
being forced to either convert to hard-metric produc-
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tion, or be foreclosed from effectively bidding on
Federal or federally assisted projects.
(5) This ‘‘hard-metric’’ conversion requirement
places domestic producers at a competitive disadvan-
tage with respect to foreign producers; reduces the
number of companies that may compete for con-
tracts with the Federal Government; and forces
manufacturers to maintain double inventories of
similar but incompatible products.
(6) This ‘‘hard-metric’’ conversion requirement
raises the cost to taxpayers of Federal construction
projects, since the Federal Government is often re-
quired to pay additional costs, known as a ‘‘metric
premium,’’ to procure hard-metric products.
(7) ‘‘Soft-metric’’ conversion would be a less
costly and less intrusive way of meeting the goals of
Section 3 of the Metric Conversion Act of 1975. The
product itself would remain the same size; its dimen-
sions simply would be expressed in metric units.
(8) As the application of the soft-metric conver-
sion mandates no change in the size of the product,
the goals of the Metric Conversion Act of 1975 will
be achieved without excessive economic upheaval.
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SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
Section 4 of the Metric Conversion Act of 1975 (15
U.S.C. 205c) is amended—
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (2), (3), and
(4) as paragraphs (3), (6), and (8), respectively;
(2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the follow-
ing new paragraph:
‘‘(2) ‘domestic manufacturer’ means a manufac-
turer at least 51 percent of whose production occurs
in the United States;’’;
(3) by inserting after paragraph (3), as so re-
designated by paragraph (1) of this section, the fol-
lowing new paragraphs:
‘‘(4) ‘hard-metric product’ means a material or
product that is—
‘‘(A) produced as a result of a hard-metric
conversion; or
‘‘(B) identical to a material or product de-
scribed in subparagraph (A), although originally
produced in metric-based dimensions;
‘‘(5) ‘hard-metric conversion’ means a conver-
sion that requires, in addition to the expression of
the dimensions of a product under the metric system
of measurement, a physical change in the size of
that product relative to the size of that product es-
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tablished under existing production practices of the
appropriate industry;’’;
(4) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph
(6), as so redesignated by paragraph (1) of this sec-
tion;
(5) by inserting after paragraph (6), as so re-
designated by paragraph (1) of this section, the fol-
lowing new paragraph:
‘‘(7) ‘industry’ has the meaning provided that
term by the Board by regulation;’’;
(6) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (8), as so redesignated by paragraph (1) of
this section, and inserting in lieu thereof a semi-
colon; and
(7) by adding at the end the following new
paragraphs:
‘‘(9) ‘soft-metric product’ means a material or
product that is produced as a result of a soft-metric
conversion;
‘‘(10) ‘soft-metric conversion’ means a conver-
sion that requires the expression of the dimensions
of a product under the metric system of measure-
ment without changing the physical size of the prod-
uct relative to the size of that product established
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under existing production practices of the appro-
priate industry; and
‘‘(11) ‘small business’ means a business that
would be a small business under the Standard In-
dustrial Classification codes and size standards in
section 121.601 of title 13 of the Code of Federal
Regulations as in effect on the date of the enact-
ment of this paragraph.’’.
SEC. 4. METRIC CONVERSION.
Section 12 of the Metric Conversion Act of 1975 (15
U.S.C. 205j–1) is amended by striking subsection (b) and
inserting in lieu thereof the following new subsections:
‘‘(b) No agency of the Federal Government may de-
velop, implement, or continue the use of construction de-
sign or procurement guidelines that require the use of a
hard-metric product if a majority of the contracts that
would be proposed pursuant to such guidelines would be
likely to result in a certification described in subsection
(c)(3)(A).
‘‘(c) No agency of the Federal Government may es-
tablish or apply a bidding requirement or preference with
respect to any federally assisted construction contract that
specifies the use of a hard-metric product if—
‘‘(1) the use of soft-metric product is techno-
logically feasible; and
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‘‘(2) an appropriate representative (as selected
pursuant to subsection (d) of the industry that man-
ufactures the product) notifies the agency, within 30
days after enactment of this Act, that the represent-
ative makes certification or intends to make certifi-
cation under paragraph (3)(A); and either—
‘‘(3) the certification establishes or will estab-
lish that—
‘‘(A) such industry-specific or product-spe-
cific factors exist that—
‘‘(i)(I) the product is not readily avail-
able as a hard-metric product from 50 per-
cent or more of the domestic manufactur-
ers in the United States; or
‘‘(II) a hard-metric product does not
constitute 50 percent or more of the total
production of that product by that indus-
try;
‘‘(ii) a hard-metric conversion would
require domestic manufacturers that are
small businesses that produce the product
to incur capital outlays in an average
amount greater than $25,000 per manu-
facturer to invest in new equipment to
produce a hard-metric product; and
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‘‘(iii)(I) based on the economic situa-
tion and customs of the industry, any po-
tential offsetting benefits that could be
achieved by that industry by carrying out
a hard metric conversion to produce that
product would be negligible or
‘‘(II) hard metric conversion would
substantially reduce competition for Fed-
eral contracts and increase by 1 percent or
more the per unit cost of that product; or
‘‘(III) hard metric conversion would
create a special hardship with respect to
domestic manufacturers that are small
businesses by placing those manufacturers
at a competitive disadvantage with respect
to foreign competitors; or
‘‘(4) less that 180 days have elapsed after the
appropriate representative has been notified of a
proposed contract specifying hard-metric product.
‘‘(d) The head of each agency of the Federal Govern-
ment shall establish a list of appropriate representatives
of each industry that may make a certification under sub-
section (c)(3)(A). The agency head shall update that list
on an annual basis. The list shall include appropriate pro-
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fessional or trade associations that are recognized as rep-
resenting the industries.
‘‘(e) When an appropriate representative submits a
certification under subsection (c)(3)(A), the representative
shall also submit a list of domestic manufacturers that
have the capability to manufacture the product that is the
subject of the certification as a soft-metric product.’’.
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