I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5147 
To prohibit the Secretary of Defense from procuring personal protective 
equipment from certain non-allied foreign nations, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
AUGUST 31, 2021 
Mr. WITTMAN introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Armed Services 
A BILL 
To prohibit the Secretary of Defense from procuring personal 
protective equipment from certain non-allied foreign na-
tions, 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. PROHIBITION ON PROCUREMENT OF PER-
SONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT FROM NON- 
ALLIED FOREIGN NATIONS. 
(a) PROHIBITION.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Chapter 137 of title 10, 
United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following new section: 
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‘‘§ 2339d. Prohibition on procurement of personal 
protective equipment and certain other 
items from non-allied foreign nations 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 
(c), the Secretary of Defense may not procure any covered 
item from any covered nation. 
‘‘(b) APPLICABILITY.—Subsection (a) shall apply to 
prime contracts and subcontracts at any tier. 
‘‘(c) EXCEPTIONS.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—Subsection (a) does not 
apply under the following circumstances: 
‘‘(A) If the Secretary of Defense deter-
mines that covered materials of satisfactory 
quality and quantity, in the required form, can-
not be procured as and when needed from na-
tions other than covered nations to meet re-
quirements at a reasonable price. 
‘‘(B) The procurement of a covered item 
for use outside of the United States. 
‘‘(C) Purchases for amounts not greater 
than $150,000. 
‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—A proposed purchase or 
contract for an amount greater than $150,000 may 
not be divided into several purchases or contracts for 
lesser amounts in order to qualify for this exception. 
‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
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‘‘(1) COVERED ITEM.—The term ‘covered item’ 
means an article or item of— 
‘‘(A) personal protective equipment for use 
in preventing spread of disease, such as by ex-
posure to infected individuals or contamination 
or infection by infectious material (including 
surgical masks, respirator masks and powered 
air purifying respirators and required filters, 
face shields and protective eyewear, surgical 
and isolation gowns, and head and foot cov-
erings) or clothing, and the materials and com-
ponents thereof, other than sensors, electronics, 
or other items added to and not normally asso-
ciated with such personal protective equipment 
or clothing; or 
‘‘(B) sanitizing and disinfecting wipes, 
testing swabs, gauze, and bandages. 
‘‘(2) COVERED NATION.—The term ‘covered na-
tion’ means— 
‘‘(A) the Democratic People’s Republic of 
North Korea; 
‘‘(B) the People’s Republic of China; 
‘‘(C) the Russian Federation; and 
‘‘(D) the Islamic Republic of Iran.’’. 
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(2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec-
tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended 
by inserting after the item relating to section 2339c 
the following: 
‘‘2339d. Prohibition on procurement of personal protective equipment and cer-
tain other items from non-allied foreign nations.’’. 
(b) FUTURE TRANSFER.— 
(1) TRANSFER AND REDESIGNATION.—Section 
2339d of title 10, United States Code, as added by 
subsection (a), is transferred to subchapter I of 
chapter 283 of such title, added after section 3881, 
as transferred and redesignated by section 1837(b) 
of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National De-
fense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (Pub-
lic Law 116–283), and redesignated as section 3882. 
(2) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.— 
(A) TARGET
CHAPTER
TABLE
OF
SEC-
TIONS.—The table of sections at the beginning 
of chapter 283 of title 10, United States Code, 
as added by section 1837(a) of the William M. 
(Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authoriza-
tion Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (Public Law 
116–283), is amended by inserting after the 
item related to section 3881 the following new 
item: 
‘‘3882. Prohibition on procurement of personal protective equipment and certain 
other items from non-allied foreign nations.’’. 
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(B) ORIGIN
CHAPTER
TABLE
OF
SEC-
TIONS.—The table of sections at the beginning 
of chapter 137 of title 10, United States Code, 
as amended by subsection (a), is further 
amended by striking the item relating to section 
2339d. 
(3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The transfer, redesig-
nation, and amendments made by this subsection 
shall take effect on January 1, 2022. 
(4) REFERENCES; SAVINGS
PROVISION; RULE 
OF CONSTRUCTION.—Sections 1883 through 1885 of 
the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (Public Law 
116–283) shall apply with respect to the transfers, 
redesignations, and amendments made under this 
subsection as if such transfers, redesignations, and 
amendments were made under title XVIII of such 
Act. 
Æ 
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