Time to Choose Act of 2022
Bill: S.4546 | Sponsor: Sen. Hawley, Josh (R-MO)
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Time to Choose Act of 2022
This bill prohibits federal contracting with consulting firms that are simultaneously contracting with China.
The bill establishes penalties (1) including termination, suspension, and debarment from eligibility for future federal contracts, for knowingly submitting a false certification or information on contracting with China; and (2) under the False Claims Act for intentionally hiding or misrepresenting contracts with China.

To prohibit conflict of interests among consulting firms that 
simultaneously contract with the Government of the People's Republic of 
    China and the United States Government, 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 ``Time to Choose Act of 2022''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The Department of Defense and other agencies in the 
        United States Government regularly award contracts to firms 
        such as Deloitte, McKinsey & Company, and others who are 
        simultaneously providing consulting services to the Government 
        of the People's Republic of China and proxies or affiliates 
        thereof.
            (2) The provision of such consulting services by firms like 
        Deloitte, McKinsey & Company, and others to entities in the 
        People's Republic of China directly supports efforts by that 
        nation's government to generate economic and military power 
        that it can then use to undermine the economic and national 
        security of the American people, including through economic 
        coercion and by threatening or using military force against us.
            (3) It is a conflict of interest for firms like Deloitte, 
        McKinsey & Company, and others to simultaneously aid in the 
        efforts of the Government of the People's Republic of China to 
        undermine the economic and national security of the United 
        States while they are simultaneously contracting with the 
        Department of Defense and other United States Government 
        agencies responsible for defending the United States from 
        foreign threats, above all from China.
            (4) Firms like Deloitte, McKinsey & Company, and others 
        should no longer be allowed to engage in such a conflict of 
        interest and should instead be required to choose between 
        aiding the efforts of the Government of the People's Republic 
        of China to harm the United States or helping the United States 
        Government to defend its citizens against such foreign 
        coercion.

SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON FEDERAL CONTRACTING WITH ENTITIES THAT ARE 
              SIMULTANEOUSLY AIDING IN THE EFFORTS OF THE PEOPLE'S 
              REPUBLIC OF CHINA TO HARM THE UNITED STATES.

    In order to end conflict of interests in Federal contracting among 
consulting firms that simultaneously contract with the United States 
Government and covered foreign entities, the Federal Acquisition 
Regulatory Council shall, not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation--
            (1) to require any entity that provides the services 
        described in the North American Industry Classification 
        System's Industry Group code 5416, prior to entering into a 
        Federal contract, to certify that neither it nor any of its 
        subsidiaries or affiliates hold a contract with one or more 
        covered foreign entities; and
            (2) to prohibit Federal contracts from being awarded to an 
        entity that provides the services described under the North 
        American Industry Classification System's Industry Group code 
        5416 if the entity or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates are 
        determined, based on the self-certification required under 
        paragraph (1) or other information, to be a contractor of, or 
        otherwise providing services to, a covered foreign entity.

SEC. 4. PENALTIES FOR FALSE INFORMATION ON CONTRACTING WITH THE 
              PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA.

    (a) Termination, Suspension, and Debarment.--If the head of an 
executive agency determines that a consulting firm described in section 
3 has knowingly submitted a false certification or information on or 
after the date on which the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council 
amends the Federal Acquisition Regulation pursuant to such section, the 
head of the executive agency shall terminate the contract with the 
consulting firm and consider suspending or debarring the firm from 
eligibility for future Federal contracts in accordance with subpart 9.4 
of the Federal Acquisition Regulation.
    (b) False Claims Act.--A consulting firm described in section 3 
that, for the purposes of the False Claims Act, intentionally hides or 
misrepresents one or more contracts with covered foreign entities shall 
be subject to the penalties and corrective actions described in the 
False Claims Act, including liability for three times the amount of 
damages which the United States Government sustains, including funds or 
other resources expended on or in support of the solicitation, 
selection, and performance of such contracts.

SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Covered foreign entity.--The term ``covered foreign 
        entity'' means--
                    (A) a person, business trust, business association, 
                company, institution, government agency, university, 
                partnership, limited liability company, corporation, or 
                any other individual or organization that can legally 
                enter into contracts, own properties, or pay taxes on 
                behalf of, the Government of the People's Republic of 
                China;
                    (B) the Chinese Communist Party;
                    (C) the People's Republic of China's United Front;
                    (D) an entity owned or controlled by, or that 
                performs activities on behalf of, a person or entity 
                described in subparagraph (A), (B), or (C); and
                    (E) an individual that is a member of the board of 
                directors, an executive officer, or a senior official 
                of an entity described in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), 
                or (D).
            (2) Executive agency.--The term ``executive agency'' has 
        the meaning given the term in section 133 of title 41, United 
        States Code.
            (3) False claims act.--The term ``False Claims Act'' means 
        sections 3729 through 3733 of title 31, United States Code.
            (4) North american industry classification system's 
        industry group code 5416.--The term ``North American Industry 
        Classification System's Industry Group code 5416'' refers to 
        the North American Industry Classification System category that 
        covers Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting 
        Services as Industry Group code 5416, including industry codes 
        54151, 541611, 541612, 541613, 541614, 541618, 54162, 541620, 
        54169, 541690.
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