Title: Pandemic Production Act
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Pandemic Production Act
This bill authorizes the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to take actions to develop and maintain the capabilities of domestic industries to produce materials necessary for the pandemic response strategy of the United States. It also establishes the Pandemic Production Act Fund to support these efforts. Among other activities, HHS may purchase, or commit to purchase, essential medical technologies and related materials and install equipment in, or otherwise modify, government-owned or privately owned industrial facilities to support domestic production capacity.
Before using these authorities, HHS generally must make specific determinations and findings related to the necessity of the action but may waive these requirements during a declared national emergency.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6793 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6793

  To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to create, 
    maintain, protect, expand, or restore domestic industrial base 
    capabilities essential for pandemic preparedness, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 8, 2020

 Mrs. Trahan (for herself, Mr. Pappas, and Mr. Malinowski) introduced 
 the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                                Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to create, 
    maintain, protect, expand, or restore domestic industrial base 
    capabilities essential for pandemic preparedness, 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 ``Pandemic Production Act''.

SEC. 2. EXPANSION OF PRODUCTIVE CAPACITY AND SUPPLY RELATED TO PANDEMIC 
              PREPAREDNESS.

    (a) Secretarial Authorization for Pandemic Preparedness.--
            (1) In general.--To create, maintain, protect, expand, or 
        restore domestic industrial base capabilities essential for 
        pandemic preparedness, the Secretary shall make provision--
                    (A) for purchases of or commitments to purchase 
                essential medical technology, including vaccines, and 
                related materials, including personal protective 
                equipment;
                    (B) for the encouragement of production of 
                essential medical technology and related materials;
                    (C) for the development and maintenance of 
                production capabilities; and
                    (D) for the increased use of emerging technologies 
                in biological, chemical, and radiological security 
                program applications and the rapid transition of 
                emerging technologies--
                            (i) from Government-sponsored research and 
                        development to commercial applications; and
                            (ii) from commercial research and 
                        development to pandemic preparedness 
                        applications.
            (2) Secretarial determinations.--Except as provided in 
        paragraph (4), the Secretary may not execute a contract under 
        this subsection unless the Secretary determines, with 
        appropriate explanatory material and in writing to the 
        Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate 
        and the Committee on Financial Services of the House of 
        Representatives, that--
                    (A) the essential medical technology or related 
                materials is essential to the pandemic response 
                strategy of the United States;
                    (B) without Secretarial action under this section, 
                the United States industry cannot reasonably be 
                expected to provide consistently the capability for the 
                needed essential medical technology or related 
                materials in a timely manner; and
                    (C) purchases, purchase commitments, or other 
                action pursuant to this section are the most cost 
                effective, expedient, and practical alternative method 
                for meeting the need.
            (3) Notification to congress of shortfall.--
                    (A) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph 
                (4), the Secretary shall provide written notice to the 
                Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the 
                Senate and the Committee on Financial Services of the 
                House of Representatives of a domestic industrial base 
                shortfall prior to taking action under this subsection 
                to remedy the shortfall. The notice shall include the 
                determinations made by the Secretary under paragraph 
                (2).
                    (B) Aggregate amounts.--If the taking of any action 
                under this subsection to correct a domestic industrial 
                base shortfall would cause the aggregate outstanding 
                amount of all such actions for such shortfall to exceed 
                $5,000,000 within a five year period, the action or 
                actions may be taken only after the 30-day period 
                following the date on which the Committee on Banking, 
                Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate and the 
                Committee on Financial Services of the House of 
                Representatives have been notified in writing of the 
                proposed action.
            (4) Waiver authorized.--The Secretary may waive the 
        requirements of paragraphs (1) through (3) during a period of 
        national emergency declared by an Act of Congress or the 
        President.
    (b) Secretarial Findings.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary may take the actions 
        described in paragraph (2), if the Secretary finds--
                    (A) under generally fair and equitable ceiling 
                prices, for any raw or nonprocessed material, there 
                will result a decrease in supplies from high-cost 
                sources of such material, and that the continuation of 
                such supplies is necessary to carry out the objectives 
                of this section; or
                    (B) an increase in cost of transportation is 
                temporary in character and threatens to impair maximum 
                production or supply in any area at stable prices of 
                any materials.
            (2) Subsidy payments authorized.--Upon a finding under 
        paragraph (1), the Secretary may make provision for subsidy 
        payments on any such domestically produced material in such 
        amounts and in such manner (including purchases of such 
        material and its resale at a loss), and on such terms and 
        conditions, as the Secretary determines to be necessary to 
        ensure that supplies from such high-cost sources are continued, 
        or that maximum production or supply in such area at stable 
        prices of such materials is maintained, as the case may be.
    (c) Incidental Authority.--The procurement power granted to the 
Secretary by this section shall include the power to transport and 
store and have processed and refined any materials procured under this 
section.
    (d) Installation of Equipment in Industrial Facilities.--If the 
Secretary determines that such action will aid the pandemic response 
strategy of the United States, the Secretary is authorized--
            (1) to procure and install additional equipment, 
        facilities, processes, or improvements to plants, factories, 
        and other industrial facilities owned by the Federal 
        Government;
            (2) to procure and install equipment owned by the Federal 
        Government in plants, factories, and other industrial 
        facilities owned by private persons;
            (3) to provide for the modification or expansion of 
        privately owned facilities, including the modification or 
        improvement of production processes; and
            (4) to sell or otherwise transfer equipment owned by the 
        Federal Government and installed under this subsection to the 
        owners of such plants, factories, or other industrial 
        facilities.
    (e) Excess Essential Medical Technology, Including Vaccines, and 
Related Materials, Including Personal Protective Equipment.--
Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, essential 
medical technology, including vaccines, and related materials, 
including personal protective equipment acquired pursuant to this 
section which, in the judgment of the Secretary, are excess to the 
needs of programs under this section, shall be transferred to the 
Strategic National Stockpile, when the Secretary deems such action to 
be in the public interest.
    (f) Substitutes.--When, in the judgement of the Secretary, it will 
aid pandemic preparedness, the Secretary may make provision for the 
development of substitutes for strategic and critical materials, 
critical components, critical technology items, and other industrial 
resources.
    (g) Pandemic Production Act Fund.--
            (1) Establishment of fund.--There is established in the 
        Treasury of the United States a separate fund to be known as 
        the ``Pandemic Production Act Fund'' (in this subsection 
        referred to as the ``Fund'').
            (2) Moneys in fund.--There shall be credited to the Fund--
                    (A) all moneys appropriated for the Fund, as 
                authorized by subsection (i); and
                    (B) all moneys received by the Fund on transactions 
                entered into pursuant to this section.
            (3) Use of fund.--The Fund shall be available to carry out 
        the provisions and purposes of this section subject to the 
        limitations set forth in this section and in appropriations 
        Acts.
            (4) Duration of fund.--Moneys in the Fund shall remain 
        available until expended.
            (5) Fund manager.--The Secretary shall designate a Fund 
        manager. The duties of the Fund manager shall include--
                    (A) determining the liability of the Fund in 
                accordance with paragraph (6);
                    (B) ensuring the visibility and accountability of 
                transactions engaged in through the Fund; and
                    (C) reporting to the Congress regarding activities 
                of the Fund--
                            (i) quarterly, with respect to the previous 
                        quarter; or
                            (ii) weekly, during a period of national 
                        emergency declared by an Act of Congress or the 
                        President, with respect to the previous week.
            (6) Liabilities against fund.--When any agreement entered 
        into pursuant to this section imposes any contingent liability 
        upon the United States, such liability shall be considered an 
        obligation against the Fund.
    (h) Delegation of Authority.--The Secretary may only delegate 
authority under this section to the Assistant Secretary for 
Preparedness and Response and such Assistant Secretary may not further 
delegate such authority.
    (i) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2020 and 
each fiscal year thereafter for the carrying out of the provisions and 
purposes of this section.
    (j) Definitions.--For purposes of this section, the following 
definitions shall apply:
            (1) Critical component.--The term ``critical component'' 
        includes such components, subsystems, systems, and related 
        special tooling and test equipment essential to the production, 
        repair, maintenance, or operation of biological, chemical, and 
        radiological security program applications or other items of 
        equipment identified by the Secretary as being essential to the 
        execution of a pandemic response strategy of the United States.
            (2) Critical technology.--The term ``critical technology'' 
        includes any technology designated by the Secretary to be 
        essential to the execution of a pandemic response strategy of 
        the United States.
            (3) Critical technology item.--The term ``critical 
        technology item'' means materials directly employing, derived 
        from, or utilizing a critical technology.
            (4) Domestic industrial base.--The term ``domestic 
        industrial base'' means domestic sources which are providing, 
        or which would be reasonably expected to provide, materials or 
        services to meet national pandemic response requirements during 
        peacetime or national emergency.
            (5) Domestic source.--The term ``domestic source'' means a 
        business concern--
                    (A) that performs in the United States 
                substantially all of the research and development, 
                engineering, manufacturing, and production activities 
                required of such business concern under a contract with 
                the United States relating to a critical component or a 
                critical technology item; and
                    (B) that procures from business concerns described 
                in subparagraph (A) substantially all of any components 
                and assemblies required under a contract with the 
                United States relating to a critical component or 
                critical technology item.
            (6) Facilities.--The term ``facilities'' includes all types 
        of buildings, structures, or other improvements to real 
        property (but excluding farms, churches or other places of 
        worship, and private dwelling houses), and services relating to 
        the use of any such building, structure, or other improvement.
            (7) Industrial resources.--The term ``industrial 
        resources'' means materials, services, processes, or 
        manufacturing equipment (including the processes, technologies, 
        and ancillary services for the use of such equipment) needed to 
        establish or maintain an efficient and modern national pandemic 
        response industrial base.
            (8) Materials.--The term ``materials'' includes--
                    (A) any raw materials (including minerals, metals, 
                and advanced processed materials), commodities, 
                articles, components (including critical components), 
                products, and items of supply; and
                    (B) any technical information or services ancillary 
                to the use of any such materials, commodities, 
                articles, components, products, or items.
            (9) Pandemic response strategy of the united states.--The 
        Secretary shall defined the term ``pandemic response strategy 
        of the United States''.
            (10) Person.--The term ``person'' includes an individual, 
        corporation, partnership, association, or any other organized 
        group of persons, or legal successor or representative thereof, 
        or any State or local government or agency thereof.
            (11) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Health and Human Services.
            (12) Services.--The term ``services'' includes any effort 
        that is needed for or incidental to--
                    (A) the development, production, processing, 
                distribution, delivery, or use of an industrial 
                resource or a critical technology item;
                    (B) the construction of facilities; or
                    (C) the movement of individuals and property by all 
                modes of civil transportation.
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