Public Citizen Calls for Pressure on Senate to Safeguard Buy American Act
The advocacy group Public Citizen is urging constituents to pressure Senate lawmakers to prohibit funding for trade negotiations that undermine the Buy American Act, a decades-old law that requires the U.S. government to favor domestic industry for procurement purposes. The House passed on June 2 the Commerce, Justice, Science (CJS), and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for 2015, HR-4660 (here), which includes an amendment to bar such negotiations. Rep. Alan Grayson, D-Fla., offered the amendment (see 14060202).
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The Senate advanced counterpart legislation through committee on June 5 (see 14060920). The full Senate will now consider the legislation, although the specific markup date is not yet disclosed. “Buy American policies require the government to give preference to American-made products when purchases are made with our tax dollars,” said Public Citizen in an online post. “They reinvest our tax dollars in our communities, create American jobs and support our manufacturing base. The House took a step in the right direction by cutting off funding for negotiation of trade agreement terms that undo Buy America protections. Now it is up to the Senate to make this the law of the land.”