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Home > BizTimes Daily > Archives > February 15, 2007
Feingold urges feds to 'Buy American'
Published February 15, 2007 - BizTimes Daily
U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) introduced several new bills this week, including the reintroduction of his Buy American Improvement Act.
The legislation would strengthen the Buy American Act of 1933, which requires the federal government to buy American-made goods whenever possible.
"Over more than five years, Wisconsinites have lost tens of thousands of manufacturing jobs, largely because of unfair trade agreements and questionable trade policies," Feingold said. "By purchasing American-made goods whenever possible, our federal government will send a simple message to American workers: We support you."
Under the Buy American Act, the federal government is supposed to support American manufacturers and American workers by buying goods made in the United States, but the law is full of loopholes that give agencies broad discretion to waive the requirement, Feingold said.
The Buy American Improvement Act will strengthen American manufacturing by making it harder to waive the Buy American requirement, he said. The bill also makes the Senate, House of Representatives and Architect of the Capitol subject to the Buy American Act for the first time.
The bill builds on Feingold's efforts to require federal agencies to report to Congress about foreign purchases. Feingold successfully pushed provisions that were enacted to require all federal departments and agencies to report to Congress and the American people on the amount of foreign-made goods that they purchase in fiscal years 2004, 2005, and 2006.
"The federal government needs to be held accountable about whether it is doing enough to support hard-working Americans," Feingold said. "I can think of no simpler message of support for American workers than to use their taxpayer dollars to support American jobs."
