House Passes Bill to Study Expanding Berry Amendment to Include ‘Allowance’ Clothing
On April 28, 2010, the House passed a measure to require the Defense Department Comptroller General to conduct a study to determine if there is sufficient domestic production to expand the Berry Amendment to include additional apparel.
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The bill H.R. 5013, the Implementing Management for Performance and Related Reforms to Obtain Value in Every Acquisition Act of 2010, will now be considered in the Senate; however, no timeframe for Senate consideration has yet been established.
Berry Amendment Requires DOD Preference for U.S. Goods
The Berry Amendment requires DOD to give preference in its procurement to domestically-produced products, particularly with regard to the purchase of food, clothing, fabrics, and specialty metals. These domestic source restrictions were passed by Congress in 1941 to protect the U.S. industrial base during wartime.
Apparel purchased with clothing allowance not currently covered. The DOD requirement to give purchasing preference to items made in the U.S. does not extend to apparel purchased by service members using a clothing allowance (apparel items that must be purchased because they are not directly issued by DOD).
Bill Would Require Study of Feasibility of Including Clothing Allowance Apparel Items
As passed by the House, H.R. 5013 would require a study of whether it is practical to expand the Berry Amendment’s requirements to clothing that is purchased with the clothing allowance. Specifically, the bill would require the DOD Comptroller General to determine if there is sufficient domestic production of such items to adequately supply members of the Armed Forces.
DOD to report to Congress within six months. Not later than six months after receiving the results of the study, the bill would require DOD to send an evaluation to Congress on whether the items that were the subject of the study should be included in the scope of the Berry Amendment.
Text of H.R. 5013 as passed by the House is available at http://www.thomas.gov/home/gpoxmlc111/h5013_eh.xml.