CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE MANUFACTURING FEASIBILITY ACT

On 2026-09-23, Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) delivered a floor speech titled "CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE MANUFACTURING FEASIBILITY ACT" in the Senate.

CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE MANUFACTURING FEASIBILITY ACT

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 151 (Wednesday, September 23, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 151 (Wednesday, September 23, 2026)] [Senate] [Page S4892] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE MANUFACTURING FEASIBILITY ACT Ms. ERNST. Mr. President, I want to thank my colleague from Delaware for bringing up our Iowa State Cyclones and our University of Iowa Hawkeyes. We had the Cy-Hawk game just 2 weekends ago. Unfortunately, my Cyclones fell to the Iowa Hawkeyes. But God bless Coach Kirk Ferentz and his Iowa Hawkeyes. It was another great game for all of Iowa. Mr. President, I am here today to talk a little bit more about our national and economic security of the United States. This has really been the focus of my career--protecting that national and economic security. In 1940, the United States became the ``Arsenal of Democracy,'' and our country came together to quickly accelerate production of weapons, vehicles, food, and supplies that enabled the allies to defeat the axis powers. Americans in factories, farms, small businesses, and across the country did what was necessary to make what was needed. Instead of internalizing the lesson that our ability to make these critical items in the United States led to great success, we spent much of the last 50 years off-shoring our jobs and our manufacturing capabilities. This is something China, Russia, and other nefarious actors around the world have been all too happy to accommodate and to take on themselves. Today, we have only one active facility producing cannon barrels. Today, we rely 100 percent on foreign sources for 12 critical minerals essential to our military and our economy. During COVID, we saw what happened when supply chains are strained. There was a global shortage of microchips, which upended manufacturers' ability to make everything from cars to computers. At the same time, moms in the Midwest had to worry about finding baby formula due to supply chain issues at both the production and shipping levels. Put simply: We have lost the ability to make what we need right here at home. In the event of a conflict with one of our near-peer adversaries, supply chains will be challenged, and the United States will have to make what it needs. Thank goodness President Trump, his administration, and Congress have been taking steps to put us on the right track and bring back the manufacturing capabilities we need here at home. My bipartisan Critical Infrastructure Manufacturing Feasibility Act builds on these efforts. My bill, which has already passed the Senate unanimously, directs the Secretary of Commerce to identify critical goods that are currently being imported and find ways to help domestic producers manufacture them in the rural areas and shovel-ready industrial sites. Rural Iowans are ready to roll up their sleeves and build the factories and processing facilities we need to secure our supply chains. We can and need to make things here. But you can't fix vulnerabilities you can't see, which is why my bill gives Congress and the executive branch the visibility necessary to identify gaps and then close them. I am grateful to Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks for introducing the House version of this bill, and for the House of Representatives passing the bill unanimously. Now it is time for the Senate to act and send this bill to the President's desk. Mr. President, notwithstanding rule XXII, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 1721 and that the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title. The legislative clerk read as follows: A bill (H.R. 1721) to direct the Secretary of Commerce to conduct a study on the feasibility of manufacturing in the United States products for critical infrastructure sectors, and for other purposes. There being no objection, the committee was discharged, and the Senate proceeded to consider the bill. Ms. ERNST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The bill (H.R. 1721) was ordered to a third reading, was read the third time, and passed. I yield the floor. ____________________

Referenced legislation: HR1721, HR1721