The US National Council of Textile Organisations (NCTO) has welcomed the passage of a bipartisan infrastructure bill by the House of Representatives that will provide billions of dollars in new spending to revitalise the nation’s roads, bridges and railways and help reconstitute a domestic supply chain for face masks, isolation gowns and other personal protective equipment (PPE).
“This is the first step in a long-term strategy that is critically needed to permanently onshore PPE production to ensure our nation is prepared for the next health security crisis,” said NCTO president and chief executive officer Kim Glas.
“This infrastructure package will help incentivize the reshoring of PPE production by guaranteeing long-term federal contracts and expanding Berry Amendment rules to more federal agencies’ purchases of PPE products, important priorities of the U.S. textile industry,” he added in a press release.
NCTO worked with Congressional allies to include a version of the Make PPE in America Act, legislation co-sponsored by Senator Rob Portman and Senator Gary Peters, in the infrastructure legislative package.
The bill ensures all PPE purchased by the departments of homeland security, health and human services and veterans affairs are Berry Amendment-compliant (containing 100 percent domestic content); guarantees long-term contracts (a minimum of two years) to US manufacturers; and create a tiered preference for PPE made in the Western hemisphere by US free trade partners using US components, after domestic manufacturing capacity has been maximized.