Sec. 859. Shipping container supply chain
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The Congress finds the following: House Report 118–301 accompanying the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 ( Public Law 118–31 ) directed the Secretary of the Army, in coordination with the Commanding General, Army Materiel Command and the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology to provide a briefing on the costs and estimated funding profile as it relates to the organic industrial base modernization strategy, and facility efforts required to support opportunities for organic industrial base augmentation at Blue Grass Army Depot in Kentucky.
The briefing was directed to explore Blue Grass Army Depot as a potential site for the production of metal shipping containers. China produces most shipping containers and the Department of Defense sources nearly all containers from Asia or assembles container kits in the United States from foreign-producers. Establishing a domestic source for metal shipping containers would reduce reliance on foreign sources. The reliance on foreign adversary nations for standard and specialty shipping containers presents a national security risk, particularly in times of crisis.
The Department of Defense must have access to domestically produced shipping containers to meet operational readiness and logistical requirements. The defense industrial base must be strengthened to ensure secure supply chains and uninterrupted access to critical shipping components. Establishing domestic production facilities will create jobs, improve economic resilience, and enhance national security. Domestic production of shipping containers is essential to national security and economic resilience.
To ensure the integrity of the defense industrial base, shipping containers procured under this Act should be manufacturing in the United States by domestic entities using domestically produced steel and other critical materials and components. Not later than 180 days after the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to Congress an assessment on the national security implications of the reliance of the United States on foreign adversary countries for the production of standard and specialty shipping containers.
The assessment required by paragraph
(1)shall include— a detailed evaluation of the ability of the Department of Defense to acquire standard and specialty shipping containers from sources other than sources located in covered nations (as defined in section 4872 of title 10, United States Code); an identification of the barriers to the acquisition of standard and specialty shipping contains from domestic sources and recommendations to mitigate such barriers; and a timeline for transitioning the Department to acquiring standard and specialty shipping containers from sources other than sources located in foreign adversary. Not later than December 31, 2028, the Secretary of Defense shall develop a requirement to establish a facility for the production of standard shipping containers at a depot of the Army that— has a consolidated shipping center; is part of the organic industrial base; and is located in the United States. The Secretary of Defense shall seek to enter into a public-private partnership to establish and operate the facility established pursuant to the requirement developed under subparagraph (A). Not later than December 31, 2028, the Secretary shall evaluate locations to establish a second facility for the production of standard shipping containers that is located in the United States. The Secretary of Defense shall quantify the yearly demand and usage by the Department of Defense for the eight standard shipping container types, including— bill of materials verification; and model and drawing verification. The Secretary of Defense shall assess the yearly readiness and logistical requirements of the Department of Defense for specialty shipping containers by weapons system. Not later than 180 days after the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall assess and submit to Congress a report on the potential benefits of incorporating into the design and production of standard and specialty shipping containers used by the Department of Defense a diverse set of communications equipment and sensors that are capable of providing real-time data on location, contents, usage, and other critical information relevant to national defense purposes. The report required by subparagraph
(A)shall include— an assessment of the feasibility of embedding in standard and specialty shipping containers used by the Department of Defense the communications equipment and sensors described in such subparagraph, including sensors integrated into container flooring, for satellite-based tracking and monitoring; recommendations for collaboration with private industry partners to develop and implement in such shipping containers such communications equipment and sensors; and an evaluation of how such communications equipment and sensors embedded in such shipping containers could enhance the security and resilience of the supply chain of the Department. Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce, shall develop initiatives to encourage the production of shipping containers for both defense and commercial use by entities other than those located in covered nations (as defined in section 4872 of title 10, United States Code). Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall assess and identify common and unique components necessary for standard and specialty shipping containers to streamline the production and enhance the cost efficiency of such shipping containers. Not later than 60 days after the end of the first fiscal year ending after the date of the enactment of this Act, and not later than 60 days after the end of each fiscal year thereafter, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to Congress a report detailing the progress on the establishment of domestic facilities for the production of shipping containers under subsection (c)(1). This section shall terminate on the date on which the Secretary of Defense submits to Congress a certification that the sufficient standard and specialty shipping contains are available solely from domestic sources to meet the national security needs of the United States.
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Sec. 859
Shipping container supply chain
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