With the strong support and vote of Rep. Chris Smith (R-Manchester), the House of Representatives today passed legislation to stop the Biden Administration from waiving “Buy America” protections on electric vehicle chargers. Intended to promote domestic manufacturing, these protections have been implemented in many sectors and require the federal government to purchase goods produced in the United States.

            “As part of its rush to implement a de facto electric vehicle mandate, the Biden Administration is trying to skirt Buy America protections for electric vehicle chargers, which are designed to ensure that US taxpayer dollars do not bankroll the Chinese Communist Party’s economic and global agenda,” said Rep. Smith.

            “This outrageous move by the Biden Administration not only puts American productivity at a disadvantage but also further aids and abets the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) exploitation of an estimated 40,000 children in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as part of its quest to mine cobalt that powers the lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles and their chargers,” said Smith.

            “While today’s vote is an important first step in addressing Biden’s failure to curb China’s global ambitions, Congress must do more and act quickly to ensure that the United States stops aiding and abetting the CCP’s illegal, inhumane child labor and forced labor in the DRC,” said Smith, who authored legislation to bar all imports to the United States containing cobalt refined in China.

            “My legislation—the COBALT Supply Chain Act (HR 6909)—will ensure that goods made using or containing cobalt refined in the People’s Republic of China do not enter the United States market under the presumption that it is extracted or processed with the use of child and forced labor in the Democratic Republic of Congo,” said Smith.

              “President Biden needs to wake up and get serious about becoming less dependent on Xi Jinping’s brutal dictatorship—which has gained almost full dominance of every single step of the cobalt supply chain on the back of trafficked workers and child laborers—before it is too late,” Smith added.

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