This act ensures the continuation of the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) and mandates a key function within the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
Sharice Davids
Representative
KS-3
The Defend American Manufacturing Act ensures the continued operation of the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) beyond 2024 by mandating the Secretary of Commerce to renew and award grants to MEP centers annually. This legislation also amends the NIST Act to convert a previously optional action for NIST into a mandatory requirement. Overall, the bill strengthens support for domestic manufacturing infrastructure.
Manufacturing Support Program Made Permanent: 'Defend American Manufacturing Act' Secures Funding for US Factories
The newly introduced 'Defend American Manufacturing Act' is short, sweet, and focused on one thing: locking in support for American manufacturing through a program called the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP). This isn’t about launching a new initiative; it’s about making sure a successful existing one doesn’t fade away, providing certainty for thousands of small and mid-sized factories across the country.
The MEP Program Just Got a Lifetime Guarantee
Starting in fiscal year 2025, Section 2 of this Act essentially makes the MEP program mandatory. The MEP is a national network of centers—one in every state plus Puerto Rico—that helps local manufacturers adopt new technology, improve efficiency, and develop their workforce. Think of them as business coaches and technical consultants for your local machine shop or food processing plant. Before this bill, the Secretary of Commerce had the authority to continue awarding grants to these centers, but it wasn’t an ironclad requirement.
Now, the Secretary of Commerce (acting through the National Institute of Standards and Technology, or NIST) must compete, renew, and award these grants annually. The only way this program stops is if Congress completely fails to pass the necessary funding appropriations for the Department of Commerce’s Industrial Technology Services budget line. For the small business owner running a factory in Ohio or California, this means the technical assistance they rely on to stay competitive against overseas rivals is effectively guaranteed to continue, offering much-needed stability for long-term planning and investment.
The Mandatory 'Shall' of Government Operations
Section 3 of the Act makes a small but significant tweak to the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act. It changes one word in Section 25(e)(1) of the existing law: replacing “may” with “shall.” In legislative language, this is the difference between an optional task and a mandatory duty. While the bill doesn't spell out exactly what action this refers to, the effect is clear: a previously discretionary action that NIST could choose to take is now something they are required to do.
This procedural change strengthens the operational requirements placed on NIST regarding the MEP program. It reinforces the commitment to the program by removing administrative wiggle room. For everyday people, this means the federal agency tasked with supporting manufacturing will have less flexibility to deprioritize or scale back a specific action related to the MEP, ensuring that the resources intended to help American factories stay modern and competitive are actually deployed as intended.