BIS Backs Renewal of Defense Production Act

Several important authorities that the Bureau of Industry and Security has under the Defense Production Act will expire in September 2025 if the DPA isn't reauthorized, a BIS official said May 8.

“The Department of Commerce is eager to work with Congress to reauthorize” these provisions, Assistant Secretary of Export Administration Thea Kendler said in written testimony to the House Financial Services Subcommittee on National Security, Illicit Finance and International Financial Institutions.

Under DPA Title I, BIS administers the Defense Priorities and Allocations System (DPAS). Under Title VII, the agency analyzes the health of U.S. industrial base sectors and submits an annual report to Congress on offsets in defense trade.

While DPAS mainly supports the Defense Department and other domestic needs, it can be used to prioritize defense-related contracts and orders from foreign governments and companies. Canada, Israel, Italy, South Korea, Ukraine and NATO were among last year's beneficiaries, Kendler said.

One of the ongoing industrial base studies is assessing the use of Chinese semiconductors in supply chains that support U.S. national security and critical infrastructure. Past studies have looked at whether imports of titanium sponge and uranium threatened U.S. national security.