H.R. 10675 — BUILD with Allies Act of 2026

This section expresses the sense of Congress that critical minerals are essential to advanced technologies and U.S. technological leadership, and that accelerated research, international cooperation with partner countries, public-private partnerships, recycling and substitution efforts, and dedicated funding are needed to meet projected demand and reduce supply risks. It further states that the Director should coordinate with the National Science and Technology Council on priority areas and action plans, and that the Department of State should submit program-supported technologies to the National Defense Technology and Industrial Base Council for transition to operational use.

This section establishes the Critical Minerals Innovation Partnership Program in the Department of State to support partnerships with countries and entities for developing and adopting critical minerals technologies that enhance U.S. national security, economic competitiveness, and supply chain diversification. It directs the Secretary of State to appoint a Director, reporting to the Under Secretary of Economic Affairs, to administer the program and coordinate with other federal agencies.

This section authorizes the Secretary to consider a country’s status as an allied or partner nation, strategic or commercial importance to the United States, and capacity and commitment to participate when determining eligibility for the program. It restricts participation to institutions of higher education, nonprofits, federally funded research and development centers, private sector entities, or their consortia, provided they are not foreign entities of concern. The section requires the Secretary to give preference, to the maximum extent practicable, to countries that are parties to U.S. trade or economic cooperation agreements or that participate in other bilateral or multilateral initiatives advancing U.S. foreign policy, economic security, or national security objectives, and it prohibits any partnerships with countries of concern or foreign entities of concern.

This section requires the Director to consult with and notify the appropriate congressional committees and provide an in-person briefing on any proposed partnership with a country or entity under the program at least 30 days before the partnership is entered into.

This section requires each partnership instrument with a participating country or entity to include specific objectives, shared responsibilities, quantitative benchmarks, and a multiyear plan estimating contributions and oversight mechanisms. It also mandates descriptions of other donors' roles, dispute resolution and intellectual property allocation methods where appropriate, notification procedures for controlled information, and processes for reviewing solicited and unsolicited proposals.

This section directs the Director to establish dialogue with participating countries and entities to evaluate proposals and recommend joint funding or procurement; develop multinational strategies and roadmaps on vulnerabilities and priorities in critical mineral supply chains; direct joint solicitations through Centers of Excellence while consulting the Office of Science and Technology Policy, Department of Energy, International Development Finance Corporation, Export-Import Bank, Trade and Development Agency, and other listed agencies; align technical standards; aggregate demand to support offtake arrangements; coordinate eligibility criteria, data governance, and supply chain safeguards; monitor outcomes on resilience and timelines; enter contracts, grants, and cooperative agreements to build partner capacity; and establish Country Teams at diplomatic posts.

This section authorizes the Director to appoint candidates directly to competitive service positions, including experts and highly qualified personnel to support technology deployment, integration, and commercialization activities, without regard to competitive examination requirements under sections 3309 through 3318 of title 5, United States Code. It also permits the Director to request reimbursable details of personnel with relevant expertise from other Federal agencies while preserving their employee benefits and to further detail program personnel to agencies assisting the program.

This section directs the Secretary to establish International Centers of Excellence for Innovative Critical Minerals Supply Chain Technologies within participating entities. The centers advance responsible critical minerals extraction, processing, and recycling technologies; strengthen capacity in partner countries; promote environmental, labor, and human rights standards; and support secure supply chains aligned with U.S. interests. They are administered by the Director of the Critical Minerals Innovation Partnership Program and may support research, technical assistance, regulatory frameworks, and data tools for traceability and monitoring.

This section requires the Secretary to establish and maintain a publicly accessible digital platform as a centralized clearinghouse for program opportunities, including solicitations, funding, pilot projects, and collaborative research. The platform must list priority capability gaps, enable United States entities including early-stage companies, small and medium-sized enterprises, and research institutions to identify and propose participation, and accept both solicited and unsolicited proposals on a rolling basis. It directs engagement with startups and venture-backed firms through matchmaking with partner country stakeholders and coordination with private investors, accelerators, and specified federal entities.

This section authorizes the Secretary to acquire, hold, manage, operate, maintain, improve, or dispose of real or personal property, infrastructure, facilities, mineral rights, and other assets necessary to carry out the purposes of this title, including in foreign countries after consultation with the Administrator of the General Services Administration. It permits agreements to support leasing or use of land and facilities and to establish research, development, testing, processing, refining, recycling, manufacturing, or logistics infrastructure related to critical minerals and associated technologies, with proceeds from any sales placed in a revolving fund available until expended.

This section authorizes the President to furnish assistance to allied or partner countries and organizations to advance innovation, science, and technologies supporting national security and U.S. commercial competitiveness, including financing for critical minerals and energy projects such as advanced extraction, processing, recycling, and pilot facilities. It delegates administration to the Secretary of State, requires 15-day congressional notification before obligating funds, and authorizes transfers from National Security Investment Programs appropriations, including the Economic Resilience Initiative, for these partnerships.

This section terminates authorities under this title and amendments made by this title 7 years after the date of enactment. It permits continuation of any bilateral or multilateral partnership, agreement, grant, contract, or cooperative agreement entered into before that date, along with necessary administrative or oversight activities to close them out. Funds obligated before termination may continue to be expended for their original purposes.

This section defines the Director as the head of the Critical Minerals Innovation Partnership Program appointed under section 102(b), the Program as the Critical Minerals Innovation Partnership Program established under section 102(a), and the Secretary as the Secretary of State.

This section establishes the American Manufacturing Revitalization Exchange Program, administered by the Assistant Secretary for Education and Cultural Affairs after consultation with industry, labor, and allied governments. The program sends up to 10 U.S. citizens per year who have completed registered apprenticeships or equivalent training to manufacturing institutions or companies in allied or partner countries for skills development in sectors including robotics, semiconductors, shipbuilding, energy, and automotive manufacturing.

This section encourages the Assistant Secretary for Education and Cultural Affairs to enter into agreements with allied or partner countries—particularly those that have trade agreements with the United States—corporate entities, and other organizations to provide assistance supporting the development, implementation, and administration of the American Manufacturing Revitalization Program.

This section authorizes and encourages the Assistant Secretary for Education and Cultural Affairs to consult with Manufacturing USA and other manufacturing, technical, and workforce organizations when identifying and selecting priority manufacturing sectors for cooperation under the program established in section 202(a).

This section directs the Assistant Secretary for Education and Cultural Affairs to conduct a study on expanding and sustaining the program established by section 202(a) through partnerships with the private sector, manufacturing entities, the Department of Labor, the Department of Commerce, and labor organizations, which may be done in consultation with the Secretaries of Labor and Commerce, Manufacturing USA, and other relevant federal agencies.

This section defines terms used throughout the title, including the Assistant Secretary for Educational and Cultural Affairs, labor organizations under section 2(5) of the National Labor Relations Act, the manufacturing sector as activities under North American Industry Classification System codes 31–33, and the Manufacturing USA program under section 34 of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act.

This section requires the Secretary of State to publish annually, for two years after enactment, a list of PRC entities mining critical minerals, gold, or iron in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Guinea, Zambia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, or other African countries using forced labor, forced child labor, or causing environmental harm to protected areas, along with the specific mines, mining zones, or concessions involved. The list must be developed using open-source and embassy information and in consultation with the Secretaries of Labor, Commerce, and the Treasury, the Director of National Intelligence, the United States Trade Representative, and foreign counterparts.

This section defines terms for the title. It sets child as an individual under age 18, environmental harm to a protected area as contamination, soil degradation, or deforestation in government-designated protected zones such as national parks, forced labor as defined in section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930, and PRC entity as any entity owned, controlled, or influenced by the Government of the People’s Republic of China, the Chinese Communist Party, or related military or intelligence entities, including those organized under PRC law or majority-financed by such entities.

This section expresses the sense of Congress that foreign government partners are increasingly procuring cyber and digital technologies from the People’s Republic of China due to low cost and acceptable efficiency, creating supply chain vulnerabilities, eroding interoperability with U.S. systems, and adopting inconsistent digital governance practices. It further states that such partners seek U.S. technologies and that initiatives like Pax Silica should build enduring partnerships by assisting with regulatory hurdles, incorporating partner needs, and streamlining procurements from trusted U.S. suppliers.

This section establishes the United States Cyber and Digital Technology Procurement Program in the Department of State to support Pax Silica, the American AI Exports Program, and related initiatives. It authorizes the Secretary of State to streamline foreign partner procurement of trusted US cyber and digital technologies, create long-term supplier pipelines, identify financing mechanisms, deliver capacity-building packages that include feasibility studies and workforce training, assess risks from foreign countries of concern, and conduct annual reviews of covered items such as enterprise software, industrial control systems, processors, firewalls, subsea cables, and AI models and chips.

This section authorizes the Secretary of State to designate or establish an Office of United States Technology Procurement within the Department of State to administer the Program. The Office includes a Director, Deputy Director, and staff with expertise in grant design and management and in program monitoring, evaluation, and learning. The Director identifies annual strategic priorities aligned with national security objectives, approves foreign government partnerships, conducts oversight and long-term outcome assessments, coordinates with other federal technology promotion efforts, and compiles required lists. For two years after enactment, the Secretary may appoint up to 10 employees outside competitive service rules and set their pay up to Executive Schedule level IV.

This section expresses the sense of Congress that the United States must recruit and retain talent to implement the Program. It directs the Secretary of State to station at least one full-time cybersecurity and technology expert at each United States overseas mission in participating countries, to the maximum extent possible.

This section establishes United States policy to support market-based mechanisms for the export and adoption of US cyber and digital technologies abroad and to oppose state-directed models that displace private competition. It limits the Secretary of State’s administration of the program under section 402(a) by prohibiting interference with voluntary commercial transactions among providers, conditioning of program support on non-arm’s-length terms, or requirements for US government approval of outside procurements, while authorizing targeted capacity-building assistance to small businesses that lack global reach, provided no unfair competitive advantage results.

This section requires the Comptroller General to review the Department of State’s implementation of the Program and submit the findings to the appropriate congressional committees, beginning one year after enactment and every two years thereafter until the Program terminates under section 402(n). The reviews must assess the Department’s personnel and budgetary capacity, processes and procedures for meeting Program objectives, monitoring and evaluation practices, and any additions or removals from the list of covered cyber and digital technologies.

This section defines terms for the title, including the American AI Exports Program as the Department of Commerce initiative to promote exports of American artificial intelligence technologies; the Pax Silica initiative as the Department of State-led diplomatic and supply chain effort to secure trusted infrastructure for AI, semiconductors, and advanced manufacturing; and trusted cyber and digital technologies as equipment and services free from ownership or influence by foreign countries of concern.

This section expresses the sense of Congress that the United States Trade and Development Agency advances United States commercial, energy, digital, and infrastructure interests in priority emerging markets through early-stage project preparation and technical assistance. It states that the agency should receive authority to allocate some annual program funds for activities in high-income countries that affect United States economic and national security.

This section authorizes the Trade and Development Agency to provide assistance for activities in high-income countries or for projects serving United States strategic interests in the energy, critical minerals, transport, or telecommunications sectors.

This section increases to 5 (from 2) the number of non-career appointees the Trade and Development Agency may employ. It authorizes the Director to contract for personal services without those individuals being treated as federal employees under Office of Personnel Management rules and requires annual reports to Congress on the number, roles, and costs of such contractors.

This section establishes the policy of the United States to eliminate materials sourced from the People’s Republic of China from supply chains for both commercial and military ship production. It directs a coordinated effort with allies and partners that includes US shipbuilding workforce development, allied investment in domestic shipyards, and a long-term strategy to diversify supply chains and expand domestic capacity.

This section limits the definition of qualifying sovereign entity under 22 U.S.C. 9601(3) to international financial institutions by removing agencies or instrumentalities of foreign states. It also authorizes the United States International Development Finance Corporation to support harbors or ports, as defined in 47 U.S.C. 153, and related infrastructure.

This section directs the Secretary of State, in coordination with other agencies, to brief the appropriate congressional committees within one year of enactment on companies or entities with financial relationships to the China Ocean Shipping Company Shipping Heavy Industry or the China State Shipbuilding Corporation and on their business practices. It also requires the President to submit a report to those committees within one year of enactment and annually for two years thereafter describing the companies’ subsidiaries, relevant trading practices under USTR review, the extent of PRC government involvement in their governance and operations and in the Chinese shipbuilding industry, and shipyards producing warships or dual-use vessels for the People’s Liberation Army Navy.

This section establishes an Assistant Secretary for Water, Environment, and Space Affairs in the Department of State, reporting to the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs. The position develops U.S. policy and leads bilateral and multilateral engagement on space, oceans, maritime affairs, polar regions, transboundary environmental quality, the Great Lakes, freshwater security, fisheries, wildlife trafficking, conservation, critical minerals, and related matters.

This section expresses the sense of Congress that the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor, should initiate an exchange visitor program to increase shipbuilding knowledge and expertise in the American workforce. It authorizes interchanges and visits between the United States and other countries of marine engineers, naval architects, electrical engineers, marine surveyors, shipyard project managers, and related experts for 2 years after enactment, with coordination between the State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and its Bureau of Economic, Energy, and Business Affairs’ Division for Transportation Affairs.

This section directs the Secretary of State, in coordination with the Federal Maritime Commission Chair, to detail personnel from the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs to diplomatic posts in the top 5 open-registry countries by ship registry size and in countries ranking in the top 15 on at least two of shipbuilding tonnage, merchant mariners, or large commercial ships. The personnel investigate unfair shipping practices, foreign port denials to U.S. vessels, flags of convenience, anticompetitive carrier-terminal agreements, and financial ties of Chinese shipping companies. It adds to the annual country-specific commercial relations report information on price-fixing, market manipulation, unreasonable refusals to deal, and anticompetitive agreements in maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding sectors. It also requires disclosure of investments in those sectors by countries receiving U.S. aid.

This section directs the President to engage allied countries in developing a shared framework to enhance collective capacity to design, produce, and maintain military and civilian ships. The framework must include mechanisms for reciprocal port access during crises, co-development of ship designs, collaboration on construction and repair to reduce costs, joint workforce training programs, research and development sharing, procurement from specialized allied shipyards, and measures to prevent leakage of dual-use technologies to companies connected to the People’s Republic of China.

This section directs the Secretary of State to establish the Maritime Group of Nations to coordinate regulatory and commerce policies for commercial shipping. The group includes counterparts from countries among the top 15 globally in at least two of shipbuilding tonnage, merchant mariners, or commercially owned ships over 1,000 gross tonnage (excluding foreign countries of concern) and considers supporting maritime prosperity zones, countering China’s maritime dominance, coordinating International Maritime Organization positions to protect U.S. shipbuilding, and implementing an exchange visitor program.

This section directs the Secretary of State to instruct the United States Ambassador to the United Nations to urge the International Maritime Organization to adopt greenhouse gas reduction measures that exclude limits on conventional fuels or LNG, financial penalties or carbon taxes, regional emissions schemes such as the European Union Emissions Trading System, and unreasonable net-zero 2050 targets; recognize biofuels; advance United States candidates for Secretary-General and senior positions on the Assembly, Council, and main committees; combat anti-competitive practices by China; enforce existing safety and technical standards on foreign-flagged vessels; and de-link United States domestic environmental requirements from international certificates.

This section defines deck-plate professional as a skilled worker who operates directly on the production floor as a skilled tradesperson with specialized expertise related to a ship’s systems and functionality. It adopts the meaning of unreasonable refusal to deal from section 7(d) of the Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2022.