US HB5977

Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy must establish a repository of supplier information within 90 days of enactment to streamline initial vetting of contractors seeking to supply products or services to the Department of Defense

Repository development must coordinate with Office of Small Business Programs efforts providing market research, supply chain resiliency, cybersecurity, and secure cloud tools to procurement technical assistance entities and small manufacturers

Assistant Secretary may enter public-private partnerships or cooperative agreements with Defense contractors to establish the repository

Partnerships are authorized if the repository would reduce duplicative efforts, decrease time suppliers spend providing similar information to multiple prime contractors, or lower costs for prime contractors qualifying suppliers