H.R. 6256 · 117th Congress

To ensure that goods made with forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China do not enter the United States market, and for other purposes.

Introduced on Dec 14, 2021 by James P. McGovern (D-MA-2). One cosponsor. Became Public Law 117-78.

Stage
Became law
Public Law 117-78
Introduced
Dec 14, 2021
Cosponsors
1
1 from the other party
Policy area
International Affairs
Open in the Congress explorerCongress.govAlert me

Progress

The furthest stage the measure reached. Simple and concurrent resolutions do not go to the President.

  1. Introduced
  2. Reported by committee
  3. Passed one chamber
  4. Passed both chambers
  5. Sent to the President
  6. Became law

Subjects

  • Asia
  • China
  • Congressional oversight
  • Crime victims
  • Detention of persons
  • Diplomacy, foreign officials, Americans abroad
  • Foreign property
  • Human rights
  • Human trafficking
  • International organizations and cooperation
  • Labor standards
  • Manufacturing
  • Mining
  • Public participation and lobbying
  • Racial and ethnic relations
  • Religion
  • Sanctions
  • Smuggling and trafficking
  • Trade restrictions
  • Visas and passports
  • War crimes, genocide, crimes against humanity

Summary

By the Congressional Research Service (Public Law, Dec 23, 2021). Public domain.

This bill imposes importation limits on goods produced using forced labor in China, especially the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, and imposes sanctions related to such forced labor.

The Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force shall report to Congress a strategy for preventing the importation of goods produced in China using forced labor. The strategy must contain certain information, including a list of entities (1) producing goods in Xinjiang using forced labor; or (2) working with the government in Xinjiang to move forced labor or Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, or members of other persecuted groups out of Xinjiang.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection shall generally presume that goods produced by these entities and certain other entities, including those sourcing material from Xinjiang or involved with Chinese government forced labor programs, are barred from importation into the United States. An importer may rebut this presumption by establishing, with clear and convincing evidence, that the good in question was not produced wholly or in part using forced labor.

The bill also expands existing asset- and visa-blocking sanctions related to Xinjiang to cover foreign individuals and entities responsible for serious human rights abuses in connection with forced labor.

The Department of State shall report to Congress a strategy to enhance international awareness of forced labor in Xinjiang and to address such forced labor.

Sponsor and cosponsors

Cosponsors by party as of the day they signed on. Original cosponsors signed on the day of introduction.

James P. McGovernD-MA-2Sponsor

Republicans · 1

Roll calls

Recorded votes on the measure. Most measures move by voice vote or unanimous consent, which record no individual positions.

No recorded roll call on this measure: it moved by voice vote or unanimous consent, or has not reached the floor.

History

Every action as published, oldest first. Roll calls link to how each member voted.

  1. Dec 14, 2021Introduced in House
  2. Dec 14, 2021Introduced in House
  3. Dec 14, 2021 · HouseReferred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
  4. Dec 14, 2021 · HouseReferred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
  5. Dec 14, 2021 · HouseReferred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
  6. Dec 14, 2021 · HouseMr. Meeks moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
  7. Dec 14, 2021 · HouseConsidered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H7804-7808)
  8. Dec 14, 2021 · HouseDEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 6256.
  9. Dec 14, 2021Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote.(text: CR H7804-7806)
  10. Dec 14, 2021 · HouseOn motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H7804-7806)
  11. Dec 14, 2021 · HouseMotion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
  12. Dec 15, 2021 · SenateReceived in the Senate, read twice.
  13. Dec 16, 2021Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.(consideration: CR S9231)
  14. Dec 16, 2021 · SenatePassed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S9231)
  15. Dec 16, 2021 · SenateMessage on Senate action sent to the House.
  16. Dec 20, 2021Presented to President.
  17. Dec 20, 2021 · HousePresented to President.
  18. Dec 23, 2021Signed by President.
  19. Dec 23, 2021Signed by President.
  20. Dec 23, 2021Became Public Law No: 117-78.
  21. Dec 23, 2021Became Public Law No: 117-78.

Committees

Committees and subcommittees the measure was referred to.

Agencies in its committees' jurisdiction

Analisa's mapping of committee jurisdiction to federal agencies; the bill may touch others, or none of these.

Who lobbied on it

Organizations whose lobbying reports (LD-2) name this measure. Spending is what they reported for those quarters on all issues, not on this measure alone.

  1. Kohler Co.1 report
    $60K reported (all issues)Federal contractor: KOHLER CO.AI match · 100%

Reports filed in 2023.

Sources and method

Every figure on this page traces to these records.

  • Bill status: bills and resolutions, sponsors, actions, subjects and CRS summaries (U.S. Government Publishing Office (GovInfo), from Congress.gov (Library of Congress))GovInfo Bill Status bulk data (Congress.gov; summaries by the Congressional Research Service) · data current to Oct 6, 2026 · loaded Oct 6, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Members of Congress, their terms, committees and identifiers (The @unitedstates project (from the Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress, the House and the Senate))unitedstates/congress-legislators: legislators, committees and current committee membership · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: CC0 1.0 (public domain dedication)
  • House roll-call votes (Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives)Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives, roll-call vote records · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Senate roll-call votes and DW-NOMINATE scores (Voteview (UCLA Department of Political Science))Lewis, Jeffrey B., Keith Poole, Howard Rosenthal, Adam Boche, Aaron Rudkin, and Luke Sonnet (2026). Voteview: Congressional Roll-Call Votes Database. https://voteview.com/ · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Free to use with the required citation
  • Lobbying disclosures (LD-1 registrations, LD-2 quarterly reports, LD-203 contribution reports) (Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives)Clerk of the House, Lobbying Disclosure Act filings (organizations only; lobbyists' names are not loaded) · data current to Oct 6, 2026 · loaded Oct 6, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Positions are shown only where a roll call recorded them; voice votes and unanimous consent record none.
  • Money and votes are shown side by side; neither explains the other.