HR-8285 — Protecting American Competition Act of 2026

YourVoice.Now Summary

Corporate BenefitsTransparency & Accountability

One firm's first export license should not stall a rival's — Congress gets yearly reports.

Corporate Benefits

Reviews for exporters who apply second — should be handled promptly

Say one company already holds the first license to sell an item to a foreign buyer. Commerce should not then let other firms' requests for the same sale sit. The bill says officials should act on time. That is a goal, not a hard rule.

Transparency & Accountability

Yearly report on rival export applications — reasons must be given

Each year, Commerce must tell two committees in Congress about these cases. It must say how many first licenses it granted while other firms had requests in. It must say what came of those requests. It must also say why it granted the first one.

One-time report on how licensing changed — due within 90 days

The report is due 90 days after the bill becomes law. Commerce must tell Congress how it is carrying out the on-time rule. That includes any change to licensing policy. It also covers how license officers do their work.

More about this bill

You would notice no change in daily life. The change is for firms that ship controlled goods abroad. When a firm asks for a license, Commerce staff must check one thing. Is this the first license to sell that item to that buyer? If so, staff should then handle other firms' requests for the same sale on time. Commerce must report to Congress once a year on those first licenses. The first report is due a year after the bill becomes law. Each report must name which licenses had rival requests waiting. It must say what came of them, and why that first license was granted. A second, one-time report is due 90 days after the bill becomes law. It must say how the new rule is being put in place. The bill does not force a delay, or a choice that goes against national security or foreign policy.

Congressional Summary

Protecting American Competition Act of 2026 This bill establishes additional requirements for the Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) to review applications for export licenses and establishes related reporting requirements. Specifically, the bill directs BIS, when reviewing an application for a license or other authorization for the export, reexport, or in-country transfer of controlled items, to consider whether the requested license or other authorization would be the initial license or other authorization for the export, reexport, or in-country transfer of the item to an ultimate consignee or end user. After issuing an initial license or other authorization, BIS must attempt to administer in a timely manner any subsequent license application by a different applicant for the same or a similar item to the same ultimate consignee or end user as the initial license. The bill requires BIS to submit annual reports to specified congressional committees on initial licenses granted by BIS. Additionally, BIS must report to Congress on how it is implementing the bill's provisions.

Legislative Subjects

Congressional oversightGovernment information and archivesLicensing and registrationsTrade restrictions

Details

Congress: 119th
Chamber: House
Status: summarized
Action: Introduced in House
Action Date: 2026-04-15
Date Added: 2026-07-30
Source: Congress.gov →

Like reading a bill in plain English?

We're building an app that does this for every bill in Congress and lets you tell your reps how you want them to vote. We're a small team getting ready to launch, and we're trying to show investors that real people want this. Be one of them. Help us get it built. Leave your email and we'll tell you the moment the app is ready.