Sponsors
The bill increases transparency and data to boost domestic aluminum recycling and national security oversight, but imposes administrative costs and risks trade frictions or higher consumer prices if policy responses restrict scrap exports.
US manufacturers and domestic recyclers would get better data on aluminum scrap flows, enabling increased domestic recycling and a larger domestic aluminum supply.
Improved tracking of aluminum exports by destination would make it easier to limit shipments to risky foreign entities and inform national-security decisions.
Identifying needed collection and sorting technology improvements could raise recycling rates and reduce landfill waste in local communities.
Taxpayers and federal employees would face added administrative costs to prepare triannual reports required by the bill.
Recommendations to keep aluminum scrap domestic could prompt export restrictions or trade frictions that reduce revenue for scrap exporters and related businesses.
Policies aimed at reducing reliance on 'foreign entities of concern' could lead to trade- or security-driven changes that raise prices for downstream consumers.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Introduced March 18, 2026 by Robert J. Wittman · Last progress March 18, 2026
Requires the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), working with the EPA, to conduct an ongoing study and report to Congress every three years on aluminum thrown away in U.S. landfills, exports of aluminum scrap (including to foreign entities of concern), and options to increase domestic recycling and return scrap to supply chains. The bill defines key terms for the study and sets the first report deadline at three years after enactment, with subsequent reports every three years.