§4873 Additional requirements pertaining to printed circuit boards

Summary

Starting January 1, 2027, the Secretary of Defense must not buy certain printed circuit boards from North Korea, China, Russia, or Iran. The ban does not apply to purchases below the micro‑purchase threshold in section 3573. The Secretary can grant a written waiver if there is no big security risk from counterfeits, poor quality, or unauthorized access; the waiver is needed for national security; and the needed boards of acceptable quality and amount cannot be bought from other nations at a reasonable cost (excluding comparisons with non‑market economies). When the Secretary gives a waiver, they must tell the Senate and House Armed Services Committees in writing within 10 days and explain why. Covered nation — the four countries named above. Covered printed circuit board — a partially or fully made board that does a mission‑critical job in non‑commercial products or is part of a defense security system or a national‑security‑sensitive information system identified in the contract. Secretary — the Secretary of Defense. The Secretary may make rules that let commercial products or COTS items be exempt if contractors meet security rules (including compliance with section 224 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020, Public Law 116–92; 10 U.S.C. 2302 note) or accept supply‑chain practices the Department finds adequate. The rulemaking must include at least 12 months’ notice and comment before naming specific items, and the ban only applies to contracts made after the final rule. The Department may still hire entities that connect through third parties for backhaul, roaming, or interconnection if those third‑party systems do not route or expose user data.