Lawmaker says Cobalt Supply Chain Act would bar imports tied to forced child and adult labor
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Summary
In the same committee hearing, an unidentified speaker said they introduced the "Cobalt Supply Chain Act" (transcript: H.R. 23 10) to keep goods containing cobalt refined in the People's Republic of China out of U.S. markets if that cobalt was produced with forced child or adult labor; the speaker cited prior hearings and testimony estimating tens of thousands of child miners.
An unidentified speaker told the House Committee on Foreign Affairs that they have introduced legislation called the "Cobalt Supply Chain Act" (transcript wording: "H.R. 23 10") designed to prevent goods made with or containing cobalt refined in the People's Republic of China from entering the U.S. market when that cobalt is alleged to be produced with forced child or adult labor.
The speaker tied mineral policy to the peace process, saying the accords' economic incentives must not be undermined by mineral supply chains that benefit certain foreign state-owned companies. The speaker said previous committee hearings in 2023 and 2025 highlighted China's state-owned mining companies as major beneficiaries of the conflict-era mineral trade.
Citing witness testimony, the speaker said "anywhere from '25 to 40,000 children" work in artisanal mines and that "adults are upwards of 200,000" coerced in these mines. Those figures were presented by the speaker as testimony reported at committee hearings; the transcript does not provide documentary citations or independent verification of those numbers.
The speaker also referenced a U.S. executive order (described in the transcript as "President Trump's executive order") intended to boost American mineral production and called it an important step toward strengthening domestic supply chains. The committee record in the transcript contains no formal vote on the bill; the speaker framed the legislation as necessary if other measures do not end what the speaker described as complicity in supply chains that include forced labor.
The transcript includes a phrase characterizing conditions in Xinjiang as "a place where genocide is taking place under Xi Jinping," presented as the speaker's characterization of the situation; the hearing record does not include debate or corroborating testimony on that particular characterization within the provided segments.
No floor action on H.R. 23 10 is recorded in the transcript; the speaker described previous hearings on the subject and urged legislative action if the accords and market measures do not prevent forced-labor-tainted minerals from entering U.S. supply chains.
