The U.S. House of Representatives has passed legislation that bans imports from Xinjiang on the belief that goods coming from the vast northwestern region of China are likely produced with forced labor.

To become law, the Senate would have to pass the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act and President Joe Biden would have to sign his approval. The Senate adopted a similar bill earlier this year, and it’s unclear how Congress’ higher chamber will proceed with the legislation newly passed by the House.

Should the act clear the Senate and receive Biden’s signature, all importers, including those in the promotional products industry, would have to ensure that no part of their supply chains touch Xinjiang.

When bans on select products from Xinjiang like cotton and tomatoes were previously announced, some promo products suppliers said they’d taken extensive steps to make sure their supply networks aren’t tainted by forced labor and/or tied to Xinjiang.  

Support for the act was overwhelming and bipartisan in the House, with votes in favor tallying 428 to only 1 against. Effectively, the act prohibits importing anything from Xinjiang unless U.S. customs officers are able to determine that the products were not made with forced labor – a high standard of proof that importers would bear the burden of demonstrating.

“Put simply, we’re talking about crimes against humanity being perpetrated by the Chinese government,” Rep. Tom Suozzi, a Democrat from Long Island, NY, said in a statement. “We need to hold the Chinese Communist Party accountable for these acts that violate our very conscience. Some people are going to say, ‘Oh my gosh, if we don’t do business with Xinjiang, the cost of products go up.’ Well, that’s too damn bad. This should shock everyone’s conscience.”

Xinjiang provides approximately 85% of the cotton from China, which produces more than 20% of the world’s supply of cotton. The region also makes about half the world’s supply of an important element for solar panels. This significant position in global supply chains has led some business groups and large companies, including Apple, to lobby against restrictions on imports from Xinjiang.

Uyghurs, a Turkic ethnic group in Xinjiang that’s predominantly Muslim, have reportedly been detained and forced to work in labor camps by China’s government. The U.S., other countries, and human rights groups have accused China of things like unjustly imprisoning Uyghurs (and other ethnic minorities in the region) and forcing sterilization on them – treatment that, taken with other alleged abuses, amounts to genocide.

Rep. James P. McGovern, a Democrat from Massachusetts who authored the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, said that the U.S. can’t sit idly by as Beijing commits crimes against humanity in Xinjiang.

“In two months, the Chinese government will host the Winter Olympics in the middle of a genocide,” McGovern said. “We must take a clear moral position to stand with those who are suffering because of forced labor. No more business as usual.”