“(c) Covered F–18 Aircraft Defined.—In this section, the term ‘covered F–18 aircraft’ means—
“(1) the eight F/A–18E/F Super Hornet aircraft procured using funds authorized and appropriated for the Navy during fiscal year 2023; or
“(2) in lieu of an aircraft described in paragraph (1), any Block II or newer F/A–18E/F tactical fighter aircraft that—
“(A) has a minimum of 2,000 flight hours of service-life remaining airframe flight time prior to the need for a required high flight-hour inspection and Service Life Modification process; and
“(B) is included in the Naval Aviation Master Aviation Plan and designated for the Navy Reserve.
“(d) Master Aviation Plan.—In conjunction with the activities required under this section, the Secretary of the Navy shall ensure that the Naval Aviation Master Aviation Plan remains up-to-date and relevant with respect to aviation units of the Navy Reserve.”
“(d) Recapitalization.—
“(1) Plan submission.—
“(A) In general.—Not later than April 1, 2026, the Secretary of the Navy shall submit to the congressional defense committees a recapitalization plan to replace legacy waterborne security barriers for Navy ports.
“(B) Elements.—The plan required by subparagraph (A) shall include the following:
“(i) A Navy requirements document that specifies key performance parameters and key system attributes for new waterborne security barriers for Navy ports.
“(ii) A certification that the level of capability specified under clause (i) will exceed that of legacy waterborne security barriers for Navy ports.
“(iii) The acquisition strategy for the recapitalization of waterborne security barriers for Navy ports, which shall meet or exceed the requirements specified under clause (i).
“(iv) A certification that any contract for new waterborne security barriers for a Navy port will be awarded in accordance with the requirements for full and open competition set forth in sections 3201 through 3205 of title 10, United States Code.
“(2) Implementation.—The Secretary of the Navy shall complete implementation of the plan required by paragraph (1) by not later than September 30, 2027.”
“(A) of not less than 466 aircraft during the period ending on September 30, 2026;
“(B) of not less than 478 aircraft during the period beginning on October 1, 2026, and ending on September 30, 2027;
“(C) of not less than 490 aircraft during the period beginning on October 1, 2027, and ending on September 30, 2028; and
“(D) of not less than 502 aircraft beginning on October 1, 2028.”
; and
“(3) In the case of a KC–135 aircraft that is replaced in the aircraft inventory by a KC–46 aircraft, the Secretary of the Air Force may reassign the KC–135 aircraft to any Air Refueling Wing that has the capacity to expand its aircraft inventory to include such reassigned aircraft. In determining whether an Air Refueling Wing has the capacity to so expand its inventory, the Secretary shall consider, among other things, the capacity of the Air Refueling Wing to man the additional aircraft and support pilot training requirements for the additional aircraft.”
“(l)
(1) During the covered period, the Secretary of the Air Force may not retire more than a total of 51 F–15E aircraft as follows:
“(A) From the beginning of the covered period through the end of fiscal year 2026, the Secretary may not retire any F–15E aircraft.
“(B) In fiscal year 2027, the Secretary may not retire more than 21 F–15E aircraft.
“(C) In fiscal year 2028, the Secretary may not retire more than 30 F–15E aircraft.
“(2) During the covered period the Secretary of the Air Force may not—
“(A) reduce funding for unit personnel or weapon system sustainment activities for retained F–15E aircraft in a manner that presumes future congressional authority to divest such aircraft; or
“(B) keep an F–15E aircraft (other than an aircraft identified for retirement under paragraph (1)) in a status considered excess to the requirements of the possessing command and awaiting disposition instructions (commonly referred to as ‘XJ’ status).
“(3) In this subsection, the term ‘covered period’ means the period beginning on the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 and ending on September 30, 2030.”
“(2) The Secretary of Defense shall establish standards for prioritizing access to executive aircraft controlled by the Secretaries of the military departments among authorized users of such aircraft within the Federal Government.
“(3) The Secretary of Defense shall assign a career appointee (as that term is defined in section 3132(a) of title 5) in the Senior Executive Service of the Department of Defense to coordinate the efficient tasking of executive aircraft controlled by the Secretaries of the military departments and compliance with rules, regulations, policies, and guidance relating to such aircraft, including the standards established under paragraph (2). The career appointee shall, as determined by the Secretary of Defense, have knowledge and experience relating to executive aircraft, including familiarity with the executive aircraft fleets controlled by the Secretaries of the military departments and procedures for the prioritization of executive aircraft users.”
“(1) covered LiDAR technology; or”
; and
“(e) Mitigation of Risk of Use of Covered LiDAR Technology.—
“(1) Strategy required.—The Secretary of Defense shall develop a strategy to mitigate the risk to the Department of Defense of the use of covered LiDAR technology by defense contractors and subcontractors (at any tier).
“(2) Elements.—In developing the strategy required by paragraph (1), the Secretary shall—
“(A) publish a list of covered LiDAR companies in the Federal Register;
“(B) conduct an assessment of the potential risks to the Department associated with the use of covered LiDAR technology by defense contractors, including an assessment of the severity and likelihood of occurrence of each such risk and a prioritization of such risks; and
“(C) solicit input from defense contractors and subcontractors (at any tier) to identify effective approaches to reducing or eliminating use of covered LiDAR technology by such contractors and subcontractors.
“(3) Implementation.—Not later than June 1, 2027, the Secretary shall implement the strategy required by paragraph (1). Such strategy shall actively monitor risk mitigation measures related to the use of covered LiDAR technology by defense contractors based on the assessment conducted and the input received under paragraph (2).”
; and
“(3) The term ‘covered LiDAR technology’ means LiDAR technology and any related services and equipment—
“(A) manufactured by a covered LiDAR company;
“(B) uses operating software developed in a covered foreign country or by an entity domiciled in a covered foreign country; or
“(C) uses network connectivity or data storage located in a covered foreign country or administered by an entity domiciled in a covered foreign country.”
“(d) Test Organization Defined.—In this section, the term ‘test organization’ means a test organization of the Major Range and Test Facility Base specified in Department of Defense Directive 3200.11 or any successor directive.”
Ҥ 4145. Program for the enhancement of the research, development, test, and evaluation centers of the Department of Defense
“(a) In General.—The Secretary of Defense and the Secretaries of the military departments shall jointly carry out a program to demonstrate methods for the more effective development of technology and management of functions at eligible centers.
“(b) Eligible Centers.—For purposes of the program, the eligible centers are—
“(1) the science and technology reinvention laboratories, as designated by section 4121(b) of this title;
“(2) the test and evaluation centers which are activities specified as part of the Major Range and Test Facility Base in Department of Defense Directive 3200.11 (or any successor document);
“(3) the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency;
“(4) the Defense Innovation Unit; and
“(5) the Strategic Capabilities Office.
“(c) Definition of Responsible Officials Concerned.—For purposes of this section, the term ‘responsible official concerned’ means—
“(1) the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics, with respect to matters concerning the Army;
“(2) the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition, with respect to matters concerning the Navy and the Marine Corps; or
“(3) the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, with respect to matters concerning the Air Force and the Space Force;
“(4) the Deputy Secretary of Defense, with respect to matters concerning the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the Defense Innovation Unit, and the Strategic Capabilities Office, and any other matters not covered by paragraphs (1), (2), and (3).
“(d) Participation in Program.—
“(1) In general.—Subject to paragraph (2), the head of each eligible center shall submit to the responsible official concerned a proposal on, and implement, alternative and innovative methods of effective management and operations of eligible centers, rapid project delivery, support, experimentation, prototyping, and partnership with universities and private sector entities—
“(A) to generate greater value and efficiencies in research and development activities;
“(B) to enable more efficient and effective operations of supporting activities, such as—
“(i) facility management, construction, and repair;
“(ii) business operations;
“(iii) personnel management policies and practices; and
“(iv) intramural and public outreach; and
“(C) to enable more rapid deployment of warfighter capabilities.
“(2) Implementation.—The head of an eligible center shall implement each method proposed under paragraph (1) unless such method is disapproved in writing by the responsible official concerned within 60 days of receiving the proposal from the eligible center.
“(e) Waiver Authority for Demonstration and Implementation.—The head of an eligible center may waive any regulation, restriction, requirement, guidance, policy, procedure, or departmental instruction that would affect the implementation of a method proposed under subsection (d)(1), unless such implementation would be prohibited by a provision of a Federal statute or common law.”
“(d)
(1) In a case in which research, developmental, or test facilities and equipment described in this section are used to support multiple contracts or programs across different military departments, other elements of the Department of Defense, other Federal agencies outside the Department of Defense, or eligible non-Federal entities, a jointly funded project may be established.
“(2) Under a jointly funded project, the Secretary of Defense (or the Secretary’s designee) shall enter into a written agreement with each entity participating in the project. Each such agreement shall, at a minimum, address the following:
“(A) Cost sharing arrangements, including the proportion of total project costs to be borne by each entity.
“(B) Allocation of access to the facilities and equipment, including prioritization procedures in cases of competing demands.
“(C) Management and oversight responsibilities, including the designation of a lead agency.
“(D) Ownership and intellectual property rights related to the facilities, equipment, and any resulting data or inventions.
“(E) Dispute resolution mechanisms.
“(3) A non-Federal entity, including a private company, academic institution, or non-profit organization, may participate in a jointly funded project under this subsection only if the Secretary of Defense determines such participation is in the national security interest and consistent with applicable laws and regulations.
“(4) The Secretary of Defense shall issue regulations to implement this subsection. Such regulations shall include specific criteria for evaluating proposed jointly funded projects, standardized agreement templates, and procedures for ensuring the transparency and accountability of such projects.
“(e) This section applies to contracts funded using funds appropriated or otherwise made available for—
“(1) research, development, test, and evaluation, including science and technology funds designated as budget activity 1 (basic research), budget activity 2 (applied research), and budget activity 3 (advanced technology development) (as those budget activity classifications are set forth in volume 2B, chapter 5 of the Department of Defense Financial Management Regulation (DOD 7000.14–R)); and
“(2) operation and maintenance, to the extent that such funds are used to support activities authorized under this section.
“(f) In this section, the term ‘covered contract’ means—
“(1) a contract of a military department; or
“(2) a contract for a jointly funded project as described subsection (d).”
“(d) Funding.—Funds authorized to be appropriated or otherwise made available to the Department of Defense for research, development, test, and evaluation may be used to carry out the activities described in subsection (c), including the design and construction activities described in subsection (c).”
“(D) identifying raw material waste produced during the explosives manufacturing process and developing plans to reduce waste and optimize production.”
“(i) detailed information regarding the total potential cost to the Department of investigating and remediating such releases at all locations where investigation and remediation is expected to be funded by the Department; and
“(ii) the cost-to-complete analysis required under subsection (d); and”
and
“(d) PFAS Cost-to-complete Analysis.—The Secretary shall carry out an annual cost-to-complete analysis with respect to the most important contributors to the costs to the Department of investigating and remediating per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances releases that—
“(1) includes—
“(A) an assessment of any changes in regulatory standards, treatment technologies, and site prioritization that could affect the cost to complete;
“(B) examples of how modifying assumptions about contamination extent, remediation timelines, or emerging disposal methods could affect the cost to complete; and
“(C) an identification of any funding shortfalls or other constraints that could affect the investigation and remediation of such contamination; and
“(2) incorporates a risk and uncertainty analysis with respect to the effects of potential changes in the most important contributors to the costs to the Department to complete the known per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances sites, including—
“(A) variability in the extent of such contamination based on ongoing site assessments, inspections, and investigations;
“(B) shifts in regulatory requirements that could alter investigation and remediation strategies; and
“(C) advances in technologies for the treatment and disposal such contamination that could reduce or increase long-term costs.”
“(2) The Secretary of Defense shall design operational energy initiatives under paragraph (1) to advance the objectives of the Department in the areas of energy resilience and fuel efficiency.
“(3) Operational energy initiatives carried out under paragraph (1) may directly contribute to enhanced mission and combat capabilities, fund operational environment training activities, or establish programs to incentivize demonstrable reductions in energy expenditures within the department, agency, or instrumentality credited with achieving the energy cost savings under subsection (a).”
“(f) Operational Energy Cost Savings Defined.—In this section, the term ‘operational energy cost savings’ means the monetary savings achieved through measures to reduce energy expenditures relative to the amount that would have been necessary to sustain an equivalent level of capability in the absence of such measures.”
“(1) Any military installation that, as of the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026, has transitioned to the use of a fluorine-free fire-fighting agent that meets the military specifications issued pursuant to subsection (a).
“(2) Any other military installation on or after the earlier of the following dates:”
; and
“(d) Exemptions.—Subsections (b) and (c) shall not apply to firefighting foam for use—
“(1) onboard oceangoing vessels, including use in pier-side inspection, testing, and maintenance;
“(2) that is necessary to conduct testing to meet military specification qualification requirements and ensure quality standards of the inventory of the Department;
“(3) in connection with the research, development, test, and evaluation of a fluorine-free fire-fighting agent;
“(4) on naval nuclear submarine propulsion plants; or
“(5) in any tactical vehicle, or equipment, that is incompatible with fluorine-free fire-fighting agents.”
; and
Ҥ 2229b. Responsibility for contested logistics posture management
“(a) In General.—The Deputy Secretary of Defense, the Vice Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Commander of the United States Transportation Command shall be responsible for the integration of global contested logistics posture management. Such responsibilities shall include each of the following:
“(1) Identifying vulnerabilities and risks across the Department of Defense enterprise for the core logistics capabilities of supply, maintenance operations, prepositioned stocks, deployment and distribution, health services support, engineering, logistics services, and operational service contracts.
“(2) Developing and executing a strategy to mitigate the vulnerabilities and risks identified under paragraph (1).
“(3) Integrating and deconflicting global contested logistics posture investment and management across the military departments, including with respect to—
“(A) the locations of sites outside the continental United States at which stocks of supplies and equipment are stored as well as the composition of those stocks;
“(B) the provision of adequate intra-theater sea and air capability to move material and personnel throughout the theater; and
“(C) the monitoring and coordination of resourcing decisions by the military departments in support of operational plans and contingencies.
“(b) Deputy Management Action Group Meetings.—In carrying out the responsibilities under subsection (a)(1) and (2), the Deputy Secretary of Defense and the Vice Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff shall co-chair at least two Deputy Management Action Group meetings each year, which shall be focused on contested logistics management and investment.
“(c) Contested Logistics Posture Strategy.—
(1) The Deputy Secretary of Defense, the Vice Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Commander of the United States Transportation Command, in coordination with any other Department official identified by the Secretary, shall develop and implement a strategy for carrying out the responsibilities described in subsection (a).
“(2) The strategy required under paragraph (1) shall include each of the following:
“(A) A description of—
“(i) the locations of sites outside the continental United States at which stocks of supplies and equipment are prepositioned as of the date of the strategy;
“(ii) the status and disposition of such prepositioned stocks; and
“(iii) the operational or contingency plan such stocks are intended to support.
“(B) An identification of—
“(i) any shortcomings associated with the sites and prepositioned stocks described in subparagraph (A) that must be addressed to optimally execute operational and contingency plans; and
“(ii) any additional sites, infrastructure, or equipment that may be needed to address such shortcomings and support such plans.
“(C) A description of any additional funding or other resources required—
“(i) to address the shortcomings identified under subparagraph (B)(i); and
“(ii) to provide for the additional sites, infrastructure, and equipment identified under subparagraph (B)(ii).
“(D) A prioritized list of investment recommendations for each item described in subparagraph (C).
“(E) An identification of each case in which the military department concerned lacks the authority or ability to access a location outside the United States for purposes of providing logistics support as required under operational and contingency plans, set forth separately by location.
“(F) An assessment of any existing and projected threats to sites outside the continental United States that are expected to support such operational and contingency plans.
“(3) The strategy required under paragraph (1) shall cover the period of two years following the date of the strategy and shall be updated on an biennial basis.
“(d) Quarterly Briefings.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this section, and quarterly thereafter until December 31, 2031, the Deputy Secretary of Defense, the Vice Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Commander of the United States Transportation Command, or their representatives, shall provide to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and House of Representatives a briefing on the execution of the responsibilities under subsection (a)(1) and (2), including updates on the development and implementation of the strategy required under subsection (c).
“(e) Budget Justification Materials.—The Secretary of Defense shall include in the budget justification materials submitted to Congress in support of the budget of the President for a fiscal year pursuant to section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, a cumulative accounting of contested logistics investments represented in such budget and how such investments relate to the duties and responsibilities under subsection (a)(1) and (2).”
Ҥ 2636b. Responsibilities for oversight of personal property transportation
“(a) Responsibilities.—Subject to subsection (b), not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary of Defense shall assign to a single office or other organizational element within the Department of Defense the following responsibilities:
“(1) Overseeing the activities and personnel of, and any other matter relating to, the following:
“(A) Any office or other organizational element of a military department responsible for shipping baggage or household effects, scheduling or processing orders for such shipments, providing storage services for such baggage or household effects, or providing privately owned vehicle transportation services in connection with a permanent change of station, on behalf of members of the armed forces, including any personal property shipping office, joint or consolidated personal property shipping office, or personal property processing office of such military department.
“(B) The Defense Personal Property Management Office, or any such successor office.
“(2) Overseeing the adjudication of any claim filed with respect to the defense personal property program (including the adjudication of such claims under section 2636(a) of this title or section 3721 of title 31) and any other matter relating to such program.
“(b) Exclusion.—The responsibilities under subsection (a) may not be assigned to any combatant command or component thereof.
“(c) Defense Personal Property Program Defined.—In this section, the term ‘defense personal property program’ means the program of the Department of Defense for managing the shipment of the baggage and household effects for members of the armed forces or civilian employees of the Department, or any such successor program.”
Ҥ 8698. Roles and responsibilities relating to sustainment and readiness of certain naval surface vessels
“(a) Type Commander Leadership.—
(1) Beginning on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary of the Navy shall—
“(A) designate type commanders as the primary authorities responsible for the maintenance, repair, sustainment, and readiness of covered vessels; and
“(B) ensure that regional maintenance centers act under the direction of, and in support of, type commanders with respect to such maintenance, repair, and sustainment.
“(2) The responsibilities of each type commander under paragraph (1)(A) shall include—
“(A) overseeing all maintenance and repair activities at private shipyards for covered vessels in the naval force of that type commander; and
“(B) setting priorities and approving contracts for the maintenance and repair of such vessels.
“(b) Maintenance and Repair at Private Shipyards.—
(1) Beginning on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment of this section, for each covered vessel undergoing maintenance or repair at a private shipyard, the project manager concerned, the port engineer concerned, and the commanding officer of such vessel—
“(A) may jointly determine the work to be performed during the overhaul period for the covered vessel, including by jointly adjusting priorities for such work consistent with the applicable budget and schedule for such maintenance or repair; and
“(B) shall report directly to the type commander of the naval force to which the covered vessel belongs with respect to such maintenance or repair.
“(2) Contracting officers of the Department of Defense shall manage contracts as necessary to ensure consistency with any determination or adjustment made pursuant to paragraph (1)(A).
“(c) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1) The term ‘covered vessel’ means a naval surface vessel that is not propelled or powered by a nuclear reactor.
“(2) The term ‘port engineer concerned’ means, with respect to a naval vessel, the technical expert on the condition of such vessel responsible for advising on repairs and related standards for such vessel.
“(3) The term ‘project manager concerned’ means, with respect to a naval vessel undergoing maintenance or repair, the individual responsible for overseeing the overhaul period with respect to such maintenance or repair.
“(4) The term ‘regional maintenance center’—
“(A) means an organization of the Navy that supports ship maintenance in a designated geographic region; and
“(B) includes the Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center in Nofolk, Virginia, the Southwest Regional Maintenance Center in San Diego, California, the Southeast Regional Maintenance Center in Mayport, Florida, and the Hawaii Regional Maintenance Center in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
“(5) The term ‘type commander’ means the flag officer in command of a naval surface force, such as the following:
“(A) Commander, Naval Surface Force, Atlantic.
“(B) Commander, Naval Surface Force, Pacific Fleet.”
“(6) Details regarding the maintenance and service life extension plan for each operational amphibious warfare ship (as such term is defined in section 8062 of title 10, United States Code) within such fleet until the obligation and work limiting date for the construction contract for a replacement amphibious warship, as necessary to meet the requirements under subsection (b) of such section 8062.”
“(9) The estimated aggregate demand from United States allies and partners.”
“(f) Inclusion in Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution.—The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that the production levels specified in paragraph (1) are incorporated into the planning, programming, budgeting, and execution process of the Department of Defense to align munitions procurement with the Out-Year Unconstrained Total Munitions Requirement.
“(g) Methodology.—The estimate specified in subsection (c)(9)—
“(1) shall be based on, at a minimum, relevant information set forth in letters of offer and acceptance issued with respect to foreign military sales of munitions authorized under chapter 2 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2761 et seq.); and
“(2) may be informed by—
“(A) discussions held with allies and partners of the United States regarding future potential sales or transfers of munitions; and
“(B) analyses of the United States Government regarding the variants of munitions that would most benefit the interests of the United States if sold or transferred to allies and partners of the United States.”
“(5) Air and Missile Defense.”
Ҥ 2653. Evacuation of family pets and contract working dogs during noncombatant evacuations of foreign countries
“(a) Authority to Evacuate.—Subject to the limitations under subsection (b), in the event of a situation during which the Department of Defense evacuates noncombatants from a foreign country, the Secretary of Defense may enter into agreements with appropriate nonprofit entities under which such entities provide for the evacuation of—
“(1) the family pets of citizens of the United States who are evacuated by the Department; and
“(2) contract working dogs located in such country.
“(b) Limitations.—The limitations under this subsection are as follows:
“(1) The Department of Defense is not responsible for providing veterinary care for a family pet or contract working dog by reason of the evacuation of the pet or dog pursuant to subsection (a).
“(2) The Secretary may not exercise the authority under subsection (a) if the exercise of such authority would result in a reduction in the number of individuals who would otherwise be evacuated.
“(3) The operator of a vehicle used for evacuation may refuse to evacuate a family pet or contract working dog if the operator determines that the evacuation would create a safety risk to other passengers or personnel.”
Ҥ 2654. Aircraft safety: requirements for certain highly trafficked domestic airspace
“(a) Limitation on Operation.—Notwithstanding section 1046 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (Public Law 115–232, 49 U.S.C. 40101 note), except as provided in subsection (b), the Secretary of a military department may not authorize any manned rotary wing aircraft of the Department of Defense to operate a training mission in a covered airspace unless such aircraft, while being operated, is actively providing warning of the proximity of such aircraft to nearby commercial aircraft in a manner compatible with the traffic alert and collision avoidance system of such commercial aircraft.
“(b) Waiver Authority.—The Secretary of a military department, with the concurrence of the Secretary of Transportation, may waive the limitation under subsection (a) with respect to the operation of an aircraft if that Secretary—
“(1) determines that—
“(A) such waiver is in the national security interests of the United States; and
“(B) a commercial aviation compatibility risk assessment has been conducted with respect to the operation of the aircraft pursuant to the waiver to mitigate the risk associated with such operation; and
“(2) in the case of a waiver to be in effect for a period exceeding 30 days, submits to appropriate congressional committees notice of such waiver, including a copy of the applicable commercial aviation compatibility risk assessment specified in paragraph (1)(B).
“(c) Limitation on Delegation.—The Secretary of a military department may not delegate the waiver authority under subsection (b) to an official whose rank is below a general or flag officer.
“(d) Definitions.—
“(1) The term ‘appropriate congressional committees’ means—
“(A) the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives; and
“(B) the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate.
“(2) The term ‘covered airspace’ means the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area Special Flight Rules Area, as such term is defined in section 93.335 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor regulation.”
Ҥ 7715. Army museum system
“(a) In General.—The Secretary of the Army shall support a system of official Army museums within the United States Army Center of Military History. Such system shall include the National Museum of the United States Army and may contain other museums honoring individual installations, units, and branches, as designated by the Secretary of the Army, that meet criteria established under subsection (b).
“(b) Criteria for Designation.—The Secretary of the Army shall establish criteria for designating museums of subsection (a) for inclusion in the Army museum system. Such criteria shall include—
“(1) historical significance to Army operations, technology, or personnel;
“(2) public accessibility and educational outreach programs; and
“(3) alignment with the mission of the Army to preserve its heritage.
“(c) Criteria for Closure.—The Secretary of the Army shall establish criteria for closing museums within the Army museum system. No museum within such system may be closed until—
“(1) the Secretary of the Army submits to the Committees on Armed Services of the House of Representatives and the Senate notice that includes—
“(A) a plan for the preservation, storage, or alternate display of historical collections contained in the museum;
“(B) how any issues relating to museum personnel will be resolved;
“(C) an identification of any efforts to maintain museum operations through public-private partnerships; and
“(D) an analysis of the cost to transport, consolidate, and preserve the historical collections contained in the museum; and
“(2) a period of 90 days has elapsed after the date on which such notice is received by such committees.
“(d) Funding and Support.—Consistent with applicable law, the Secretary may enter into partnerships, including with nonprofit organizations, to enhance the financial sustainability and public engagement of the museums in the Army museum system.”
Ҥ 8617A. United States Navy Museum System
“(a) In General.—The Secretary of the Navy shall support a system of official Navy museums, which shall collectively be known as the ‘United States Navy Museum System’. Such system shall include the following museums:
“(1) The National Museum of the United States Navy.
“(2) The United States Naval Academy Museum.
“(3) The Naval War College Museum.
“(4) The Submarine Force Museum.
“(5) The National Naval Aviation Museum.
“(6) The USS Constitution Naval History and Heritage Command, Detachment Boston.
“(7) The United States Navy Seabee Museum.
“(8) The Puget Sound Navy Museum.
“(9) The Naval Undersea Museum.
“(10) The National Museum of the American Sailor.
“(11) The Hampton Roads Naval Museum.
“(12) Such other museums as may be designated by the Secretary of the Navy that meet criteria established under subsection (b).
“(b) Criteria for Designation.—The Secretary of the Navy shall establish criteria for designating museums other than museums identified in paragraphs (1) through (11) of subsection (a) for inclusion in the United States Navy Museum System. Such criteria shall include—
“(1) historical significance to naval operations, technology, or personnel;
“(2) public accessibility and educational outreach programs; and
“(3) alignment with the mission of the Navy to preserve its heritage.
“(c) Criteria for Closure.—The Secretary of the Navy shall establish criteria for the closure of museums within the United States Navy Museum System. No museum within such system may be closed until—
“(1) the Secretary of the Navy submits to the Committees on Armed Services of the House of Representatives and the Senate notice that includes—
“(A) a plan for the preservation, storage, or alternate display of historical collections contained in the museum;
“(B) how any issues relating to museum personnel will be resolved;
“(C) an identification of any efforts to maintain museum operations through public-private partnerships; and
“(D) an analysis of the cost to transport, consolidate, and preserve the historical collections contained in the museum; and
“(2) a period of 90 days has elapsed after the date on which such notice is received by such committees.
“(d) Funding and Support.—Consistent with applicable law, the Secretary of the Navy may enter into partnerships, including with nonprofit organizations, to enhance the financial sustainability and public engagement of the museums in the United States Museum System.”
Ҥ 9784. Air Force and Space Force Museum System
“(a) In General.—The Secretary of the Air Force shall support a system of official Air Force and Space Force museums within the Department of the Air Force. Such system shall include the National Museum of the United States Air Force and may contain other museums honoring individual installations, units, and branches, as designated by the Secretary of the Air Force, that meet criteria established under subsection (b).
“(b) Criteria for Designation.—The Secretary of the Air Force shall establish criteria for designating museums of subsection (a) for inclusion in the Air Force and Space Force museum system. Such criteria shall include—
“(1) historical significance to Air Force and Space Force operations, technology, or personnel;
“(2) public accessibility and educational outreach programs; and
“(3) alignment with the mission of the Air Force and Space Force to preserve the heritage of the Air Force and Space Force.
“(c) Criteria for Closure.—The Secretary of the Air Force shall establish criteria for the closure of museums within the Air Force and Space Force museum system. No museum within such system may be closed until—
“(1) the Secretary of the Air Force submits to the Committees on Armed Services of the House of Representatives and the Senate notice that includes—
“(A) a plan for the preservation, storage, or alternate display of historical collections contained in the museum;
“(B) how any issues relating to museum personnel will be resolved;
“(C) an identification of any efforts to maintain museum operations through public-private partnerships; and
“(D) an analysis of the cost to transport, consolidate, and preserve the historical collections contained in the museum; and
“(2) a period of 90 days has elapsed after the date on which such notice is received by such committees.
“(d) Funding and Support.—Consistent with applicable law, the Secretary may enter into partnerships, including with nonprofit organizations, to enhance the financial sustainability and public engagement of the museums in the Air Force and Space Force museum system.”
“(c) Transportation of Certain Domestic Animals by Foreign Air Carriers.—
“(1) In general.—This section does not preclude the transportation of a passenger and the property of such passenger by a foreign air carrier if—
“(A) such passenger is a member of the Armed Forces or civilian employee of the Department of Defense;
“(B) such property includes at least 1 and not more than 3 domestic animals traveling with such passenger;
“(C) such transportation is—
“(i) between a place in the United States and a place outside the United States; or
“(ii) between 2 places outside the United States; and
“(D) no air carrier holding a certificate under section 41102 is willing and able to provide such transportation.
“(2) Responsibility of individual to cover certain costs.—If the cost for the transportation of a passenger and property under paragraph (1) exceeds the cost that would have been owed had such transportation been provided by an air carrier holding a certificate under section 41102, the passenger shall be responsible for paying the difference between such amounts.
“(3) Domestic animal defined.—In this section, the term ‘domestic animal’ means a domestic cat (Felis catus) or a domestic dog (Canis familiaris).”
; and
“(d)
(1) The Secretary shall include in each report under subsection (a) a detailed discussion of the management of the civilian workforce of the Department of Defense. The discussion shall include the matter specified in paragraph (2) for the civilian workforce of—
“(A) the Office of the Secretary of Defense;
“(B) the Defense Agencies;
“(C) the Department of Defense Field Activities; and
“(D) the military departments.”
“(3) The limitations of this section do not apply to a Space Force general officer serving in a Space Force active status but not on sustained duty orders, and who is on active service for a period in excess of 365 days but not to exceed three years. Unless authorized by the Secretary of Defense, the number of Space Force general officers covered by this subsection and not serving in a joint duty assignment for purposes of chapter 38 of this title may not exceed two. Not later than 30 days after authorizing more than two Space Force general officers covered by this subsection, the Secretary of Defense shall provide the notification required in accordance with paragraph (2).”
“(D) The Secretary of the Air Force may authorize not more than two of the general officers authorized to serve in the Space Force under section 20110 of this title to serve on active service for a period of at least 180 days and not longer than 365 days.”
; and
“(3) a Space Force officer in the grade of brigadier general or above who is pending transition off of sustained duty orders, but only during the 60-day period preceding the end date of such orders.”
Ҥ 20110. Strength in grade: Space Force general officers in a Space Force active status, not on sustained duty
“(a) Authorized Strength.—The authorized strength of general officers in the Space Force serving in a Space Force active status but not on sustained duty is five.
“(b) Exclusions.—The following Space Force general officers shall not be counted for purposes of this section:
“(1) Those counted under section 526 of this title.
“(2) Those serving in a joint duty assignment for purposes of chapter 38 of this title, except that the number of officers who may be excluded under this paragraph may not exceed two.
“(c) Permanent Grade.—A Space Force general officer may not be reduced in permanent grade because of a reduction in the number authorized under subsection (a).
“(d) Temporary Exclusion.—The limitations of subsection (a) do not apply to an officer released from a joint duty assignment or other non-joint active service assignment, but only during the 60-day period beginning on the date the officer departs the joint duty or other active service assignment. The Secretary of Defense may authorize the Secretary of the Air Force to extend the 60-day period by an additional 120 days, except that not more than three Space Force officers may be covered by an extension under this subsection at the same time.”
“(3) The Secretary of Defense shall notify the congressional defense committees of the removal of the name of an officer from the report of a selection board by the President or the Secretary or Deputy Secretary of Defense under paragraph (1) or paragraph (2), respectively, for any reason other than misconduct—
“(A) not later than 30 days after the name of an officer is removed; and
“(B) prior to submission to the Senate of a promotion list with respect to such report pursuant to section 624(c) of this title.”
“(3) The Secretary of Defense shall notify the congressional defense committees of the removal of the name of an officer from the report of a selection board by the President or the Secretary or Deputy Secretary of Defense under paragraph (1) or paragraph (2), respectively, for any reason other than misconduct—
“(A) not later than 30 days after the name of an officer is removed; and
“(B) prior to submission to the Senate of a promotion list with respect to such report pursuant to section 12203 of this title.”
“(2) Notwithstanding subsection (b)(1), if the Secretary of a military department carries out a program under paragraph (1), such Secretary shall, pursuant to this section, inactivate a member who completes a detail under section 2004c of this title upon the completion of such detail for such period of time as the Secretary determines appropriate so such member may perform religious ministry that meets professional requirements for appointment as a chaplain in the military department concerned.”
Ҥ 2004c. Detail as students at schools for education required for appointment as a chaplain: commissioned officers; certain enlisted members
“(a) Detail Authorized.—
(1) The Secretary of each military department may detail commissioned officers and enlisted members of the armed forces as students at accredited colleges, universities, and schools of theology, located in the United States, for a period of training leading to a graduate degree that meets the educational requirements for appointment as a chaplain in the armed forces.
“(2) Pursuant to regulations prescribed by the Secretary concerned, the Secretary of a military department may fund educational expenses for members of the armed forces detailed under paragraph (1). Not more than 25 officers and enlisted members from each military department may commence such training in any single fiscal year.
“(3) Pursuant to regulations prescribed by the Secretary concerned, the Secretary of a military department may also detail members under paragraph (1) without funding any educational expenses. A member detailed pursuant to this paragraph shall not count against the limitation in paragraph (2).
“(b) Eligibility for Detail.—To be eligible for detail under subsection (a), an officer or enlisted member must be a citizen of the United States and must—
“(1)
(A) have served on active duty for a period of not less than two years nor more than eight years and be an officer in the pay grade O–3 or below as of the time the training is to begin; or
“(B) have served on active duty for a period of not less than four years nor more than ten years and be an enlisted member in the pay grade E–5 or above as of the time the training is to begin;
“(2) in the case of an enlisted member, meet all requirements for acceptance of a commission as a commissioned officer in the armed forces; and
“(3) sign an agreement that unless sooner separated the officer or enlisted member will—
“(A) complete the educational course of chaplaincy training; and
“(B) if the Secretary of the military department concerned carries out a program under section 710 of this title—
“(i) agree to be inactivated for a period of time under subsection (a)(2) of such section upon completion of a detail under this section; and
“(ii) accept transfer or detail as a chaplain in the military department concerned upon completion of the period described in clause (i).
“(c) Limitation on Service Credit.—Notwithstanding section 533 of this title, a commissioned officer of the armed forces who completes a detail under this section may not be credited with more than four years of constructive service under such section 533 upon original appointment to the armed forces as a chaplain.
“(d) Service Obligation.—
(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the agreement of an officer or enlisted member under subsection (b) shall provide that the officer or enlisted member shall serve on active duty for two years for each year or part thereof of chaplaincy training completed under subsection (a), except that such agreement may not require more than a total of six years of service on active duty.
“(2) The agreement of an officer or enlisted member under subsection (b) may authorize the officer or enlisted member to serve a portion of a service obligation on active duty and to complete the service obligation that remains upon separation from active duty in the Selected Reserve, in which case the officer or enlisted member shall serve three years in the Selected Reserve for each year or part thereof of the chaplaincy training of such officer or enlisted member under subsection (a) for any service obligation that was not completed before separation from active duty, except that such agreement may not require more than a total of nine years of service in the Selected Reserve.
“(e) Selection of Officers and Enlisted Members for Detail.—The Secretary of the military department concerned shall select officers and enlisted members for detail for chaplaincy training under subsection (a)—
“(1) on a competitive basis;
“(2) without regard to the duration of ordination or seminary requirements for the chaplaincy training in which an officer or enlisted member seeks to enroll; and
“(3) based on the needs of the armed forces under the jurisdiction of the Secretary.
“(f) Relation of Service Obligations to Other Service Obligations.—Any service obligation incurred by an officer or enlisted member under an agreement entered into under subsection (b) shall be in addition to any service obligation incurred by such officer or enlisted member under any other provision of law or agreement, except that the total service obligation under this section and any other provision of law or agreement shall not exceed nine years.
“(g) Expenses.—Expenses incident to the detail of officers and enlisted members under this section shall be paid from any funds appropriated for the military department concerned.
“(h) Failure to Complete Program.—An officer or enlisted member who is dropped from a program of chaplaincy training to which detailed under subsection (a) for deficiency in conduct or studies, or for other reasons, may be required to—
“(1) perform active duty in an appropriate military capacity in accordance with the active duty obligation imposed by regulations issued by the Secretary of Defense, except that in no case shall an officer or enlisted member be required to serve on active duty for any period in excess of one year for each year or part thereof he participated in the program; or
“(2) repay the expenses incident to the detail of such officer or enlisted member and paid under subsection (f).
“(i) Limitation on Details.—No agreement detailing an officer or enlisted member of the armed forces to a chaplaincy school may be entered into during any period in which the President is authorized by law to induct persons into the armed forces involuntarily. Nothing in this subsection shall affect any agreement entered into during any period when the President is not authorized by law to so induct persons into the armed forces.
“(j) Reports.—Not later than March 31, 2027, and annually thereafter for five years, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report on the detail of commissioned officers and enlisted members of the armed forces under this section during the preceding fiscal year, including—
“(1) the number of members of the armed forces detailed under this section, disagreggated by military department and religious faith of the members;
“(2) the number of members of the armed forces who completed a detail under this section, disaggregated by military department and religious faith of the members;
“(3) the number of members of the armed forces who have completed a detail under this section and been appointed as a chaplain in the armed forces, disaggregated by military department and religious faith of the members;
“(4) the length of detail and total cost of participation, including pay, benefits, and educational expenses, for each member of the armed forces detailed under this section;
“(5) a description of any barriers to participation in details under this section by religious faiths with lengthier or nontraditional formation requirements and any efforts by the Secretary to address any shortages of chaplains in the armed forces for particular religious faiths; and
“(6) any recommendations of the Secretary for legislative or administrative changes to improve the equity, effectiveness, or fiscal management of the detail of members of the armed forces under this section.”
“(f) If the Judge Advocate General is removed from office before the end of the term of the Judge Advocate General as specified in subsection (a), the Secretary of Defense shall, not later than five days after the removal takes effect, submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives notice that the Judge Advocate General is being removed and a statement of the reason for the removal.”
“(f) If the Judge Advocate General is removed from office before the end of the term of the Judge Advocate General as specified in subsection (b), the Secretary of Defense shall, not later than five days after the removal takes effect, submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives notice that the Judge Advocate General is being removed and a statement of the reason for the removal.”
“(g) If the Judge Advocate General is removed from office before the end of the term of the Judge Advocate General as specified in subsection (a), the Secretary of Defense shall, not later than five days after the removal takes effect, submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives notice that the Judge Advocate General is being removed and a statement of the reason for the removal.”
“(d)
(1) Under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of the Army—
“(A) an officer of the Army National Guard who fills a vacancy in a federally recognized unit of the Army National Guard may be transferred from the active Army National Guard to the inactive Army National Guard; and
“(B) an officer of the Army National Guard transferred to the inactive Army National Guard pursuant to subparagraph (A) may be transferred from the inactive Army National Guard to the active Army National Guard to fill a vacancy in a federally recognized unit.
“(2) Under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of the Air Force—
“(A) an officer of the Air National Guard who fills a vacancy in a federally recognized unit of the Air National Guard may be transferred from the active Air National Guard to the inactive Air National Guard; and
“(B) an officer of the Air National Guard transferred to the inactive Air National Guard pursuant to subparagraph (A) may be transferred from the inactive Air National Guard to the active Air National Guard to fill a vacancy in a federally recognized unit.”
Ҥ 328a. Active Guard and Reserve duty: State disaster response duty
“(a) Authority.—The chief executive of a State who has declared an emergency in such State due to a disaster, may, with the consent of the Secretary of Defense, order a member of the National Guard of such State, who is performing Active Guard and Reserve duty pursuant to section 328 of this title, to perform duties in response to, or in preparation for, such disaster. Duty performed under this section shall be referred to as ‘State disaster response duty’.
“(b) Requirements.—State disaster response duty performed pursuant to this section—
“(1) shall be on a reimbursable basis, in accordance with subsection (c);
“(2) may be performed to the extent that the performance of such duty does not interfere with the performance of the member’s primary Active Guard and Reserve duties of organizing, administering, recruiting, instructing, and training the reserve components; and
“(3) shall not exceed a total of 14 days per member per calendar year, except that the Secretary of Defense may, if the chief executive so requests before the end of the 14th such day, authorize an extension of the duration of such duty, not to exceed an additional—
“(A) 7 days, if the Secretary determines that such extension is appropriate; and
“(B) 46 days if the Secretary determines that such duty is in support of the response to a catastrophic incident, as that term is defined in section 501 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 311).
“(c) Reimbursement.—
(1) The Secretary of the military department concerned shall charge a State for the fully burdened costs of manpower for each day of State disaster response duty performed pursuant to this section.
“(2) Such charges shall be paid from the funds of the State of the requesting chief executive or from any other non-Federal funds.
“(3) Any amounts received by a Secretary of a military department under this section shall be credited, at the discretion of the Secretary of Defense, to—
“(A) the appropriation, fund, or account used to pay such costs; or
“(B) an appropriation, fund, or account available for the purposes for which such costs were incurred.
“(4) If the State of the requesting chief executive is more than 90 days in arrears in reimbursing the Secretary of the military department concerned for State disaster response duty performed pursuant to this section, such duty may not be performed—
“(A) unless authorized by the Secretary of Defense; and
“(B) after the requesting chief executive obligates funds for the amount in arrears.
“(d) Limitation of Liability.—While performing State disaster response duty under this section, a member of the National Guard is not an instrumentality of the United States with respect to any act or omission in carrying out such duty. The United States shall not be responsible for any claim or judgment arising from the use of a member of the National Guard under this section.
“(e) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1) The term ‘Active Guard and Reserve duty’ has the meaning given such term in section 101 of title 10.
“(2) The term ‘State’ has the meaning given such term in section 901 of this title.”
“(5) A description of the effect of any equipment shortfall on the ability of the National Guard of a State to perform a homeland defense activity.”
Ҥ 996. Individual Longitudinal Exposure Record
“(a) Establishment.—The Secretary of Defense shall maintain a data system that is a central web portal for exposure-related data that compiles, collates, presents, and provides available occupational and environmental exposure information to support the needs of the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs. Such data system shall be referred to as the ‘Individual Longitudinal Exposure Record’.
“(b) Elements.—The Individual Longitudinal Exposure Record includes the following elements:
“(1) Service records of members of the armed forces.
“(2) All data available to the Secretary regarding how, where, and when members of the armed forces have been exposed to various occupational or environmental hazards.
“(3) Medical records of members relating to exposures described in paragraph (2), including diagnoses, treatment plans, and laboratory data.
“(c) Service Records.—If a member is a member described in paragraph (2) of subsection (b), the Secretary shall include the data described in such paragraph in the service record of such member.
“(d) Data Sharing.—The Secretary shall provide access to information in the Individual Longitudinal Exposure Record to the following:
“(1) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
“(2) The Director of the Defense Health Agency, for use by health care providers, epidemiologists, and researchers of the Department of Defense.
“(3) The Under Secretary for Health of the Department of Veterans Affairs, for use by health care providers, epidemiologists, and researchers of such department.
“(4) The Under Secretary for Benefits of the Department of Veterans Affairs, for use by personnel of such department regarding compensation and benefits for service-connected disabilities or death.
“(e) Annual Briefing.—
(1) The Secretary of Defense shall submit, to the committees specified in paragraph (2), an annual briefing regarding the Individual Longitudinal Exposure Record, including an explanation of how the Secretary intends to include in the Individual Longitudinal Exposure Record data described in subsection (b)(2) in cases where part or all of such data is classified.
“(2) The committees specified in this paragraph are the following:
“(A) The Committee on Armed Services of the Senate.
“(B) The Committee on Armed Services of House of Representatives.
“(C) The Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate.
“(D) The Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives.”
“(2) The term ‘Individual Longitudinal Exposure Record’ means the data system maintained under section 996 of title 10.”
“§ 997. Establishment of women’s initiative teams
“(a) Establishment.—The Secretary concerned shall establish a women’s initiative team in each of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Space Force to identify and address barriers, if any, to the service, recruitment, retention, and advancement of women in those armed forces.
“(b) Duties.—Each women’s initiative team established under subsection (a) shall—
“(1) identify and address issues, if any, that hinder service by women in the armed force in which such team is established;
“(2) support the recruitment and retention of women in such armed force;
“(3) recommend policy changes that support the needs of women members of such armed force; and
“(4) foster a sense of community.
“(c) Composition.—Each women’s initiative team established under subsection (a) shall be composed of members of the armed force in which such team is established of a variety of ranks, backgrounds, and occupational specialities.
“(d) Collaboration.—A women’s initiative team established under subsection (a) shall work collaboratively with the leadership of the armed force in which such team is established and other stakeholders to carry out the duties described in subsection (b).”
“(2) The honorary grade to which a member described in paragraph (1) is promoted shall be commensurate with such member’s contributions to the armed forces or the national defense.
“(3) The Secretary of a military department is not authorized to make an honorary promotion under paragraph (1) solely on the basis that a member described in paragraph (1) was recommended for such promotion prior to separating from the armed forces.
“(4)
(A) The Secretary of a military department is only authorized to make an honorary promotion under paragraph (1) upon receipt of a favorable recommendation by a board of at least three independent officers convened specifically for the purpose of reviewing the proposed honorary promotion.
“(B) For purposes of this paragraph, an officer is an independent officer if—
“(i) the officer has no relationship with the former member or retired member of the armed forces whose proposed honorary promotion is the subject of review by the board on which such officer will serve under this paragraph; and
“(ii) the officer has no personal interest in the proposed honorary promotion.”
“(i) shall provide to a military recruiter, for the purpose of recruiting students who are at least 17 years old, access—
“(I) to the campus of a secondary school under the jurisdiction of such local educational agency; and
“(II) that is equivalent to access provided to such campus to a prospective employer of such students, an institution of higher education, or another recruiter;
“(ii) shall, upon the request of a military recruiter for the purpose described in clause (i), provide access to at least one in-person recruitment event (such as a career fair) per academic year; and
“(iii) shall, upon the request of a military recruiter for the purpose described in clause (i), provide, not later than 30 days after receiving such request, access to secondary school student names, addresses, electronic mail addresses (which shall be the electronic mail addresses provided by the school, if available), and telephone and mobile phone listings, notwithstanding subsection (a)(5) of section 444 of the General Education Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g).”
“(c) Alternative Service in Areas of National Interest.—
(1) The Secretary of Defense shall carry out a program to provide to an individual described in paragraph (2) information about opportunities to work in areas of national interest to the United States.
“(2) An individual described in this paragraph is an individual who seeks to originally enlist in an armed force but is denied enlistment.
“(3) In carrying out the program required by paragraph (1), the Secretary shall—
“(A) identify job opportunities in the defense industrial base, cybersecurity or intelligence support, research and development in defense technologies, national emergency and disaster preparedness, or any other non-military field the Secretary considers in the national interests of the United States;
“(B) provide available information about training or certification programs to obtain the skills necessary for such a job; and
“(C) seek to enter into agreements with entities in the fields described in subparagraph (A).
“(4) The Secretary of Defense shall annually submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report on the program required by this subsection. Such report shall include, with respect to the year preceding the date of the report, the following elements:
“(A) The number of individuals described in paragraph (2) provided information described in paragraph (3)(A).
“(B) The number of individuals described in paragraph (2) provided information described in paragraph (3)(B).
“(C) The number of agreements described in paragraph (3)(C) into which the Secretary entered.”
Ҥ 658. Medical accession standards for members of the armed forces
“(a) Establishment of Standards.—
(1) The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe uniform medical accession standards for the appointment, enlistment, or induction of individuals into the armed forces.
“(2) The Secretary of Defense shall make readily available and understandable to applicants for military service the medical accession standards established under paragraph (1), including an explanation of the process for a review or waiver of a medical disqualification under subsection (b).
“(b) Process for Review or Waiver of Medical Disqualifications.—
(1) The Secretary of Defense shall establish a process for the review of medical disqualifications of persons seeking to become a member of the armed forces and for granting waivers of those medical disqualifications. Determinations shall be based on all available information regarding the medical condition and the operational needs of the military service concerned.
“(2) The waiver process shall include criteria permitting waivers when such action is in the interests of national security, defined as a compelling governmental interest in accessing an individual whose service would directly support the Department’s warfighting capabilities.
“(c) Reports.—
(1) The Secretary of Defense shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives an annual report identifying—
“(A) the number of persons disqualified from service as a member of the armed forces during the preceding calendar year due to medical history;
“(B) the number and type of approvals granted under subsection (b) during the preceding calendar year; and
“(C) any revisions to the medical accession standards established under subsection (a) or the waiver process established under subsection (b) since the preceding report.
“(2) In any fiscal year in which the accession of a person into the Coast Guard is approved under the process established under subsection (b), the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report identifying the information required under paragraph (1)(B) with respect to such member.”
“(4) Effect of course graduation.—The Secretary concerned may exclude from the population to be considered for purposes of determining the percentage limitations imposed by section 520(a) of title 10, United States Code, any enlisted person who has graduated from a future servicemember preparatory course established pursuant to this section with a score on the Armed Forces Qualification Test that is at or above the thirty-first percentile, provided that—
“(A) the Armed Forces Qualifications Test score that is at or above the thirty-first percentile is obtained within the same fiscal year in which the individual was originally enlisted to serve on active duty; and
“(B) such score is obtained during the period the individual was originally enlisted to serve on active duty, as determined by the Secretary concerned.”
; and
“(1) The percentage of nonprior service enlisted persons who scored below the thirty-first percentile on the Armed Forces Qualification Test upon original enlistment.
“(2) The percentage of nonprior service enlisted persons who scored below the thirty-first percentile on the Armed Forces Qualification Test following graduation from the preparatory course or subsequent reclassification, as applicable.”
; and
“Sec. 3.
(a)
(1) Except as otherwise provided in this title, every male citizen of the United States, and every other male person residing in the United States, between the ages of eighteen and twenty-six, shall be automatically registered under this Act by the Director of the Selective Service System.
“(2) This section shall not apply to any alien lawfully admitted to the United States as a nonimmigrant under section 101(a)(15) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101) for so long as such alien continues to maintain a lawful nonimmigrant status in the United States.
“(b) Regulations prescribed pursuant to this section (a) may require—
“(1) a person subject to registration under this section to provide, to the Director, information (including date of birth, address, social security account number, phone number, and email address) regarding such person;
“(2) a Federal entity to provide, to the Director, information described in paragraph (1) that the Director determines necessary to identify or register a person subject to registration under this section; and
“(3) the Director to provide, to a person registered under this section, written notification that—
“(A) such person has been so registered; and
“(B) if such person is not required to be so registered, the procedure by which such person may correct such registration.”
“(3) The Secretary concerned may not require an officer or noncommissioned officer described in paragraph (1)(B) to have completed more than 8 years of service as a member of the armed forces as a condition for approval by the Secretary to serve as an administrator or instructor in the program.”
Ҥ 2010. Requirements with respect to motorcycle safety training
“The Secretaries of the military departments shall ensure that all beginner motorcycle safety training provided to members of the Armed Forces meets the motorcycle safety training requirements for licensing of the State in which the permanent station of the member receiving the training is located.”
“(E) The Space Force Senior Level Education Program.”
; and
“(E) The Space Force Intermediate Level Education Program.”
“(9) The Space Force Senior Level Education Program.
“(10) The Space Force Intermediate Level Education Program.”
Ҥ 8451b. Director of admissions
“(a) Establishment and Appointment.—There is a director of admissions of the Naval Academy. The director of admissions shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and shall perform such duties as the Superintendent of the Naval Academy may prescribe with the approval of the Secretary of the Navy.
“(b) Grade.—
(1) Subject to paragraph (2), a person appointed as director of admissions of the Naval Academy has the regular grade of commander in the Navy or lieutenant colonel in the Marine Corps.
“(2) A person serving as director of admissions shall have the regular grade of captain in the Navy or colonel in the Marine Corps upon the earlier of—
“(A) the date on which such person completes six years of service as the director of admissions; and
“(B) the date on which such person would have been promoted had the person been selected for promotion from among officers in the promotion zone.
“(c) Detail.—The President may detail any officer of the Navy or the Marine Corps in a grade above lieutenant or captain, respectively, to perform the duties of director of admissions without appointing the officer as director of admissions. Such a detail does not affect the position of the officer on the active-duty list.”
“§ 9414. United States Air Force Institute of Technology: degree granting authority; faculty, reimbursement and tuition; acceptance of research grants”
“(e) Space Force Faculty.—
(1) The Secretary shall detail members of the Space Force as instructors at the United States Air Force Institute of Technology to provide instruction in areas that support the mission of the Space Force.
“(2) The number of members of the Space Force detailed by the Secretary to the United States Air Force Institute of Technology as instructors during an academic year shall be equal to or greater than the product of—
“(A) the total number of members of the Space Force divided by the total number of members of the Space Force and the Air Force; and
“(B) the total number of instructors at the United States Air Force Institute of Technology.”
“(a)
(1) A member of the armed forces may only serve as a judge advocate if such member—
“(A) is admitted to the practice of law before the highest court of a State, territory, commonwealth, or the District of Columbia;
“(B) maintains a license status that provides current eligibility to actively practice law before such court;
“(C) is subject to the disciplinary review process of the jurisdiction in which such member maintains such a license status; and
“(D) is in compliance with any other requirements of such jurisdiction to remain eligible to practice law in such jurisdiction.
“(2) The Judge Advocates General of the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard and the Staff Judge Advocate to the Commandant of the Marine Corps may suspend the authority of a judge advocate of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, or Marine Corps, respectively, to perform legal duties if such judge advocate becomes noncompliant with the requirements of paragraph (1). A member of the armed forces who is suspended or disbarred from the practice of law within a jurisdiction may not perform legal duties.”
“(1) must be a judge advocate who is qualified under section 806(a)(1) of this title (article 6(a)(1)); and”
“(A) is a judge advocate who is qualified under section 806(a)(1) of this title (article 6(a)(1)); and”
“(2) The assignment for duty of judge advocates pursuant to this subsection shall include qualified judge advocates in numbers sufficient to provide legal advice to all commanders responsible for planning and organizing military operations (including commanders of and within commands assigned to a combatant command or the United States element of the North American Aerospace Defense Command as established pursuant to sections 161 and 162 of this title) and all commanders authorized to convene courts-martial under sections 822 through 824 of this title (articles 22 through 24). The qualifications of judge advocates assigned to provide legal advice to commanders under this paragraph shall include—
“(A) the qualifications set forth in subsection (a)(1); and
“(B) any additional education, expertise, or experience determined to be necessary to fulfill the requirements of this paragraph by the Judge Advocate General of the armed force concerned, or in the case of the Marine Corps, by the Staff Judge Advocate to the Commandant of the Marine Corps.”
“(2) analyze the feasibility and advisability of, and potential approaches to, modifying the offense of wrongful broadcast or distribution of intimate visual images under section 917a of title 10, United States Code (article 117a of the Uniform Code of Military Justice)—
“(A) to clarify its applicability to the nonconsensual distribution of digital forgeries (commonly known as ‘deepfakes’); and
“(B) to include such other changes as are indicated in the amendment proposed by section 552 of the H.R. 3838, as engrossed in the House of Representatives on September 10, 2025; and”
; and
“(3) the advisability of modifying section 917a of title 10, United States Code (article 117a of the Uniform Code of Military Justice) in the manner described in subsection (a)(2) and such other approaches to the modification of such section (article) as the Secretary considers appropriate.”
“(B) Preseparation counseling may be provided in person to the extent practicable. If the Secretary concerned determines that it is infeasible for a member to attend such counseling in person, such member may receive such counseling remotely, with online access to modules and reading materials.”
“(C) The Secretary of Defense may implement a system to track how many, and what percentage of, members begin to receive preseparation counseling within time periods specified in this paragraph.”
“(D) The Secretary concerned may waive the requirement for preseparation counseling under paragraph (1) in the case of a member of the reserve components if—
“(i) the member requests such a waiver;
“(ii) the member received preseparation counseling during the period of three years preceding the date of such request; and
“(iii) matters covered by such counseling, specified in subsection (b), have not changed since the member last received such counseling.”
“(B) Individualized assistance regarding matters described in subparagraph (A).”
“(c) The Secretary shall maintain a publicly available website of the Department through which a veteran or dependent of a veteran may search by ZIP code for programs for—
“(1) veterans who recently separated from active military, naval, air, or space service; or
“(2) dependents of veterans described in paragraph (1).”
“(M) Child care requirements of the member (including whether a dependent of the member is enrolled in the Exceptional Family Member Program).
“(N) The employment status of other adults in the household of the member.
“(O) The location of the duty station of the member (including whether the member was separated from family while on duty).
“(P) The effects of operating tempo and personnel tempo on the member and the household of the member.”
“(1) an email address”
“(2) if the individual would like to opt-out of the transmittal of the individual’s information to and through a State veterans agency as described in subsection (a).”
; and
“(d) Opt-out of Information Sharing.—Information on an individual shall be transmitted to and through a State veterans agency as described in subsection (a) unless the individual indicates pursuant to subsection (c)(2) that the individual would like to opt out of such transmittal.”
“(e) Storage and Transfer of Information.—
“(1) In general.—The Secretary of Defense shall seek to enter into memoranda of understanding or other agreements with the State veterans agencies described in subsection (a) to create or modify a Department system to store and transfer information under this section to information systems of such State veterans agencies.
“(2) Compliance.—The Secretary shall ensure that any agreement entered into under paragraph (1) is in compliance with—
“(A) applicable provisions of law relating to privacy and personally identifiable information; and
“(B) applicable policies relating to cybersecurity of Department information systems and State information systems.”
“(f) Limitation on Use of Information.—Information transferred under this section may only be used by a State for the purpose of providing or connecting veterans to benefits or services as described in subsection (a).”
“(g) Notification of Suspected Child Abuse.—
(1) The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe regulations that require the director of a military child development center to notify a parent or guardian of a child who is the suspected victim of a covered incident not later than 24 hours after a child care employee at such military child development center learns of such covered incident.
“(2) The requirement under paragraph (1) shall not apply if notification under such paragraph threatens the integrity of a law enforcement investigation of such covered incident.
“(3) In this subsection, the term ‘covered incident’ means alleged or suspected abuse or neglect of a child that occurs at a military child development center.”
“(D) Children of employees of the American Red Cross who—
“(i) are performing, on a full-time basis, services for the Armed Forces, including emergency services; and
“(ii) reside in an overseas area supported by a school of the defense dependents’ education system.”
“(n) Eligibility of Dependents of Certain Members of the Reserve Components.—
(1) A dependent of a member described in paragraph (2) shall be eligible to attend a school established under this section at the military installation that is the permanent station of such member and such dependent shall automatically be granted enrollment at such school at the request of such member if there is sufficient space in the school to accommodate the dependent. In the event there is not sufficient space available at such school at the time the dependent seeks to enroll, the dependent shall be placed on a wait-list for enrollment in the school.
“(2) A member described in this paragraph is a member of a reserve component performing active service pursuant to an order for accompanied permanent change of station.”
Ҥ 2164c. Authorization of dual or concurrent enrollment programs for students of Defense Dependent Schools
“(a) In General.—The Secretary of Defense, acting through the Director of the Department of Defense Education Activity, may—
“(1) enter into arrangements with institutions of higher education to provide students of Defense Dependent Schools with access to postsecondary course credit through dual or concurrent enrollment programs; and
“(2) subject to subsection (b), provide financial assistance to students to cover the costs associated with such programs.
“(b) Amount of Assistance.—The amount of financial assistance provided to an individual student under subsection (a)(2) may not exceed $1,500 per school year.
“(c) Credit Transferability.—The Secretary of Defense shall, to the greatest extent practicable, ensure that the Department of Defense Education Activity, in facilitating dual or concurrent enrollment programs with institutions of higher education under this section—
“(1) establishes articulation or credit transfer agreements that promote the transferability of academic credits earned by participating students; and
“(2) prioritizes agreements with institutions that offer broad acceptance of such credits across degree programs.
“(d) Institutional Integrity.—In entering into contracts or other agreements with institutions of higher education for purposes of dual or concurrent enrollment programs under this section, the Secretary of Defense shall ensure that such institutions have a program participation agreement in effect under section 487 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094) and are not provisionally or temporarily certified.
“(e) Preparation and Informing Families and Educators.—In implementing dual or concurrent enrollment programs under this section, the Secretary of Defense, acting through the Director of the Department of Defense Education Activity, shall do the following:
“(1) Course sequence alignment.—Design a sequence of courses for such programs to match the academic content standards and level of rigor of the corresponding postsecondary courses, in consultation and collaboration with—
“(A) educators from Defense Dependent Schools serving the military-connected community;
“(B) faculty members from institutions of higher education offering dual or concurrent enrollment programs; and
“(C) the school advisory committee (or the equivalent advisory body) of each Defense Dependent School.
“(2) Outreach and information dissemination.—Establish outreach and awareness efforts targeted toward elementary and secondary school students, particularly those in the middle grades and their families, educators, school counselors, and principals, to provide—
“(A) general information regarding the availability and benefits of dual or concurrent enrollment programs;
“(B) guidance on eligibility requirements, academic expectations, and necessary preparatory coursework for such programs; and
“(C) resources to support informed decisionmaking and successful student participation in such programs.
“(f) Teacher Certification.—The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that all dual or concurrent enrollment courses facilitated by the Department of Defense Education Activity are taught by—
“(1) a postsecondary faculty member who—
“(A) is employed by a two-year or four-year institution of higher education (which may include a community college); and
“(B) meets the applicable postsecondary accreditation standards for instructional staff; or
“(2) a classroom teacher employed by a local educational agency or by the Department of Defense Education Activity, who—
“(A) is qualified to teach in accordance with applicable law; and
“(B) has received training or certification to deliver the dual or concurrent enrollment course curriculum in alignment with the standards of the partnering institution of higher education.
“(g) Additional Requirements.—In carrying out this section, the Secretary of Defense shall consult with the School Advisory Committees (or the equivalent advisory bodies) and Parent Teacher Associations of participating Defense Dependent Schools.
“(h) Annual Briefings.—
“(1) In general.—Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this section, and annually thereafter for four years, the Secretary of Defense shall provide to the appropriate congressional committees a briefing on the status of the dual and concurrent enrollment programs authorized under this section.
“(2) Elements.—Each briefing under paragraph (1) shall include, with respect to the period covered by the briefing—
“(A) the number of students who participated in dual or concurrent enrollment programs authorized under this section;
“(B) the total cost to the Department of Defense of providing such programs; and
“(C) an explanation of—
“(i) whether and to what extent such programs consisted of online classes or in-person instruction; and
“(ii) the subjects taught in postsecondary classes taken by students participating in such programs.
“(3) Disaggregation.—The information required under paragraph (2) shall be set forth separately for each region served by the Department of Defense Education Activity.
“(i) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1) The term ‘appropriate congressional committees’ means—
“(A) the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate; and
“(B) the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on Education and Workforce of the House of Representatives.
“(2) The term ‘Defense Dependent School’ means—
“(A) a school operated under the Defense Dependents’ Education System, as authorized under the Defense Dependents’ Education Act of 1978 (20 U.S.C. 921 et seq.); or
“(B) a Department of Defense domestic dependent elementary and secondary school, as authorized under section 2164 of this title.
“(3) The term ‘dual or concurrent enrollment program’ means a program offered by an arrangement between the Department of Defense Education Activity and an institution of higher education and through which a student enrolled in a Defense Dependent School who has not graduated from high school with a regular high school diploma is able to enroll in one or more postsecondary courses and earn credit that applies—
“(A) toward completion of a postsecondary degree or recognized educational credential as described in the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.); and
“(B) toward completion of high school.
“(4) The term ‘institution of higher education’ has the meaning given that term in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002).”
Ҥ 2164d. Limitation on school closures and certain other actions with respect to schools operated by the Department of Defense Education Activity
“(a) Limitation.—The Secretary of Defense may not take any action described in subsection (b) with respect to a school operated by the Department of Defense Education Activity unless—
“(1) the Secretary submits to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives—
“(A) written notice of the intent of the Secretary to take such action with respect to such school;
“(B) the report required under subsection (c); and
“(C) a written assurance that the Director of the Department of Defense Education Activity has met, engaged with, and solicited feedback from students, parents, teachers, administrators, military installation leadership, and the local community concerning the proposed action; and
“(2) a period of one year has elapsed following the date on which the requirements under paragraph (1) have been met.
“(b) Actions Described.—The actions described in this subsection are the following:
“(1) Closing or terminating the operations of a school.
“(2) Preparing to close or terminate the operations of a school.
“(3) Reducing by 20 percent or more the number of spaces available for enrollment in a school.
“(4) Significantly reducing the services provided by a school, including—
“(A) curriculum offerings;
“(B) special education services; and
“(C) extracurricular activities.
“(5) Transferring or conveying a school to a local educational agency or any other entity outside the Department of Defense.
“(c) Report.—Before taking any action described in subsection (b), the Secretary of Defense shall prepare a report containing a justification and analysis of such action. Such justification and analysis shall include an explanation of—
“(1) the monetary costs to the Department of Defense of the action; and
“(2) the effects of the action on—
“(A) students;
“(B) curriculum;
“(C) gifted education programs;
“(D) special education programs, including individualized education programs (as defined in section 614(d)(1)(A) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1414(d)(1)(A)));
“(E) educational and other accommodations provided under section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794);
“(F) the Exceptional Family Member Program; and
“(G) local educational agencies in the area of the affected school.
“(d) Local Educational Agency Defined.—In this section, the term ‘local educational agency’ has the meaning given that term in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).”
“(2) Health care.
“(3) Maternal health care, including the following:
“(A) A list of maternal health services furnished under TRICARE.
“(B) A guide to continuity of such care through a permanent change of station.
“(C) With regards to a pregnant member, relevant regulations, options for leave, and uniform resources and requirements.
“(4) Death benefits and life insurance programs.”
“(k) Support Beyond Program.—
“(1) In general.—The Secretary of Defense may provide funds to States, Territories, and government entities to carry out programs, and other activities as the Secretary considers appropriate, that provide deployment cycle information, services, and referrals to eligible individuals throughout the deployment cycle. Such programs may include the provision of access to outreach services, including the following:
“(A) Employment counseling.
“(B) Behavioral health counseling.
“(C) Suicide prevention.
“(D) Housing advocacy.
“(E) Financial counseling.
“(F) Referrals for the receipt of other related services.
“(2) Authorization of appropriation.—For fiscal year 2026, $20,000,000 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out paragraph (1).”
“(27) The term ‘space force active status’ has the meaning given that term in section 101 of title 10.
“(28) The term ‘sustained duty’ has the meaning given that term in section 101 of title 10.”
“(C) the Space Force;”
“(6) transfers from a regular component or reserve component of an armed force to the Space Force or from the Space Force to a regular component or reserve component of another armed force, subject to the approval of the Secretary with jurisdiction over the armed force to which the member is transferring.”
; and
“(6) transfers from a regular component or reserve component of a uniformed service to the Space Force or from the Space Force to a regular component or reserve component of another uniformed service, subject to the approval of the Secretary with jurisdiction over the uniformed service to which the member is transferring.”
; and
“(5) In this subsection, the term ‘specified form of service’ means—
“(A) service on active duty;
“(B) service in an active status in a reserve component; or
“(C) service in the Space Force in space force active status.”
“(A) In general.—In making”
; and
“(B) Aviation incentive pay evaluation.—Not later than June 1, 2026, the Secretary shall complete the evaluation required by subparagraph (A) with respect to aviation incentive pay under section 334 of title 37, United States Code. In conducting that evaluation, the Secretary shall make a specific determination with respect to the percentage of such aviation incentive pay, if any, that is paid specifically to maintain skill certification or proficiency under section 357 of title 37, United States Code.
“(C) Special and incentive pay framework.—Not later than June 1, 2026, the Secretary shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives a detailed report on the special and incentive pay assessment framework, required by the Senate report accompanying the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 (Public Law 118–31), that includes the Secretary’s plan and timeline for implementing such framework.”
; and
“(3) Initiation of payments.—Not later than January 1, 2027, the Secretary concerned shall begin making aviation incentive payments under section 357 of title 37, United States Code, pursuant to the determination made under paragraph (2)(B).”
“(1)
(A) The monthly rate of basic allowance for subsistence to be in effect for an enlisted member for a year (beginning on January 1 of that year) shall be equal to the monthly cost of a liberal food plan for a male in the United States who is between 19 and 50 years of age, as determined by the Secretary of Agriculture on October 1 of the preceding year.
“(B) With respect to a member who is subject to monthly deduction from pay for meals under section 1011(b) of this title, the amount payable under subparagraph (A) shall be reduced by the amount of such deduction from pay, in accordance with policies prescribed by the Secretary of Defense.
“(C) The monthly rate of basic allowance for subsistence to be in effect for an enlisted member for a year under subparagraph (A) may not decrease relative to the rate in effect for the preceding year.”
; and
“(A) the member is—
“(i) assigned to a duty location in Alaska for a period of not less than one year; and
“(ii) unaccompanied by dependents in such duty location; and”
; and
“(5) Period specified.—The period specified in this paragraph is the period—
“(A) beginning on the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026; and
“(B) ending on December 31, 2027.”
“(iii) The regulations prescribed under clause (i) shall authorize a member described in such clause to take leave described under subparagraph (A) during the two-year period beginning after an event described in clause (i) or (ii) of such subparagraph with the approval of the first general officer or flag officer in the chain of command of such member.”
“(c) Convalescent Leave.—An academy cadet or midshipman diagnosed with a medical condition is allowed convalescent leave under section 701(m) of this title.”
; and
“(d) Annual Review of Amount of Assistance.—The Secretary shall annually review the amount of financial assistance provided under this section, including the maximum amount of financial assistance per month per child that the Secretary authorizes to be provided to eligible providers under this section.”
“(4) Waiver.—The Secretary concerned may waive the requirements of paragraphs (1) and (3) as the Secretary considers necessary to meet mission requirements during—
“(A) a time of war;
“(B) a national emergency requiring the use of significant personnel and aircraft;
“(C) a large-scale combat operation; or
“(D) a contingency operation.”
“(2) A civil service mariner of the Military Sealift Command may be permitted to use commissary stores and MWR retail facilities on the same basis as members of the armed forces on active duty.”
Ҥ 1016. Pay statements: descriptions of types of pay
“(a) In General.—The Secretary of Defense shall make available contemporaneously with each pay statement provided to a member of the Armed Forces, for each type of pay, allowance, and deduction listed on the statement, a brief and plain-language description of—
“(1) the statutory or regulatory authority under which a pay, allowance, or deduction is made;
“(2) the purpose of a pay, allowance, or deduction;
“(3) the criteria for determining eligibility of members for a pay, allowance, or deduction; and
“(4) possible changes in the eligibility of the member for a pay, allowance, or deduction, including the circumstances under which a pay, allowance, or deduction may be suspended or modified or may expire.
“(b) Requirements.—The descriptions required to be made available with a pay statement under paragraph (1) shall be—
“(1) published on a website accessible by a member and printable with the pay statement of the member; and
“(2) presented in language easily understood by individuals without specialized knowledge of military finance, accounting, or law.”
“(E) Educational planning and support services for dependent children with disabilities, including procedures for transferring individualized education programs and coordinating with the Exceptional Family Member Program.
“(F) Provision of information regarding available assistance under this section and any other assistance relating to a change of permanent station available under any other provision of law, including—
“(i) information on family assistance programs authorized under section 1788 of this title, including financial planning resources, spouse employment support, and community integration services;
“(ii) guidance on available housing assistance, including on-base housing options, rental protections, and resources for off-base relocation;
“(iii) mental health and well-being support services, including those accessible during the period of transition for a change of permanent station;
“(iv) educational resources for dependent children, including school transition assistance and special education services;
“(v) information on available legal and financial counseling programs; and
“(vi) any other assistance programs that support members of the armed forces and their families during relocation.”
; and
“(3) The Secretary of each military department shall ensure that relocation assistance required to be provided under this subsection is provided not later than 45 days before the date on which a change of permanent station takes effect for a member of the armed forces under the jurisdiction of such Secretary.
“(4) The Secretary of each military department shall—
“(A) incorporate the information required to be provided under this subsection into accessible materials and briefings provided to members of the armed forces relating to a change of permanent station;
“(B) ensure that the program under this section provides accessible materials and briefings at military installations and through online resources;
“(C) develop a communication strategy, including digital outreach and printed materials, to increase awareness of the program under this section and assistance available under other provisions of law relating to a change of permanent station; and
“(D) assess the satisfaction of members of the armed forces with the information provided under this subsection.”
“(d) Reporting.—
“(1) Progress reports.—At the end of each calendar quarter until the pilot program terminates, the Secretary of a military department shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and House of Representatives a progress report regarding implementation of the pilot program.
“(2) Final report.—Not later than 90 days after the pilot program terminates, the Secretary of a military department shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and House of Representatives a final report regarding the pilot program. Such report shall include the following elements:
“(A) Lessons learned from the pilot program.
“(B) The recommendation of the Secretary whether to expand or make permanent the pilot program.
“(C) If the Secretary recommends expansion, the military installations covered by such recommended expansion.
“(D) Limitations to the operation or expansion of the pilot program.
“(E) Any information the Secretary determines appropriate.”
“(2) With respect to members of the armed forces on active duty and their dependents, the Secretary shall administer subsection (a) by substituting ‘75 miles’ for ‘100 miles’.”
“(a) Director of the Defense Health Agency.—
(1) There is in the Defense Health Agency a Director.
“(2) The Director of the Defense Health Agency shall—
“(A) be a military officer and hold a rank that is the same or greater than the rank of any officer serving as the Surgeon General of a military department under section 7036, 8031, or 9036 of this title; and
“(B) have joint experience.”
“(e) Medical Surge Program.—
(1) The Secretary of Defense, in collaboration with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall carry out a program of record known as the Military-Civilian Medical Surge Program to—
“(A) support locations that the Secretary of Defense selects under paragraph (3)(B); and
“(B) enhance the interoperability and medical surge capability and capacity of the National Disaster Medical System in response to a declaration or other action described in subparagraphs (A) through (F) of paragraph (4).
“(2)
(A) The Secretary of Defense, acting through the Institute for Defense Health Cooperation at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (or such successor center), shall oversee the management, staffing, and deployment of the Program, in coordination with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Director of the Defense Health Agency, and, for purposes of ensuring that the Program is carried out in a manner that is consistent with paragraph (6), the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
“(B) In carrying out subparagraph (A) during a contingency operation, the Secretary of Defense shall ensure that the Program provides support, acting through the Defense Health Agency serving as a combat support agency, to the relevant combatant command.
“(C) The Secretary of Defense shall ensure the program is administrated in coordination with the military departments, the Joint Staff, the Defense Health Agency, and the Department of Health and Human Services through semiannual coordination meetings and quarterly updates. On an annual basis, one such meeting shall include the participation of partners specified in paragraph (3)(A).
“(D) In carrying out the Program, the Secretary of Defense shall maintain requirements for staffing, specialized training, research, and education, regarding patient regulation, movement, definitive care, and other matters the Secretary determines critical to sustaining the health of members of the armed forces.
“(3)
(A) In carrying out the Program, the Secretary of Defense shall establish partnerships at locations selected under subparagraph (B) with public, private, and nonprofit health care organizations, health care institutions, health care entities, academic medical centers of institutions of higher education, and hospitals that the Secretary and the Secretary of Health and Human Services determine—
“(i) are critical in mobilizing a civilian medical response in support of a wartime contingency or other catastrophic event in the United States; and
“(ii) have demonstrated technical proficiency in critical national security domains, including high-consequence infectious disease and special pathogen preparedness, and matters relating to defense, containment, management, care, and transportation.
“(B) The Secretary of Defense shall select not fewer than eight locations that are operationally relevant to the missions of the Department of Defense under the National Disaster Medical System and are aeromedical or other transport hubs or logistics centers in the United States for partnerships under subparagraph (A). The Secretary may select more than eight locations, including locations outside of the continental United States, if the Secretary determines such additional locations cover areas of strategic and operational relevance to the Department.
“(4) The Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall ensure that the partnerships under paragraph (3)(A) allow for civilian medical personnel to quickly and effectively mobilize direct support to military medical treatment facilities and provide support to other requirements of the military health system pursuant to the following:
“(A) A declaration of a national emergency under the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1621 et seq.).
“(B) A public health emergency declared under section 319 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d).
“(C) A declaration of war by Congress.
“(D) A contingency operation.
“(E) The President’s exercise of executive powers under the War Powers Resolution (50 U.S.C. 1541 et seq.).
“(F) Any other emergency or major disaster as declared by the President.
“(5) Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives a report on the status, readiness, and operational capabilities of the Program. Each report shall include an assessment of personnel readiness, resource availability, interagency coordination efforts, and recommendations for continued improvements to the Program.
“(6) Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize the Secretary of Defense to control, direct, limit, or otherwise affect the authorities of the Secretary of Health and Human Services with respect to the leadership and administration of the National Disaster Medical System, public health and medical preparedness and response, staffing levels, or resource allocation.
“(7) In this subsection:
“(A) The term ‘institution of higher education’ means a four-year institution of higher education (as defined in section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a))).
“(B) The term ‘National Disaster Medical System’ means the system established under section 2812 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300hh–11).
“(C) The term ‘Program’ means the Military-Civilian Medical Surge Program established under paragraph (1).”
“(A) An endorsement from the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff that the proposed modification will have no effect on operational requirements of the armed forces.
“(B) An endorsement from the Surgeon General of the military department concerned that the proposed modification will have no effect on the training or readiness of military medical personnel in the military department concerned.
“(C) An assessment from the Director of the Defense Health Agency that explains how members of the armed forces and covered beneficiaries receiving services at the facility will continue to receive care.”
Ҥ 2350t. Military medical cooperation arrangements among Five Eyes countries
“(a) Authority.—The Secretary of Defense may enter into a bilateral or multilateral memorandum of understanding or other formal agreement with one or more governments of the Five Eyes countries to support military medical cooperation or improve operational medical interoperability.
“(b) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1) The term ‘Five Eyes countries’ means the following:
“(A) Australia.
“(B) Canada.
“(C) New Zealand.
“(D) The United Kingdom.
“(2) The term ‘military medical cooperation’ means any of the following:
“(A) Information exchange.
“(B) Medical interoperability, including credentialing of health care personnel.
“(C) Medical education, training, exercises, and evaluation.
“(D) Medical research, development, trials, and evaluation.
“(E) Biodefense, including with respect to prevention, preparation, response, and investigation.
“(F) Medical logistics, including the recognition of MedCM, drugs and medical equipment.
“(G) Patient movement.
“(H) Any other areas for cooperation designated by the Secretary of Defense.
“(3) The term ‘military medicine’ means any of the following:
“(A) Combat casualty care including trauma.
“(B) Military infectious disease.
“(C) Chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear medical support.
“(D) Deployed health care delivery.
“(E) Public health, health readiness, and force health protection.
“(F) Mental health.
“(G) Humanitarian response.
“(H) Anomalous health incidents.
“(I) Mass casualty management.
“(J) Any other areas of military medicine designated by the Secretary of Defense.”
“(3) The term ‘partner country’ means any of the following:
“(A) Australia.
“(B) Canada.
“(C) New Zealand.
“(D) The United Kingdom.
“(E) Any other country designated as a partner country by the Secretary of Defense for the purposes of this section.”
Ҥ 3864. Assumption of uninsurable risk on certain contracts
“(a) In General.—The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that a contractor is not required to assume the risk of loss for work in process under a covered contract if, due to the classified nature of the performance of such contractor under such covered contract—
“(1) such contractor is unable to obtain insurance for such risk of loss from a commercial provider; or
“(2) a commercial provider is unable to process a claim of such contractor for loss of work in process under such covered contract.
“(b) Limitations.—Subsection (a) shall not apply with respect to a loss of work in process under a covered contract to the extent that such loss—
“(1) is the result of willful misconduct or lack of good faith on the part of the managerial personnel of the contractor, including with respect to the oversight of subcontractors by the contractor; or
“(2) is the result of workmanship error by the contractor.
“(c) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1) The term ‘classified contract’ means a contract the performance of which requires a contractor performing under such contract, or an employee of such contractor, to have access to classified information.
“(2) The term ‘covered contract’ means a classified, fixed-price type contract for the acquisition of a product entered into by the Department of Defense after the enactment of this Act.
“(3) The term ‘work in process’ means an item at any stage of production or manufacture at any time from the initiation of contract performance until delivery to and acceptance by the Government.
“(4) The term ‘workmanship error’ means damage to work in process that is a result of an incorrectly performed skill-based task, operation, or action that was originally planned or intended.”
Ҥ 4604. Changes to certain documents
“(a) In General.—Each document referred to in a contract or other agreement for procurement entered into by the Secretary of Defense shall include a notation that—
“(1) provides the version of such document that is applicable to such contract or other agreement; and
“(2) indicates whether any changes have been made to such document after the issuance of the solicitation pursuant to which such contract or other agreement was entered into.
“(b) Unnotated Documents.—With respect to a document referred to in a contract or other agreement described in subsection (a) that does not include the notation required under such subsection, the version of the document that shall apply with respect to such contract or other agreement is the version in effect at the time of the issuance of the solicitation pursuant to which such contract or other agreement was entered into.”
“(21) The term ‘major weapon system’ means a weapon system acquired pursuant to a major defense acquisition program (as that term is defined in section 4201 of this title).”
“(ix) A budget system.
“(x) A retail system.
“(xi) A health care system.
“(xii) A travel and expense system.
“(xiii) A payroll system.
“(xiv) A supply chain management system.
“(xv) A Departmentwide resource planning system.
“(xvi) A contractor management system.”
“(2) In this section, the term ‘end item’ means a production product assembled, completed, and ready for issue or deployment.”
“(2) Funds described in paragraph (1) may be used—
“(A) to cover any increased program costs identified by a revised cost analysis or target developed pursuant to subsection (b);
“(B) to acquire additional end items in accordance with section 3069 of this title; or
“(C) to cover the cost of risk reduction and process improvements.”
“(3) Alternative Sources Required.—If the head of contracting activity, or the designee of the head of contracting activity, determines it is in the best interest of the Government to make the award under subsection (b)(1), the head of the agency shall conduct an assessment of alternative offerors as a source of supply using authorities provided by sections 865 and 882 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025 (Public Law 118–159).”
; and
“(3) An acquisition program for software and covered hardware as described by section 3603 of this title.”
“(3) the increased cost risk of the contractor with respect to any costs incurred prior to the award of the undefinitized contractual action when such costs—
“(A) would have been directly chargeable to the contract if incurred after the award of the contract; and
“(B) were incurred to meet an anticipated contract delivery schedule or anticipated contract price targets of the Government under an acquisition strategy required under section 4211 of this title; and
“(4) the increased cost risk of the contractor with respect to negotiations continuing for more than 180 days beginning on the date on which the contractor submitted the qualifying proposal to definitize such undefinitized contractual action.”
“(a) In General.—In establishing”
; and
“(b) Hiring Authority.—
“(1) Members.—The head of an element of the Department of Defense that partners with an institution participating in the program may, without regard to the provisions of subchapter I of chapter 33 of title 5, appoint a member of the program to a position in such element for a term of one year.
“(2) Graduates.—
“(A) In general.—The head of an element described in paragraph (1) may—
“(i) renew the appointment a successful graduate of the program serving a one-year term under such paragraph until such graduate is appointed to a permanent position in such element, except that the appointment may not be renewed for more than a total of four one-year terms; and
“(ii) without regard to the provisions of subchapter I of chapter 33 of title 5, appoint a graduate holding a position under an appointment renewed under clause (i) to a vacant position in the civil service (as such term is defined in section 2101 of title 5, United States Code) in the Department.
“(B) Level.—The position of a graduate in a term or permanent position described in subparagraph (A) shall be classified at the level of GS–9 under the General Schedule under subchapter III of chapter 53 of title 5, or an equivalent level for which the participant is qualified, without regard to any minimum time-in-grade or time-based experience requirements.
“(C) Limit.—The authority under this section may not be used for more than 60 graduates of the program in any calendar year.
“(3) Compensation.—
“(A) In general.—The basic pay of an individual appointed under this subsection shall be paid from amounts available in the Department of Defense Acquisition Workforce Development Account established under section 1705 of this title.
“(B) Limitation.—Payment under subparagraph (A) may be made only during the term of the appointment of such an individual and may not exceed a total of four years of payments for any one individual, including renewals under paragraph (1) or (2).
“(C) Relation to other authority.—Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to affect the authority of the Secretary of Defense to pay compensation from other available appropriations.
“(4) Sunset.—The authority under this subsection shall terminate on December 31, 2029.”
“(2)
(A) Paragraph (1) shall not apply with respect to the procurement of seafood originating in a covered foreign country, including procurement for use in military dining facilities, galleys aboard United States naval vessels, and procurement for resale in commissary stores, notwithstanding the source of funds used for such procurement.
“(B) The Secretary of Defense may waive the requirements of subparagraph (A) if such procurement would cause undue burden to a naval vessel while at sea or in port at a foreign port, a dining facility in a foreign country, a commissary, an exchange, or a nonappropriated fund instrumentality located on a military installation located outside the United States.
“(C) In this paragraph, the term ‘covered foreign country’ means The People’s Republic of China, the Russian Federation, the Islamic Republic of Iran, or the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.”
“(3) produce all critical readiness items of supply, including those identified as having sole-source dependencies, excessive lead times, unreasonable pricing, or other supply chain deficiencies; and”
“(f) Expedited Qualification Panels.—
“(1) Each Secretary of a military department shall establish an Expedited Qualification Panel within the military department under the jurisdiction of that Secretary. Each Expedited Qualification Panel shall—
“(A) develop standardized templates for expedited Source Approval Requests; and
“(B) not later than 14 days after receiving an expedited Source Approval Request—
“(i) review the request; and
“(ii) based on tiered risk criteria, make a determination with respect to the request which shall consist of—
“(I) conditional approval, which may be valid for up to 12 months;
“(II) full approval; or
“(III) disapproval of the request.
“(2) In reviewing and making determinations with respect to Source Approval Requests under paragraph (1), an Expedited Qualification Panel may use the services of designated engineering representatives or equivalent third-party certified engineers when appropriate.”
; and
“(l) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1) The term ‘critical readiness items of supply’ has the meaning given the term in section 1733 of title 10, United States Code.
“(2) The term ‘non-safety critical items, or non-mission critical items’ includes the following items:
“(A) Major risk parts or systems the failure of which is likely to cause structural damage or significant mission degradation and requires finite element modeling, fracture analysis, comparison to similar parts, or similar methods.
“(B) Minor risk parts and systems that only have form, fit, and function requirements verified by dimensional coordinate measuring machines, go/no-go gauges, or similar methods.
“(C) Low risk parts and systems that are consumable or non-critical, requiring material certification, visual inspections, or similar methods.
“(3) The term ‘safety critical items or mission critical items’ means parts or systems the failure of which is likely to cause loss of control, catastrophic failure, or loss of life, and require full qualification, simulation, and physical testing with Engineering Support Activity witnessing.”
Ҥ 4664. Requirements relating to long-term concessions agreements with certain retailers
“(a) Prohibition on Contracting With Certain Retailers.—Except as provided by subsections (b) and (c), the Secretary of Defense may not renew, extend, or enter into a long-term concessions agreement with a retailer that is controlled by a covered nation to permit such retailer to operate or conduct business through a physical location on a covered military installation.
“(b) Waiver.—
(1) The Secretary may waive the requirements of subsection (a) with respect to a long-term concessions agreement with a retailer if the Secretary determines that—
“(A) the goods or services to be provided by the retailer under such long-term concessions agreement are vital for the welfare and morale of members of the Armed Forces and no reasonable alternatives exist; and
“(B) the Secretary has implemented adequate measures to mitigate any potential national security risks of the retailer.
“(2) Not later than 30 days after each use of the waiver authority under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall provide to the Committees on Armed Services of the House of Representatives and Senate a justification for such waiver and a description of any risk mitigation strategies described in paragraph (1)(B).
“(c) Exceptions.—Subsection (a) does not apply with respect to a long-term concessions agreement with a retailer if—
“(1) such retailer has received a determination from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (in this section referred to as the ‘Committee’) that there are no unresolved national security concerns with respect to the retailer in connection to a matter submitted to the Committee and which the Committee concluded all action pursuant to section 721 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4565); or
“(2) such retailer is organized under the laws of the United States or any jurisdiction of the United States and is operated by citizens of the United States and the products offered for sale by such retailer on the covered military installation under such long-term concessions agreement are not produced in a covered nation.
“(d) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1) The term ‘controlled by a covered nation’ means, with respect to a retailer—
“(A) that the retailer is organized under the laws of a covered nation or any jurisdiction within a covered nation;
“(B) that the government of a covered nation—
“(i) owns 50 percent or more of the shares of the retailer; or
“(ii) otherwise owns the controlling interest in such retailer; or
“(C) that the retailer is subject to the direct control of the government of a covered nation.
“(2) The term ‘covered military installation’ means a military installation (as defined in section 2801 of this title) located in the United States.
“(3) The term ‘covered nation’ has the meaning given in section 4872 of this title.
“(4) The term ‘long-term concessions agreement’ means a contract, subcontract, or other agreement, including a lease agreement or licensing agreement, to operate a business through a physical location on a covered military installation entered into by—
“(A) the Secretary of Defense or a Secretary of a military department and a person; or
“(B) a person and a nonappropriated fund instrumentality.
“(5) The term ‘retailer’ means a person that operates or seeks to operate a business providing goods or services on a covered military installation under a contract, subcontract, or other agreement, including a lease agreement or licensing agreement, with—
“(A) a nonappropriated fund instrumentality;
“(B) the Secretary of Defense; or
“(C) a Secretary of a military department.”
Ҥ 4865. Prohibition on acquisition of advanced batteries composed of materials from certain foreign sources
“(a) In General.—The Secretary of Defense shall procure advanced batteries and cells whose functional cell components and technology, whether as end items or embedded within warfighting and support systems, are not owned, sourced, refined, or produced from a foreign entity of concern.
“(b) Applicability.—This section applies to all new acquisition programs on January 1, 2028, standard batteries on January 1, 2029, and for existing acquisition programs on January 30, 2031.
“(c) Exceptions.—
“(1) Sourcing and production compliance.—
“(A) In general.—Subsection (a) does not apply to an advanced battery or cell of an advanced battery if—
“(i) the final assembly of such advanced battery or cell is carried out by an entity other than a foreign entity of concern;
“(ii) functional cell components comprising more than 95 percent of the costs of the functional cell components of such advanced battery or cell are from sources other than foreign entities of concern; and
“(iii) such advanced battery or cell is produced without technology licensed from a foreign entity of concern.
“(B) Recycled source determination.—For the purposes of subparagraph (A)(ii), any material or component from an entity that has been recycled and reprocessed domestically is considered to originate from that entity regardless of origin.
“(2) Excluded batteries.—Subsection (a) does not apply to a battery or cell of a battery that is—
“(A) acquired for use in a cell phone, laptop, personal electronic device, or medical equipment intended for use in an office, administrative, hospital, or non-combat environment;
“(B) commercially available off-the-shelf item for use only in the maintenance of equipment; or
“(C) acquired for research, development, testing, and evaluation by the Department of Defense.
“(3) Waiver.—
“(A) In general.—The Secretary of Defense may waive the limitations specified in subsection (a) for a specific system or battery for one year if—
“(i) the Secretary determines that a satisfactory quality and sufficient quantity such advanced battery or cell that are not subject to such prohibition cannot be acquired as and when needed by the Department of Defense at reasonable costs; or
“(ii) in the case of an advanced battery or cell that is a component of a warfighting or support system, sufficient documentation exists to show that such advanced battery or cell is not a functional enabler of operational capability for such system and such advanced battery or cell poses no risk to the security of or sourcing for such system.
“(B) Delegation.—The Secretary of Defense may delegate the authority under subparagraph (A) only to the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment.
“(d) Report.—Not later than December 1, 2028, and not less frequently than once every three years thereafter until the date that is twelve years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall provide to the congressional defense committees a briefing on the status of meeting the requirements under subsection (a).
“(e) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1) The term ‘new acquisition program’ means a defense acquisition program that has not reached the initiation of the engineering and manufacturing development phase, or an equivalent phase of development, including a defense acquisition program that has not undergone a formal Milestone B approval or equivalent decision point, before the date of the enactment of this Act.
“(2) The term ‘existing acquisition program’ means a defense acquisition program that has reached the initiation of the engineering and manufacturing development phase, or an equivalent phase of development, including a defense acquisition program that has undergone a formal Milestone B approval or equivalent decision point, before the date of the enactment of this Act.
“(3) The term ‘functional cell component’ means the cathode materials, anode materials, separators, anode foils, and other functional materials of an advanced battery that contribute to the chemical processes necessary for energy storage, including solvents, additives, electrolyte salts, and internal safety devices.
“(4) The ‘foreign entity of concern’ has the meaning given such term under section 40207(a) of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (42 U.S.C. 18741(a)), and includes entities specified in section 154 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 (Public Law 118–31; 10 U.S.C. 4651 note prec.).
“(5) The term ‘standard battery’ means a battery that used in more than one weapons system and are not managed by one portfolio acquisition executive.”
“(3) Application of national security waiver for strategic materials.—If the Secretary of Defense or the authorized delegate has made a determination under subsection (k) of section 4863 of this title for a national security waiver of the restrictions under subsection (a) of that section for a specific end item, the Secretary or authorized delegate may apply that waiver to the restrictions under subsection (a) of this section for the same covered material or end item.”
“(F) molybdenum.”
“(D) tantalum, tungsten, or molybdenum produced from recycled material if the contractor demonstrates to the Secretary that the recycled material was produced outside of a covered nation and the melting of the recycled material and any further processing and manufacturing of the recycled material takes place in the United States or in the country of a qualifying foreign government, as defined in section 4863(m)(11) of this title.”
“(G) germanium; and
“(H) gallium.”
“(C) provide a grant, loan, or loan guarantee to an entity described in paragraph (2).”
; and
“(ii) activities related to fulfilling contracts with a fossil fuel company that has fossil fuel business operations in the Russian Federation that were entered into prior to the date of the enactment of this section, provided that such contracts are not—
“(I) extended beyond the established period of performance for such contract, including through the execution of any available option, task order, or modification; or
“(II) renewed;”
“(3) to foster innovation for the defense industrial base and to diversify and expand the defense industrial base.”
“(e) Funding From Other Federal Agencies.—The Secretary may accept and use funds from other Federal agencies and departments for execution and administration of the program authorized by this chapter.”
“(5) under the AUKUS partnership (as defined in section 1321 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 (22 U.S.C. 10401).”
; and
“(d) The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment may—
“(1) provide assistance to an eligible entity that is a center of excellence for the APEX Accelerator Program of the Department of Defense (or a successor program) to provide specialized expertise to business entities outside of the geographic area served by the center of excellence; and
“(2) may waive the government cost share restriction in accordance with section 4954(f) of this chapter.”
“(g) Eligible Uses of Authorities.—
(1) In General.—The Secretary of Defense may use the authorities provided by this section with respect to defense supply chains, including for material, material production, components, subassemblies, and finished products, testing and qualification, infrastructure, facility construction and improvement, and equipment needed directly for the following:
“(A) Castings and forgings.
“(B) Kinetic capabilities, including sensors, targeting systems, and delivery platforms.
“(C) Microelectronics.
“(D) Machine tools, including subtractive, additive, convergent, stamping, forging, abrasives, metrology, and other production equipment.
“(E) Critical minerals, materials, and chemicals.
“(F) The workforce of the defense industrial base.
“(G) Advanced manufacturing (as defined in section 4841(f)) capability and capacity of the defense industrial base, including manufacturing at or near the point of need in the area of responsibility of the United States Indo-Pacific Command.
“(H) Unmanned vehicles, including subsurface, surface, land, air, single use, and attritable unmanned vehicles and associated launch and recovery platforms.
“(I) Manned aircraft.
“(J) Ground systems.
“(K) Power sources.
“(L) Ships or submarines, including technologies and capabilities for the assembly or automation of ships or submarines, new or modernized infrastructure for the construction of new ships or submarines or the maintenance and sustainment or repair of battle damage to ships or submarines.
“(M) Other materiel solutions required to support the operational plans of the United States Indo-Pacific Command.
“(N) Defense space systems.
“(O) Batteries.
“(2) Prohibition on Use in Covered Countries.—The Secretary may not use the authorities provided by this section for any activity in a covered country.
“(3) Use of Authorities for Other Purposes.—The Secretary may not use the authorities provided by subsections (h) through (j) for a purpose other than a purpose described in paragraph (1) unless the Secretary—
“(A) determines that—
“(i) the use of the authority for such other purpose is essential to the defense interests of the United States; and
“(ii) without the use of the authority for such other purpose, the defense industrial base cannot reasonably be expected to provide a capability needed by the Department of Defense in a timely manner; and
“(B) not less than 30 days prior to the Secretary using such authorities for such other purpose, submits to the congressional defense committees a report on such determination that includes appropriate explanatory material for such use.
“(h) Grants and Other Incentives for Domestic Industrial Base Capabilities.—For the purposes of creating, maintaining, protecting, expanding, or restoring the capabilities of the domestic industrial base that are essential for the defense interests of the United States, the Secretary may—
“(1) use contracts, grants, or other transaction authorities, including cooperative agreements;
“(2) establish incentives for the private sector to develop capabilities in areas of defense interest;
“(3) during the five-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this subsection, make awards to third party entities to support investments in small- and medium-sized entities working in areas of defense interest that would benefit missions of the Department of Defense; and
“(4) provide subsidies to offset market manipulation.
“(i) Defense Industrial Base Purchase Commitment Program.—
“(1) In general.—For the purposes of creating, maintaining, protecting, expanding, or restoring capabilities of the industrial base that are essential for the defense interests of the United States, the Secretary may make purchase commitments—
“(A) for the use or resale of an industrial resource or a critical technology item by the Federal Government;
“(B) to encourage the exploration, development, and mining of strategic and critical materials;
“(C) to support the development of other materials and components;
“(D) for the development of production capabilities; and
“(E) to increase the use of emerging technologies in defense program applications and the rapid transition of emerging technologies—
“(i) from research and development sponsored by the Federal Government to commercial applications; and
“(ii) from commercial research and development to national defense applications.
“(2) Exemption for certain limitations.—
“(A) Purchases.—Except as provided by subparagraph (B), purchase commitments under paragraph (1) may be made for such quantities, and on such terms and conditions, including advance payments, and for such periods, but not extending beyond a date that is not more than 10 years from the date on which such purchase was initially made, as the Secretary deems necessary.
“(B) Limitation.—Purchase commitments under paragraph (1) involving higher than established ceiling prices (or if no such established ceiling prices exist, currently prevailing market prices) or that result in an anticipated loss on resale shall not be made, unless it is determined that supply of the materials to be purchased under such purchase commitments could not be effectively increased or provisioned at lower prices or on terms more favorable to the Federal Government, or that such purchases are necessary to assure the availability to the United States of overseas supplies.
“(3) Findings of secretary.—
“(A) In general.—The Secretary may take the actions described in subparagraph (B), if the Secretary finds with respect to a specific material that—
“(i) under generally fair and equitable ceiling prices, for any raw or nonprocessed material or component, there will result a decrease in supplies from high-cost sources of such material and that the continuation of such supplies from such sources is necessary to carry out the objectives of this section; or
“(ii) an increase in cost of transportation of such material is temporary and threatens to impair maximum production or supply in any area at stable prices of such material.
“(B) Subsidy payments authorized.—Upon a finding under subparagraph (A) with respect to a material, the Secretary may, for the purposes described in paragraph (1), make provision for subsidy payments for such material from sources other than sources that are or that are in covered countries, in such amounts and in such manner, including purchase commitments of such material or component thereof and the resale of such material or component thereof at a loss, and on such terms and conditions, as the Secretary determines necessary to ensure that—
“(i) in the case of a finding described in clause (i) of such subparagraph, supplies from high-cost sources of such material do not decrease; or
“(ii) in the case of a finding described in clause (ii) of such subparagraph with respect to one or more areas, that maximum production or supply of such material at stable prices in each such area is maintained, as applicable.
“(4) Installation of equipment in industrial facilities.—
“(A) In general.—The Secretary is authorized to take an action described in subparagraph (B) if the Secretary determines that such action will aid the defense interests of the United States.
“(B) Actions described.—The actions described in this section are—
“(i) procuring and installing additional equipment, facilities, processes or improvements to plants, factories, and other industrial facilities owned by the Federal Government;
“(ii) procuring and installing equipment, including equipment owned by the Federal Government, in privately owned plants, factories, and other industrial facilities;
“(iii) providing for the modification, expansion, or construction of new privately owned facilities, including modifications or improvements to production processes, when taking actions under this subsection or subsection (h);
“(iv) selling or otherwise transferring equipment owned by the Federal Government and installed under this subsection to the owners of such plants, factories, or other industrial facilities;
“(v) constructing facilities for the purposes described in section subsection (g)(1); and
“(vi) applying contracts, grants, or other transactions authorities.
“(5) Excess metals, minerals, materials, and components.—
“(A) In general.—Metals, minerals, materials, and components acquired pursuant to this subsection which are excess to the needs of programs under this section, as determined by the Secretary, shall be transferred to the National Defense Stockpile established by the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act (50 U.S.C. 98 et seq.), or other national reserves if available, if the Secretary deems such transfer to be in the public interest.
“(B) Transfers at no charge.—Transfers made pursuant to this paragraph shall be made without charge against or reimbursement from funds appropriated for the purposes of the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act (50 U.S.C. 98 et seq.), or other national reserves if available, except that costs incident to such transfer, other than acquisition costs, shall be paid or reimbursed from such funds.
“(C) Treatment of materials.—For the purposes of section 5(a)(3) of the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act (50 U.S.C. 98d(a)(3)), with respect to amounts paid under subparagraph (B) for any metal, mineral, material, or component transferred pursuant to this paragraph—
“(i) such metal, mineral, material, or component is deemed to have been determined to be strategic and critical under section 3(a) of the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act (50 U.S.C. 98b(a)); and
“(ii) the Stockpile Manager of the National Defense Stockpile is deemed to have determines there is a shortfall of such materials in the National Defense Stockpile.
“(6) Substitutes.—The Secretary may make provision for the development and qualification of substitutes for strategic and critical materials, components, critical technology items, and other industrial resources if and to the extent the Secretary determines that such development and qualification is in the interest of national security.
“(j) Strengthening Domestic Productive Capacity.—
“(1) In general.—The Secretary may provide appropriate incentives to develop, maintain, modernize, restore, and expand the productive capacities of sources for strategic and critical materials, components, critical technology items, and industrial resources essential for the execution of the national security strategy of the United States.
“(2) Strategic and critical materials, components, and critical technology items.—
“(A) Maintenance of reliable sources of supply.—The Secretary shall take appropriate actions to ensure that strategic and critical materials, components, critical technology items, and industrial resources are available from reliable sources when and as needed to meet the requirements of the Department of Defense during peacetime, mobilization, and national emergency (as defined in section 12 of the Strategic and Critical Materials Act (50 USC 98h-3)).
“(B) Appropriate action.—For purposes of this paragraph, appropriate actions include—
“(i) restricting contract solicitations to reliable sources;
“(ii) stockpiling or placing into reserve strategic and critical materials, components, and critical technology items;
“(iii) planning for necessary long lead times for acquiring such materials, components, and items; and
“(iv) developing and qualifying substitutes for such materials, components, and items.
“(k) Annual Report.—
“(1) In general.—Not later than October 15, 2026, and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense committee a report evaluating investments made and any other activities carried out using amounts in the Fund during the previous fiscal year.
“(2) Elements.—Each report required by paragraph (1) shall include—
“(A) measures of the effectiveness of the investments and activities described in such paragraph in meeting the needs of the Department of Defense and the defense industrial base;
“(B) an evaluation of the return on investment of all ongoing investments from the Fund; and
“(C) a description of efforts to coordinate activities carried out using amounts in the Fund with activities to support the defense industrial base carried out under other authorities.
“(3) Advice.—In preparing a report required by paragraph (1), the Secretary shall take into account the advice of the defense industry and such other individuals as the Secretary considers relevant.
“(l) Coordination With Other Defense Industrial Base Activities.—Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026, the Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense committees, the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate, and the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives a report detailing how activities carried out under this section will be coordinated with—
“(1) activities carried out using amounts in the Defense Production Act Fund under section 304 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C.4534);
“(2) activities of the Office of Strategic Capital; and
“(3) any other efforts designed to enhance the defense industrial base.
“(m) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1) The term ‘covered country’ means—
“(A) the Russian Federation;
“(B) the Republic of Cuba;
“(C) the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela;
“(D) the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea;
“(E) the Islamic Republic of Iran; and
“(F) the People’s Republic of China.
“(2) The term ‘reliable source’ means a citizen of, or business entity organized under the laws of—
“(A) the United States or any territory or possession of the United States;
“(B) a country of the national technology and industrial base, as defined in section 4801; or
“(C) a qualifying country, as defined in section 225.003 of the Department of Defense Supplement to the Federal Acquisition Regulation or any successor regulation.
“(3) The term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary of Defense.
“(4) The term ‘strategic and critical materials’ has the meaning given that term in section 12(1) of the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act (50 U.S.C. 98h–3(1)).”
“(3) serve as a clearinghouse for vetting potential investments transactions, whether as a loan or as an equity transaction, by executive agencies (as defined in section 133 of title 41, United States Code).”
; and
“(e) Inclusion of Certain Officials.—The Secretary of Defense shall include in the forum established under subsection (a) the following:
“(1) The Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy.
“(2) The individual serving as the Director of the Defense Logistics Agency and the head of the Office of General Counsel of the Department of Defense.”
“(B) advanced manufacturing (as defined in section 4841(f) of title 10, United States Code) facilities for rapid, distributed production of parts closer to the point of use; and”
; and
“(h) Contested Logistics Exercise Requirement.—Not later than September 30, 2027, and biannually thereafter until the termination date in subsection (g), the Secretary of Defense, in coordination with the senior official responsible for integration of global logistics (as designated in section 2229b of this title), shall incorporate the requirements of the Program into a joint exercise that focuses on the contested logistics environment.”
“(4) directing the Secretaries of the military departments and the heads of all other elements of the Department with regard to matters for which the Under Secretary has responsibility; and
“(5) conducting developmental prototyping, designing and executing experiments of prototypes in the field to demonstrate operational relevance to address joint force capability gaps, and encouraging and supporting the rapid transition of technology from the research and development phase into operational use within the Department.”
“(7) One of the Assistant Secretaries is the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Armaments Cooperation, who shall report directly to the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. The principal duty of the Assistant Secretary shall be to carry out section 133b(b)(10) of this title.”
“(7) have access to approved test and evaluation master plans and test strategies of the armed forces for purposes of conducting independent reviews of such plans and strategies.”
“(l)
(1) The Director may enter into contracts or other agreements with one or more federally funded research and development centers pursuant to which personnel of such centers may assist the Director with program oversight, including through—
“(A) test planning, preparation, and monitoring;
“(B) data collection;
“(C) data analysis;
“(D) drafting and reviewing test reports;
“(E) providing technical expertise and support to program offices; and
“(F) performing such other duties as the Director determines appropriate.
“(2) The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that the Director has sufficient funding to enter into the contracts or other agreements for which authorization is provided under paragraph (1).”
“(U) Nuclear fission and fusion energy technologies.”
“(f) Fees.—
“(1) In general.—
“(A) The Director may—
“(i) charge and collect fees for the costs specified in subparagraph (B) for services provided by the Office and associated with administering programs under this section, including project-specific transaction costs and direct costs relating to such services; and
“(ii) establish those fees at amounts that the Director considers appropriate only to recover the costs of project-specific transaction costs and to offset the expenses of administering of those programs.
“(B) The costs specified in this subparagraph are the following:
“(i) Due diligence costs paid to third parties for services conducting national security, legal, engineering, technical, financial, and other due diligence on applicants, prospective and existing borrowers, guarantors, sponsors, and other key transaction parties, their respective owners, managers, and employees, and their properties, assets, and operations.
“(ii) Costs of third-party services related to ratings analysis, underwriting, appraisals, valuations, travel to and inspection of project sites, and other customary analysis relating to specific applications.
“(iii) Costs of third-party legal services for negotiation and documentation of transactions.
“(iv) Costs of third-party services for monitoring, restructurings, and workouts of agreements.
“(v) Administrative expenses directly related to credit program operations as defined in Office of Management and Budget Circular A–11 as of August 2025, including—
“(I) the appropriate proportion of administrative expenses that are shared with non-credit programs;
“(II) the cost of loan systems development and maintenance, including information technology systems costs;
“(III) the cost of monitoring credit programs and private lenders for compliance with contractual requirements, laws, and regulations;
“(IV) the cost of all activities related to credit extension, loan servicing, write-off, and close out; and
“(V) the cost of collecting delinquent or defaulted loans.
“(2) Deposit into credit program account.—
“(A) In general.—Amounts collected as fees under paragraph (1) shall—
“(i) be deposited into the Credit Program Account established under subsection (e)(5); and
“(ii) remain available until expended.
“(B) Limitation on use of fees.—Notwithstanding subsection (e)(5)(B), none of the fees collected under paragraph (1) may be used to pay salaries or expenses of civilian employees of the Department of Defense or for any purposes other than those described in this subsection or subsection (e)(12).
“(3) Termination of authority.—
“(A) In general.—Except as provided by subparagraph (B), the authority under paragraph (1) to charge and collect fees shall expire on the date specified in paragraph (9)(A) of subsection (e).
“(B) Treatment of certain assets.—With respect to a loan or loan guarantee provided under this section that is outstanding as of the expiration date under subparagraph (A), the authority of the Director under paragraph (1) to charge and collect fees for services relating to the loan or loan guarantee shall remain in effect for the duration of the loan or loan guarantee.
“(4) Reports required.—
“(A) Annual report.—Not later than March 1 of each year, the Director shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report that includes—
“(i) a detailed summary of the fees collected under paragraph (1) in the preceding fiscal year; and
“(ii) a description of how those fees were allocated.
“(B) Audit.—The Inspector General of the Department of Defense shall—
“(i) conduct a review of the fees charged and collected under paragraph (1) in fiscal year 2026 and provide a report on the results of the review to the congressional defense committees; and
“(ii) conduct an audit of the fees collected in fiscal years 2026 and 2027 and, once completed, provide a report to the congressional defense committees on the results of the audit not later than 180 days after the end of fiscal year 2027.
“(g) Authority to Accept Services.—The Director may accept services, such as legal, financial, technical, or professional services, associated with administering programs under this section, including accepting such services as indirect payment in kind for services provided by the Office.”
“(I) amounts”
“(II) fees deposited under subsection (f)(2).”
“(10) Presumption of compliance.—Each agreement for a loan or loan guarantee executed by the Director under paragraph (3)(A) shall be conclusively presumed to be issued in compliance with the requirements of this section.
“(11) Authority to collect debts.—In the case of a default on a loan or loan guarantee provided under paragraph (3)(A), the Director may exercise any priority of the United States in collecting debts relating to the default.
“(12) Additional authorities.—In carrying out the capital assistance program under this subsection the Director may—
“(A) enter into contracts, agreements, or other transactions with applicants for or recipients of capital assistance pursuant to which such applicants or recipients directly pay for the costs of third-party services provided to the Office in connection with transactions involving such applicants and recipients;
“(B) procure temporary and intermittent services of experts and consultants in accordance with section 3109 of title 5 only for the purposes established under this subsection; and
“(C) with the consent of another Federal agency, enter into an agreement with that Federal agency to use, with or without reimbursement, any service, equipment, personnel, or facility of that Federal agency.”
“(h) Removal of Members of Joint Chiefs of Staff.—
(1) If the President removes a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from office or transfers a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to another position or location before the end of the term of the member as specified in statute, the President shall, not later than five days after the removal or transfer takes effect, submit to Congress, including the congressional defense committees, notice that the member is being removed or transferred and a statement of the reason for the removal or transfer.
“(2) Nothing in this subsection prohibits a personnel action authorized by another provision of law.”
“(3)
(A) If the President removes an officer assigned under paragraph (1) to serve as the commander of a unified or specified combatant command or transfers that officer to another position or location before the expected end of the officer’s service as a combatant commander, the President shall, not later than five days after the removal or transfer takes effect, submit to Congress, including the congressional defense committees, notice that the officer is being removed or transferred and a statement of the reason for the removal or transfer.
“(B) Nothing in this paragraph prohibits a personnel action authorized by another provision of law.”
Ҥ 199. Joint Interagency Task Force 401
“(a) Establishment.—There is established in the Department of Defense a joint activity to be known as the ‘Joint Interagency Task Force 401’ (referred to in this section as the ‘Task Force’).
“(b) Director.—
“(1) There is a Director of the Task Force (referred to in this section as the ‘Director’) who shall be appointed by the Secretary of Defense from among personnel of the Department of Defense who are—
“(A) general or flag officers of the covered armed forces; or
“(B) members of the Senior Executive Service.
“(2) The Director shall report directly to the Deputy Secretary of Defense and shall serve as the principal advisor to the Deputy Secretary and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on counter-small unmanned aircraft system matters.
“(c) Organization.—The Task Force shall—
“(1) be designated as a jointly manned activity with full joint manning support from the covered armed forces as determined by the Director; and
“(2) shall consist of such other subordinate organizational elements as the Director determines appropriate, subject to the authority, direction, and control of the Secretary of Defense with support from designated organizational elements within the Office of the Secretary of Defense as determined by the Director in coordination with the Secretary.
“(d) Responsibilities.—The responsibilities of the Task Force shall include the following:
“(1) Lead, advocate, coordinate, and focus all Department of Defense actions in support of efforts of the combatant commands and the covered armed forces to defeat small unmanned aircraft systems (referred to in this section as ‘sUAS’) as weapons of strategic influence.
“(2) Integrate all counter-sUAS solutions throughout the Department of Defense, seeking interagency participation and assistance as necessary.
“(3) Develop and share counter-sUAS training tools, expertise, and tactics, techniques, and procedures for components of the Department of Defense that address needs of the joint force.
“(4) Coordinate efforts across the Department of Defense to develop, test, evaluate, and procure counter-sUAS kinetic and non-kinetic defeat capabilities.
“(5) Carry out the counter-sUAS validation and acquisition responsibilities described in subsections (e) and (f).
“(6) Develop and regularly update a counter-sUAS strategic plan.
“(7) Carry out such other activities relating to counter-sUAS as the Secretary of Defense determines appropriate.
“(e) Approval and Validation of Counter-suas Systems.—
“(1) The Task Force shall serve as the entity within the Department of Defense with primary responsibility for the validation and approval of counter-sUAS systems for procurement and use by the Department.
“(2) In coordination with other components of the Department of Defense, the Director shall develop, maintain, and regularly update a list of counter-sUAS systems that are validated and approved for procurement and use by the Department as described in paragraph (1). The Director shall ensure that each counter-sUAS system on the list has been vetted by the Task Force and has proven to be effective for use by the Department in countering sUAS.
“(3) Except as provided in paragraph (4), no component of the Department of Defense may procure a counter-sUAS system unless such system—
“(A) has been validated and approved by the Task Force under paragraph (1); and
“(B) is included on the list maintained under paragraph (2).
“(4) The service acquisition executive of the military department concerned (in the case of a procurement by a military department) or the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment (in the case of a procurement not under the authority of a service acquisition executive) may waive the restriction under paragraph (3), on a case-by-case basis, by submitting to the congressional defense committees—
“(A) notice of the intent to issue such a waiver; and
“(B) an explanation of the reasons for issuing the waiver.
“(f) Acquisition Division.—The Director shall establish and maintain an acquisition division within the Task Force. The acquisition division shall—
“(1) include acquisition professionals from relevant portfolio acquisition executives (as described in section 1732 of this title) within each covered armed force;
“(2) support and facilitate efforts of the Director and covered armed forces—
“(A) to budget and plan for the integration and sustainment of counter-sUAS capabilities that are approved and validated by the Task Force under subsection (e); and
“(B) to efficiently and effectively transition such capabilities into operational use; and
“(3) have such other duties and responsibilities as the Director determines appropriate.
“(g) Annual Reports.—On an annual basis, the Director shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report that includes a summary of the activities of the Task Force over the period covered by the report, including a description of—
“(1) the progress of the Task Force in carrying out the requirements of this section;
“(2) the metrics used to measure such progress; and
“(3) recommendations for congressional consideration.
“(h) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1) The term ‘counter-sUAS system’ means a system or device capable of lawfully and safely disabling, disrupting, or seizing control of a small unmanned aircraft or small unmanned aircraft system.
“(2) The term ‘covered armed forces’ means the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Space Force.
“(3) The terms ‘small unmanned aircraft’, ‘unmanned aircraft’, and ‘unmanned aircraft system’ have the meanings given those terms in section 44801 of title 49.”
“(f) Regional Outreach Centers.—
“(1) In general.—The Director may establish and maintain regional offices of the Unit at locations within and outside the United States for purposes of conducting outreach to and streamlining interactions between the Unit and the private sector, academia, and other mission partners.
“(2) Selection criteria and other guidance.—In the event the Director exercises the authority to establish and maintain regional offices under paragraph (1), the Director shall—
“(A) develop a strategy and criteria for the selection of locations for such offices;
“(B) issue any rules, regulations, policies, or guidance necessary for the operation of such offices; and
“(C) make the information described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) available on a publicly accessible website of the Department of Defense.”
“(vi) meeting resource requirements, including personnel and information technology infrastructure; and
“(vii) identifying long-range goals and measurable objectives, including audit cycle timelines, control testing frequency, and auditor-validated corrective action plans; and”
; and
“(ix) A detailed estimate of the funding required for the next fiscal year to procure, obtain, or otherwise implement each process, system, and technology identified to address the corrective action plan or plans of each department, agency, component, or element of the Department of Defense, and the corrective action plan of the Department as a whole, for purposes of this chapter during such fiscal year.
“(x) The number and scope of automated processes implemented, including reconciliation, inventory validation, and internal controls.”
“(B) The January 31 briefing under subparagraph (A) shall include a ranking of all of the military departments and Defense Agencies in order of how advanced each is in achieving auditable financial statements, as required by law.”
“(3) Annual report by bottom quartile.—Not later than June 30 of each year, the head of each military department and Defense Agency that was ranked in the bottom quartile of the report submitted under paragraph (2)(B) for that year shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report that includes the following information for that military department or Defense Agency:
“(A) A description of the material weaknesses of the military department or Defense Agency.
“(B) The underlying causes of such weaknesses.
“(C) A plan for remediating such weaknesses.
“(D) The total number of open audit notices of findings and recommendations (in this paragraph referred to as ‘NFRs’) for the most recently concluded fiscal year and the preceding two fiscal years, where applicable.
“(E) The number of repeat or reissued NFRs from the most recently concluded fiscal year.
“(F) The number of NFRs that were previously forecasted to be closed during the most recently concluded fiscal year that remain open.
“(G) The number of closed NFRs during the current fiscal year and prior fiscal years.
“(H) The number of material weaknesses that were validated by external auditors as fully resolved or downgraded during the current fiscal year relative to prior fiscal years.
“(I) A breakdown, by fiscal year, of which open NFRs are forecasted to be closed.
“(J) Explanations for any unfavorable trends in the information included under paragraphs (1) through (9).”
; and
“(b) Annual Report.—On the same date as the date of the submission of the audited financial statements of the Department of Defense required pursuant to section 240a of this title each year, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the congressional defense committees an updated annual report on the Defense Business Systems Audit Remediation Plan under subsection (a).”
“SEC. 141. BODY ARMOR PROCUREMENT.
“The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that body armor is procured using funds authorized to be appropriated by this title.”
“(iv) a description of the arrangements, if any, for the sustainment of the support, project, or purpose and the source of funds to support sustainment of the capabilities and performance outcomes achieved using such support, if applicable;
“(v) a description of the objectives for the support, project, or purpose; and
“(vi) information, including the amount, type, and purpose, about the support provided to the agency during the fiscal year for which the support is provided with respect to—
“(I) this section; or
“(II) counterdrug activities authorized by section 1033 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1998 (Public Law 105–85; 111 Stat. 1811).”
; and
“(4) the Navy prioritizes scheduled maintenance and repair actions to maintain the minimum number of available amphibious warfare ships to meet operational requirements.”
“(B) reports directly to the portfolio acquisition executive, established under section 1732 of this title.”
; and
“(2) Each Senior Technical Authority shall also be responsible for the determination that all design requirements for a vessel class are directly related to a key performance parameter or key system attribute established in the capability development document for such class. Any such requirement that the Senior Technical Authority determines is unnecessary to meet a key performance parameter or key system attribute shall not be approved.”
“(b) Protection for Former or Retired Department Leadership.—The Secretary of Defense, under regulations prescribed by the Secretary and in accordance with guidelines approved by the Secretary and the Attorney General, may authorize qualified members of the armed forces and qualified civilian employees of the Department of Defense to provide physical protection and personal security to a former or retired official who—
“(1) previously served in a position identified in paragraphs (1) through (7); and
“(2) faces serious and credible threats arising from duties performed while employed by the Department of Defense.”
“(d) Requirement for Written Determination.—A determination of the Secretary of Defense whether to provide physical protection and personal security under subsection (b) or (c), or reimbursement under subsection (h), shall be in writing, shall be based on a threat assessment by an appropriate law enforcement, security, or intelligence organization, and shall include the name and title of the officer, employee, or other individual affected, the reason for such determination, the duration of any authorized protection and security for such officer, employee, or individual, and the nature of any arrangements for such protection and security.
“(e) Duration of Protection.—The Secretary of Defense shall require periodic reviews, not less than once every six months, of the duration of protection provided to individuals under subsection (b) or (c).
“(f) Submissions to Congress.—
“(1) In general.—Except as provided in paragraph (4), the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the congressional defense committee determinations made pursuant to this section as follows:
“(A) An initial determination made under subsection (d), not later than 15 days after the date on which the determination is made, including the justification for such determination and a current threat assessment by an appropriate law enforcement, security, or intelligence organization.
“(B) A determination to deny the renewal of physical protection and security under subsection (b) or (c), or reimbursement under subsection (j), not later than 15 days after the date on which the determination is made, including—
“(i) the justification for such determination;
“(ii) a current threat assessment by an appropriate law enforcement, security, or intelligence organization; and
“(iii) a certification that threats to the individual arising from duties performed while employed by the Department of Defense can be sufficiently mitigated without physical protection and security or reimbursement.
“(C) A determination to terminate physical protection and security under subsection (b) or (c), or reimbursement under subsection (j), during a previously authorized period of protection, not later than 48 hours after the date on which the determination is made, including—
“(i) the justification for such determination;
“(ii) a current threat assessment by an appropriate law enforcement, security, or intelligence organization; and
“(iii) a certification that threats to the individual arising from duties performed while employed by the Department of Defense can be sufficiently mitigated without protection and security or reimbursement.
“(D) A determination to deny a request for reimbursement of an individual described in subsection (b), not later than 15 days after the date on which the determination is made, including—
“(i) the justification for such determination;
“(ii) a current threat assessment by an appropriate law enforcement, security, or intelligence organization; and
“(iii) a certification that threats to the individual arising from duties performed while employed by the Department of Defense can be sufficiently mitigated without reimbursement.
“(2) Form of report.—A report submitted under paragraph (1) may be made in classified form.
“(3) Regulations and guidelines.—The Secretary of Defense shall submit to the congressional defense committees the regulations and guidelines prescribed pursuant to subsections (b) and (c)(1), and a description of any changes to such guidelines, not less than 20 days before the date on which such regulations take effect.
“(4) Exceptions.—Paragraph (1) does not apply to determinations made with respect to the following individuals:
“(A) An individual described in subsection (c)(2)(C) who is otherwise sponsored by the Secretary of Defense, the Deputy Secretary of Defense, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, or the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
“(B) An individual described in subsection (c)(2)(E).
“(g) Notification to Certain Protected Personnel.—The Secretary of Defense shall provide written notification to any individual receiving physical protection and personal security under subsection (a) or (b), or reimbursement under subsection (j), at least 90 days prior to terminating or denying the renewal of protection and security protection or reimbursement, as the case may be, for such individual.”
“(b) Support to Civilian Law Enforcement Agencies by Members of the Armed Forces.—Whenever a member of the armed forces (including the National Guard) provides support to civilian law enforcement agencies, each such member providing such support shall visibly display the name of the armed force in which such member operates.”
; and
“723. Support of civil authorities: requirement for use of members of the Armed Forces and Federal law enforcement personnel.”.
“(2) Contract authority.—In providing assistance to U.S. Customs and Border Protection under paragraph (1), the Secretary may enter into a contract for the provision of any of the following services:
“(A) Detection and monitoring.
“(B) Warehousing and logistical supply chain.
“(C) Transportation.
“(D) Vehicle maintenance.
“(E) Training other than lead or primary instructor.
“(F) Intelligence analysis.
“(G) Linguist.
“(H) Data entry.
“(I) Aviation.”
“(c) Reports on Support for Immigration Enforcement Operations.—
“(1) In general.—If the Department of Defense approves a Request for Assistance for support for immigration enforcement operations, the Secretary of Defense shall electronically transmit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report on such support not later than 30 calendar days after the date on which the Secretary approves the Request for Assistance and every 90 calendar days thereafter.
“(2) Elements.—Each report required by paragraph (1) shall include information on the following:
“(A) The name of any Department of Defense facility used to support immigrant enforcement operations and costs associated with any modifications to such facilities to support such operations.
“(B) The number of Department of Defense personnel assigned to conduct support for immigration enforcement operations, the units from which such personnel were assigned, the duration of the operations, and the personnel cost associated with of such operations.”
Ҥ 130g. Notification requirements for waivers issued under Department of Defense guidance related to autonomy in weapon systems
“(a) In General.—The Secretary of Defense shall submit to the congressional defense committees written notification of any waiver under Department of Defense Directive 3000.09 (relating to autonomy in weapon systems), or any successor directive, by not later than 30 days after the date on which the waiver is issued.
“(b) Elements.—Each notification submitted under subsection (a) shall include the following:
“(1) The rationale for the waiver.
“(2) A description of the autonomous weapon system or technology covered by the waiver.
“(3) The anticipated duration of the waiver.
“(c) Form.—A notification under subsection (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex, as the Secretary determines necessary.”
“(3) The Secretary may conduct a one-time transfer to the corporation, in accordance with the procedure prescribed in this subchapter, of pump action shotguns, including any shotguns that are surplus to the requirements of the Center of Military History and the Army Museum Enterprise, that—
“(A) on the date of the enactment of this paragraph are under the control of the Secretary; and
“(B) are surplus to the requirements of the Department of the Army at the time of the submission of the report required in subsection (k).
“(4) The Secretary may not transfer pursuant to paragraph (3) any shotgun that is a modular ancillary addition to a service rifle, or meets the definition of a ‘short-barreled shotgun’ as that term is defined in section 921(a)(6) of title 18, United States Code.”
“(3) The Secretary of the Navy may conduct a one-time transfer to the corporation, in accordance with the procedure prescribed in this subchapter, of surplus pump action shotguns that—
“(A) on the date of the enactment of this paragraph are under the control of the Secretary; and
“(B) are surplus to the requirements of the Department of the Navy at the time of the submission of the report required in subsection (k).
“(4) The Secretary may not transfer pursuant to paragraph (3) any shotgun that is a modular ancillary addition to a service rifle or meets the definition of a ‘short-barreled shotgun’ as that term is defined in section 921(a)(6) of title 18, United States Code.”
; and
“(j) Authorized Air Force Transfers.—
(1) The Secretary of the Air Force may conduct a one-time transfer to the corporation, in accordance with the procedures prescribed in this subchapter, of pump action shotguns that—
“(A) on the date of the enactment of this paragraph are under the control of the Secretary; and
“(B) are surplus to the requirements of the Department of the Air Force at the time of the submission of the report required in subsection (k).
“(2) The Secretary may not transfer pursuant to paragraph (1) any shotgun that is a modular ancillary addition to a service rifle or meets the definition of a ‘short-barreled shotgun’ as that term is defined in section 921(a)(6) of title 18, United States Code.
“(k) Report Required.—
(1) The Secretary concerned authorized to transfer shotguns under subsection (h), (i), or (j) shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and House of Representatives a report that includes the following elements:
“(A) The total number of surplus shotguns, including the make and model of each such shotgun, that meet the criteria for transfer to the corporation under such subsection.
“(B) The total number of surplus shotguns, including the make and mode of each such shotgun, that the Secretary concerned intends to transfer to the corporation under such subsection.
“(2) In this subsection, the term ‘Secretary concerned’ has the meaning given such term in section 101(a)(9) of title 10, United States Code.
“(l) Limitation on Transfer of Surplus Shotguns.—A Secretary may not transfer surplus shotguns described in subsections (h), (i), or (j), until the date that is 60 days after the date of the submittal of the report required under subsection (k).
“(m) Briefing Required.—The Secretary of the Army shall provide to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives a briefing on the results of the investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the United States Army Criminal Investigation Division regarding unaccounted for pistols at the corporation. The briefing shall be provided after the investigation has concluded.”
“(c) Report and Briefing.—Not later than January 15, 2027, the Commander of the United States Transportation Command, in coordination with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Secretaries of the military departments, and the commanders of the combatant commands, shall—
“(1) submit to the congressional defense committees a final report on the study required under subsection (a); and
“(2) provide to such committees a briefing on the report.”
“(D) Services.—
“(i) Department of defense.—The Secretary of Defense may provide to the Commission, on a nonreimbursable basis, such administrative services, funds, staff, facilities, and other support services as are necessary for the performance of the duties of the Commission under this section.
“(ii) Other agencies.—In addition to any support provided under clause (i), the head of any other Federal department or agency may provide to the Commission such services, funds, facilities, staff, and other support as the head of such department or agency determines advisable and as may be authorized by law.”
“(6) Contract authority.—To such extent and in such amounts as are provided in appropriation Acts, the Co-Chairpersons of the Commission may enter into contracts to enable the Commission to discharge its duties under this section.”
“(7) Exemption from certain requirements.—
“(A) In general.—Defense articles sold by the United States under this Act, whether pursuant to the exemption authorized under this section or pursuant to an exemption under another authority under this Act, may be reexported, retransferred or temporarily imported exclusively between the Government of Australia, the Government of the United Kingdom, or entities described in paragraph (b) of section 126.7(b)(2) of title 22, Code of Federal Regulations, or successor regulations, that are eligible for the exemption described in paragraph (a) of such section, notwithstanding the requirement for the consent of the President under section 3(a)(2) or section 505(a)(1)(B) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2314(a)(1)(B)).
“(B) Intra-company, intra-organizational, and intra-governmental transfers.—Intra-company, intra-organization, and intra-governmental transfers related to defense articles described in subparagraph (A) are authorized to be made between officers, employees, and agents who meet the definition of the term ‘regular employee’ under section 120.64 of title 22, Code of Federal Regulations, or successor regulations, including dual nationals or third-country nationals who satisfy the requirements of section 126.18 of title 22, Code of Federal Regulations, or successor regulations.”
“(b) Report.—Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 and annually thereafter for the following 2 years, the Secretary shall submit a report to the congressional defense committees on the use of the authority provided under this section.
“(c) Covered Employee Defined.—In this section, the term ‘covered employee’ means any civilian employee of the Department of Defense whose permanent duty station is located in Guam.
“(d) Sunset.—The authority to carry out this section shall terminate 3 years after the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026.”
“(iii) licensed medical personnel; and”
; and
“(b) The aggregate pay limitation prescribed under section 5307 shall not apply to an employee whose pay is fixed under subsection (a).”
“(h) Report to Congressional Defense Committees.—Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this subsection and annually thereafter, the Secretary of Defense shall submit a report to the congressional defense committees containing the analysis conducted pursuant to subsection (b).”
Ҥ 1599e. Payment of retention bonuses to DOD civilian employees in Guam.
“Notwithstanding subsection (f) of section 5754 of title 5, the Secretary of Defense or Secretary of a military department may waive the limit established under subsection (e)(1) of such section and pay an otherwise eligible employee or category of employees in the territory of Guam retention bonuses of up to 50 percent of basic pay, based on a critical agency need.”
“(b) DOD Procedures.—The President may authorize the Department of Defense to determine the qualification, examination, and assessment procedures for positions in the competitive service based primarily on job-related competencies and skills, including the use of structured interviews, technical evaluations, or skills-based assessments, and alternative assessments.”
“(c) The Office of Personnel Management may authorize the Department of Defense to use flexible outreach methods, including curated prospect sourcing, provided that all hiring opportunities remain publicly accessible and merit-based.”
“(b) DOD Promotions.—Promotions in the competitive service within the Department of Defense may be made based on demonstrated skills and qualifications without regard to minimum time-in-grade requirements, subject to agency policies and applicable merit system principles.”
Ҥ 3330g. DOD use of shared talent pools and structured assessments
“(a) Shared Talent Pools.—The Department of Defense may share certificates of eligibles and curated prospect pools within the Department. Certificates issued under this authority shall remain valid for not less than one year from the date of issuance, subject to agency-specific qualification checks.
“(b) Structured Assessments.—The Department of Defense shall use validated structured interviews, technical evaluations, or other skills-based assessments as part of the hiring process for competitive service positions at the Department, in accordance with regulations prescribed by the Office of Personnel Management.”
“(iv) positions held in combatant commands, defense agencies, and field activities supporting the United States Cyber Command; and
“(v) up to 500 positions not otherwise described in clauses (i) through (iv) that the Secretary determines are hard-to-fill, highly skilled positions critical to cyberspace planning and operations in defense of, and which advance, U.S. national interests in collaboration with domestic and international partners.”
“(b) Rates of Pay.—The Secretary—
“(1) consistent with paragraph (2), shall fix the rates of basic pay for employees appointed under subsection (a)(1)(B)—
“(A) with a rate of pay provided for employees in comparable positions in the Federal Government; and
“(B) subject to the same limitations on maximum rates of pay established for such employees by statute or regulation; and
“(2) may prescribe a rate of basic pay for such an employee so appointed at a rate not to exceed a rate equal to 150 percent of the maximum rate of basic pay authorized for positions at level I of the Executive Schedule under section 5312 of title 5.”
“(vii) The total number of positions, the title, duties, and responsibilities of each position, and the location of each position, including the assigned department, agency, command, and cost of establishing, appointing, and paying the salary of such positions.
“(viii) A description of—
“(I) how the Department has used the pay authorities in subsection (b); and
“(II) the effect of such authorities on recruitment and retention in the Cyber Excepted Service.”
“(k) Federal Wage System Positions.—The Secretary may—
“(1) consistent with section 5341 of title 5, adopt such provisions of that title to provide for prevailing rate systems of basic pay; and
“(2) apply those provisions to qualified positions for employees in or under which the Department may employ individuals described by section 5342(a)(2)(A) of such title.”
“(1) Expenses of forces assigned or allocated to that command in conjunction with training and exercises conducted pursuant to this section.”
“(e) Quarterly Report.—Not less frequently than quarterly, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report on training and exercises conducted pursuant to this section during the preceding 90-day period.”
“321. Training and exercises with friendly foreign countries: payment of training and exercise expenses.”.
“(3) Tuition fees charged for personnel who attend the School may not include any amount for the fixed costs of operating and maintaining the School.”
“(2) Membership.—
“(A) In general.—The Board shall be composed of not fewer than seven members, each of whom shall have expertise in security cooperation, security assistance, defense acquisition, business process reform, or any disciplines the Secretary determines to be important to the functioning of the Board.
“(B) Certain members.—
“(i) In general.—Up to three of the members of the Board may be selected from among individuals who are not any of the following:
“(I) Officers or employees of the Department of Defense.
“(II) Members of the Armed Forces.
“(III) A registered lobbyist.
“(ii) Clearance.—Each member of the Board described in this subparagraph shall be individuals who are determined to be eligible for access to classified information necessary to participate on the Board.”
“(B) evolving thresholds for the use of direct and attributable force by Iran;”
“(C) a summary of Iran’s procurement of advanced conventional capabilities from Russia;”
“(L) an assessment of the military power of Iranian proxies and partners, including Hezbollah, Hamas, Palestine Islamic Jihad, Ansar Allah, and Iraqi and Syrian proxies.”
“(G) a detailed analysis of the domestic and foreign supply chains supporting Iran’s drone program;
“(H) a detailed assessment of the domestic production capacity by Iran’s proxies in the Middle East of tactical munitions including mortars, rocket assisted munitions, and rockets and long-range strike capabilities, including, drones, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles; and”
“(n) Limitation on Use of Funds.—Funds made available to carry out this section may not be used to provide assistance pursuant to subsection (a)—
“(1) to any entity that is not an appropriately vetted Syrian group or individual; or
“(2) to forces associated with any other government or nation.”
“(o) Limitation on Use of Funds.—Funds made available to carry out this section may not be used to provide assistance pursuant to subsection (a)—
“(1) to entities other than military or other security forces of or associated with the Government of Iraq, including Kurdish and tribal security forces, or other local security forces with a national security mission;
“(2) to forces associated with any other government or nation; or
“(3) to Iranian-aligned militias.”
“(2) Activities.—The activities required by this subsection may include the following:
“(A) Collaborative research initiatives involving government, private sector, and academic institutions in the United States and Israel.
“(B) Joint training exercises and information- sharing mechanisms to maximize the sharing of technical expertise, data, and tactics related to emerging unmanned systems and related threats.
“(C) Development of joint technical requirements.
“(D) Collaborative development and evaluation of novel systems with defense industry partners.
“(E) Coordination with acquisition program offices of the United States and Israel military service departments, components, and commands to expedite deployment of relevant systems and enhance military readiness.”
; and
“(e) Annual Report.—The Secretary of Defense shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress on an annual basis a report that shall include for the preceding year a description of activities conducted under the program including—
“(1) an assessment of progress made by the United States and Israel in addressing unmanned systems threats and requirements;
“(2) an assessment of the program’s collaboration with other United States Government programs and defense contractors;
“(3) an update on efforts to transition capabilities to acquisition program managers for fielding by United States or Israeli military services, components, and commands; and
“(4) recommendations for future program activities and funding.”
; and
“1244. Temporary authorizations related to Ukraine, Taiwan, Israel, and the United States defense industrial base.”.
“1244. Temporary authorizations related to Ukraine, Taiwan, Israel, and the United States defense industrial base.”.
“(b) Matters to Be Included.—The report required under subsection (a) shall include the following:
“(1) The goals, factors, and trends shaping Russia’s security strategy and military strategy, including military spending and investment priorities.
“(2) Developments in the military doctrine, operational concepts, joint command and organizational structures, and significant military operations and deployments of the Russian Armed Forces.
“(3) An assessment of the force structure, readiness, and capabilities of the Russian Armed Forces.
“(4) An assessment of the military strategy, objectives, and force posture of the Russian Armed Forces deployed in the Arctic and the North Atlantic region.
“(5) An assessment of the military strategy, objectives, and force posture of the Russian Armed Forces as they relate to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), including—
“(A) the force posture of Russian Armed Forces deployed adjacent to NATO’s borders, including in Kaliningrad;
“(B) a list and description of all known violations by Russia of NATO airspace during the reporting period, and to the extent feasible, an evaluation of whether such incidents were intentional or unintentional; and
“(C) an assessment of the threat posed to NATO bases, critical infrastructure, and other industrial and military targets posed by Russian hybrid attacks.
“(6) An assessment of the military strategy, objectives, and force posture of the Russian Armed Forces deployed in Ukraine or adjacent to Ukraine’s borders.
“(7) An assessment of the military strategy, objectives, and force posture of the Russian Armed Forces in the Baltic and Black Seas.
“(8) An assessment of the reconstitution efforts of the Russian Armed Forces, including its ability to restore losses from the war in Ukraine and to expand its force beyond 2022 levels.
“(9) An assessment of the impact of United States and international sanctions on the Russian military’s reconstitution efforts, including an assessment of the impact of removing sanctions on the Russian military’s reconstitution efforts.
“(10) An assessment of what the Russian Armed Forces have learned from the war in Ukraine and how Russia has applied those lessons.
“(11) An assessment of the military strategy, objectives, and force posture of Russia that affect countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.
“(12) An assessment of the military strategy, objectives, and force posture of Russia that affect countries in the Indo-Pacific, with a specific emphasis on how such strategy, objectives, and force posture affect the People’s Republic of China.
“(13) An assessment of the military cooperation between Russia and the People’s Republic of China, including defense trade, joint military exercises, and the sharing of military intelligence.
“(14) An assessment of the objectives of Russia’s treaty alliance with North Korea, including analyses of the following elements:
“(A) Any technology sharing pertaining to chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear weapons.
“(B) Any cooperation on missile or space launch-related technology.
“(C) Arms trade.
“(D) Tactical and operational military cooperation between Russia and North Korea, including lessons learned and compensation derived from cooperative training and participation in actual conflict.
“(15) An assessment of Russia’s military cooperation with India.
“(16) An assessment of Russia’s coercive behavior directed at United States allies in the Indo-Pacific.
“(17) An assessment of the military strategy, objectives, and force posture of Russia that affect countries in the Middle East.
“(18) An assessment of the military strategy, objectives, and force posture of Russia that affect countries in Africa.
“(19) A description of Russia’s overseas military basing, military logistics capabilities, and infrastructure to project power.
“(20) A summary of all significant Russian cooperation with foreign military and security forces, including major training and exercises, foreign deployments, and basing agreements—specifying for each Russian foreign deployment the number of forces deployed, the types of capabilities deployed, the length of the deployment, and any agreement enabling or governing the deployment.
“(21) An assessment of relations between Russia and Iran, the People’s Republic of China, and North Korea, with respect to security and military matters.
“(22) An assessment of the proliferation activities of Russia and Russian entities, including activities relating to the supply of materials, technologies, or expertise relating to nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction or missile systems to other states or non-state actors.
“(23) An assessment of Russia’s nuclear program and capabilities, including—
“(A) its nuclear strategy and associated doctrines;
“(B) the size and state of its stockpile and projections of its future arsenals;
“(C) its civil and military production capacities; and
“(D) the modernization and force structure of its strategic forces.
“(24) An assessment of the use by Russia of chemical weapons, including chemical munitions, during the preceding year either as part of an armed conflict or against individuals outside an armed conflict.
“(25) A description of Russia’s current missile defense strategy and capabilities, including efforts to develop missile defense capabilities.
“(26) A description of Russia’s anti-access and area denial capabilities.
“(27) A description of Russia’s command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance modernization program and capabilities and the applications for such program and capabilities for precision-guided weapons.
“(28) An assessment of Russia’s space and counterspace programs and capabilities.
“(29) An assessment of Russia’s cyberwarfare and electronic warfare capabilities, including details on the number of malicious cyber incidents originating from Russia against Department of Defense infrastructure.
“(30) An assessment of any influence operations or campaigns by Russia targeting the United States, any military alliances and partnerships of which the United States is a member, or treaty allies of the United States, including—
“(A) the objectives of such operations;
“(B) the tactics, techniques, and procedures used;
“(C) the impact of such operations on the United States, military alliances or partnerships of which the United States is a member, or treaty allies of the United States;
“(D) detail regarding any campaign that specifically targeted Department of Defense personnel; and
“(E) the metrics used to judge the impact of such operations.
“(31) An assessment of how Russian private military companies are being utilized to advance the security interests of Russia, including by securing access to raw materials.
“(32) Other military and security developments involving Russia that the Secretary of Defense considers relevant to United States national security.”
; and
“(6) Availability of funds for programs across fiscal years.—Amounts made available after the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 in a fiscal year to carry out the authority in subsection (a) may be used for programs under that authority that begin in such fiscal year and end not later than the end of the second fiscal year thereafter.
“(7) Authority for interchange of supplies and services.—The limitation in subsection (b)(2) of section 2571 of title 10, United States Code, shall not apply with respect to reimbursable support for the purpose of providing assistance under this section.”
“(11) For fiscal year 2026, $400,000,000.
“(12) For fiscal year 2027, $400,000,000.”
“(k) Accepting Equipment Back Into Stock.—
“(1) In general.—Equipment procured to carry out the authority granted pursuant to subsection (a) may only be treated as stocks of the Department of Defense if—
“(A) the equipment procured has not yet been transferred to the Government of Ukraine and is urgently needed to eliminate a deficiency that impacts an ongoing or anticipated, imminent United States contingency operation that, if left unfulfilled, could result in loss of life or critical mission failure for the United States Armed Forces;
“(B) the equipment procured has not yet been transferred to the Government of Ukraine and is no longer needed to support a program carried out pursuant to such subsection; or
“(C) the equipment procured has been transferred to the Government of Ukraine and is returned by Ukraine to the United States.
“(2) Replacement.—In the case of treating equipment as stocks of the Department of Defense pursuant to paragraph (1)(A), the Secretary shall, using amounts made available after the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026, initiate action to replace such equipment for the Government of Ukraine within 30 days of transmitting the applicable notification required under paragraph (3).
“(3) Notification.—The Secretary may only treat equipment procured to carry out the authority granted pursuant to subsection (a) as stocks of the Department of Defense pursuant to paragraph (1) if the Secretary submits to the congressional defense committees, the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate, and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives a notification that describes how the relevant conditions to treat the equipment as stocks were met—
“(A) in the case of a notification relating to equipment described in subparagraph (A) of such paragraph (1), as soon as feasible but not later than 48 hours after the date on which the Secretary determines to treat such equipment as stocks of the Department; or
“(B) in the case of a notification relating to equipment described in subparagraph (B) or (C) of such paragraph, not fewer than 15 days before the entry into effect of a determination by the Secretary to treat such equipment as such stocks.
“(4) Report.—In the case of treating equipment as stocks of the Department of Defense pursuant to paragraph (1)(A), the Secretary shall transmit to the congressional defense committees not later than 15 days after submitting the notification required in paragraph (3) a report with the plan of the Department of Defense to replace the equipment originally intended for the Government of Ukraine, including sourcing, timeline for procurement, and delivery.”
“(a) Report Required.—Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 90 days thereafter, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that includes—
“(1) an accounting of all bilateral military contributions to Ukraine made by allied and partner countries or multinational organizations in absolute and relative terms, disaggregated by country and organization, since January 1, 2022, including a separate accounting of such contributions during the reporting period;
“(2) an accounting of all contributions to Ukraine made by allied and partner countries using the United States Jumpstart initiative, detailing the authorities used, quantity, valuation, and delivery timeline for each contribution and including a separate accounting of such contributions during the reporting period;
“(3) an accounting of all contributions to Ukraine made by allied and partner countries using the United States Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) initiative to the Ukraine Security Assitance Initiative (USAI) account, including a separate accounting of such contributions during the reporting period as well as—
“(A) the allied contributions used for new procurements using the USAI account, including the quantity, valuation, and delivery timeline for each new procurement;
“(B) the allied contributions used for the replacement of any weapons or articles provided to the Government of Ukraine, including the quantity, valuation, and delivery timeline for each item that has been sent to the Government of Ukraine from United States stocks; and
“(C) a comprehensive list of United States weapon systems provided to Ukraine associated with the allied contributions to the PURL initiative, including, for each such system, an identification of whether it was previously committed to Ukraine under USAI or through presidential drawdown authority, and, if so, the specific assistance package in which the commitment was made;
“(4) a statement of the remaining unobligated balance of funds in the USAI account, including a description of when such balance will expire;
“(5) a plan for how the Secretary intends to use the remaining unobligated funds from allied contributions to the USAI account to support Ukraine’s capacity to defend itself and strengthen its deterrence against future aggression by the Russian Federation;
“(6) a plan for further engagement with allied and partner countries on the use of the PURL initiative to support Ukraine’s capacity to defend itself and to strengthen its deterrence against future aggression by the Russian Federation;
“(7) an identification of any weapon system during the reporting period that meets Ukrainian requirements, as validated by the Commander of the United States European Command, but has not been delivered to Ukraine by the United States or an allied or partner country; and
“(8) any other matters that the Secretary determines to be relevant.”
“(c) Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined.—In this section, the term ‘appropriate congressional committees’ means—
“(1) the congressional defense committees; and
“(2) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives.”
“(4) Other logistical and operational support for the armed forces in a deployed or rotational status in a country that is a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.”
“(E) The amount of such burden sharing contributions expended, by eligible category, including compensation for—
“(i) local national employees;
“(ii) military construction projects;
“(iii) supplies and services of the Department of Defense; and
“(iv) other logistical and operational support for the armed forces in a deployed or rotational status in a country that is a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.”
; and
“(g) Other Logistical and Operational Support for the Armed Forces Defined.—In this section, the term ‘other logistical and operational support for the armed forces’—
“(1) means the reasonable and proper costs of the armed forces for fuel, transportation, force protection (including cyber protection), training ammunition, utilities, and medical and maintenance services, including services required to maintain infrastructure, pre-positioned stocks, and equipment in good working order; and
“(2) does not include pay, allowances, and other normal benefits to which members of the United States armed forces are entitled.”
“SEC. 1250. UNITED STATES BASING AND TRAINING IN NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION MEMBER COUNTRIES.
“In considering decisions related to United States military basing and training in North Atlantic Treaty Organization member countries, the Secretary of Defense shall include among the factors for consideration progress toward the defense investment commitment agreed to in the Hague Summit Declaration of June 25, 2025, to invest not less than 5 percent of gross domestic product annually in defense by 2035, of which—
“(1) not less than 3.5 percent is dedicated to core defense requirements and North Atlantic Treaty Organization capability targets; and
“(2) not less than 1.5 percent is dedicated to other defense and security related investments.”
“(I) directly or indirectly owned by, controlled by, or beneficially owned by, affiliated with, or in an official or unofficial capacity acting as an agent of or on behalf of, any of the following, whether operating inside or outside of China—
“(aa) the People’s Liberation Army;
“(bb) Chinese military and paramilitary elements, security forces, police, law enforcement, or border control;
“(cc) the People’s Armed Police;
“(dd) the Ministry of State Security, or any other organization subordinate to the Central Military Commission of the Chinese Communist Party;
“(ee) the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology;
“(ff) the State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council; or
“(gg) the State Administration of Science, Technology, and Industry for National Defense; or”
“(A) In general.—The Secretary”
; and
“(B) Review of entities added to other lists.—In preparing each annual revision under subparagraph (A) of the list required by paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consider whether to include each Chinese entity added, during the preceding year, to any other list maintained by the United States of entities subject to additional restrictions or scrutiny for any purpose, as a result of concerns relating to the activities or affiliations of such entities.”
“(V) Medical equipment, supplies, and related contingency care or, for military forces, combat casualty care capabilities.”
; and
“(J) Medical equipment, supplies, and related capabilities necessary to carry out functional responsibilities to support the military and central government security forces.”
; and
“(1) Fiscal year 2025.—Of the amounts”
; and
“(2) Fiscal year 2026.—Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2026 for the Department of Defense, not more than $1,000,000,000 may be made available for the purposes of subsection (a).”
“(D) a list of such materials that are the highest priority to be acquired for the stockpile in the near term;
“(E) verification that the National Defense Stockpile Manager manages and evaluates the stockpile using the most complete and accurate data provided by the military departments (as defined under section 101(a) of title 10, United States Code), including a one-time description of the risks resulting from the inability of the armed services to provide the National Defense Stockpile Manager comprehensive data for all of its required strategic and critical materials; and
“(F) the amounts appropriated by Congress to the stockpile for both the current fiscal year and the previous fiscal year;”
“(2) Not later than 15 days after making a disposal under paragraph (1), the National Defense Stockpile Manager shall notify the congressional defense committees (as defined in section 101(a) of title 10, United States Code) of the disposal.”
“(7) dispose of materials in the stockpile in accordance with the most recent annual materials plan submitted to the congressional defense committees (as defined in section 101(a) of title 10, United States Code) under section 11(b)(1)(G) and notify the congressional defense committees of such disposals as required by section 5(b)(2).”
“(f) Planning, Programming, and Budgeting.—
(1) In addition to the activities of a combatant command for which funding may be requested under section 166(b) of this title, the Commander of the United States Cyber Command shall, subject to the authority, direction, and control of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Cyber Policy, be responsible for directly controlling and managing the planning, programming, budgeting, and execution of resources to train, equip, operate, and sustain the Cyber Mission Force.
“(2) The responsibilities assigned to the Commander of the United States Cyber Command pursuant to paragraph (1) shall include the following:
“(A) Preparation of a program objective memorandum and budget estimate submission for the resources required to train, equip, operate, and sustain the Cyber Mission Force.
“(B) Preparation of budget materials pertaining to the United States Cyber Command for inclusion in the budget justification materials that are submitted to Congress in support of the budget of the Department of Defense for a fiscal year, as submitted with the budget of the President under section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, that is separate from any other military department or component of the Department of Defense.
“(3) The responsibilities assigned to the Commander of the United States Cyber Command pursuant to paragraph (1) shall not include the following:
“(A) Military pay and allowances.
“(B) Funding for facility support that is provided by the military departments.”
“(E) defines Department of Defense-wide, mandatory timelines for activities performed by authorizing officials with respect to an Authorization to Operate for cloud-hosted platforms, services, and applications.”
“(c) Expedited Processing.—
“(1) Processes required.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this subsection, the Chief Information Officer of the Department of Defense, in coordination with the Chief Information Officers of the military departments, shall provide to each element of the Department of Defense with Authorization to Operate responsibilities guidance on, and direct each such element to develop and implement, one or more processes to expedite the granting of Authorizations to Operate and, where applicable, related appeals.
“(2) Criteria for expedited review.—The processes implemented by an element of the Department of Defense under paragraph (1) shall provide for expedited review of a request for an Authorization to Operate if—
“(A) such Authorization to Operate is for an information system of such element; and
“(B) the request for such Authorization to Operate was appropriately submitted to the authorizing official for such Authorization to Operate and—
“(i) the final determination whether to grant such Authorization to Operate as has been pending before such authorizing official for not fewer than 180 days without resolution;
“(ii) if a mechanism for appealing a determination by an authorizing official with respect to such Authorization to Operate exists, such an appeal has been pending before such authorizing official for not fewer than 90 days without response; or
“(iii) any other circumstances identified by the Chief Information Officer of the Department of Defense in the policy established under paragraph (1) that demonstrate unreasonable delay or impediment to the Authorization to Operate process.
“(3) Elements.—The process for expedited appeals developed under paragraph (1) shall include—
“(A) clearly defined timelines for resolution of the expedited review of the appeal, not to exceed 45 days from the date the expedited review is requested;
“(B) requirements for a written justification when such timelines cannot be met; and
“(C) tracking and reporting mechanisms to monitor compliance with such timelines.”
; and
“(d) Reports.—
“(1) Implementation status.—
“(A) Secretary report.—Not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report on the status of the implementation of subsections (a) and (b).
“(B) Chief information officer report.—Not later than July 1, 2026, the Chief Information Officer of the Department of Defense shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report on the status of the implementation of subsections (c).
“(2) Biannual report.—
“(A) In general.—Not later than six months after the date of the enactment of this subsection, and every six months thereafter under October 1, 2031, the Secretary of Defense, in coordination with the Chief Information Officer of the Department of Defense and the Chief Information Officers of the military departments, shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report on the activities under this section in the six-month period ending on the date of the submission of such report.
“(B) Contents.—Each report required under subparagraph (A) shall include, for the period covered by such report—
“(i) the number of new Authorizations to Operate issued;
“(ii) the number of requests for an Authorization to Operate that were submitted with complete and sufficient documentation to the appropriate authorizing official;
“(iii) the number of requests for Authorizations to Operate that were denied;
“(iv) the number of requests for Authorizations to Operate that were escalated to the process implemented under subsection (c), disaggregated by escalations—
“(I) to the Chief Information Officer of the Department of Defense; and
“(II) to the Chief Information Officer of each military department;
“(v) the number of requests described in clause (iv) that were resolved, disaggregated by resolutions—
“(I) by the Chief Information Officer of the Department of Defense; and
“(II) by the Chief Information Officer of each military department;
“(vi) the average time required for a capability to receive an Authorization to Operate, disaggregated each element of the Department responsible for evaluating the request for the Authorization to Operate;
“(vii) the number of Authorizations to Operate issued pursuant to the policy required by subsection (b);
“(viii) the number of requested reciprocal Authorizations to Operate denied due to insufficiency of supporting evidence, along with a narrative summary of the primary reasons for such denials;
“(ix) a narrative summary of any recurring deficiencies in the materials required for system authorization under the Risk Management Framework;
“(x) recommendations to refine the Risk Management Framework and the Authority to Operate process, including opportunities to define, implement, and validate security controls at a higher organizational level so that subordinate systems may rely on those controls without duplicative implementation or assessment; and
“(xi) an evaluation of the training, standards, and qualification requirements for authorizing officials.”
“(c) Annual Reports.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026, and not less frequently than once each year thereafter through December 31, 2032, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees an annual report on the implementation of the strategy.”
“(C) For each data center to be built or expanded on a military installation, an estimate, to the degree that the Secretary determines that providing such an estimate will not delay the submittal of the triennial update required by paragraph (3), of the additional resource usage resulting from building or expanding such data center, including—
“(i) an estimate of the increased footprint for physical space needs;
“(ii) assessments of projected electricity and water usage requirements for such data center;
“(iii) anticipated effects on the installation and the surrounding community resulting from the increased power, water, and other resource needs of such data center, including measures to mitigate any potential adverse effects on military installations; and
“(iv) strategies to prevent disruptions to local public utility services and to ensure resilience of the community in which the military installation resides and in which the data center is being built, including consultation with local, State, and Federal agencies to align infrastructure planning with broader needs of such community.”
; and
“(3) Triennial updates.—Not later than March 1, 2027, and not later than March 1 of every third year thereafter until March 1, 2033, the Secretary shall update the roadmap required by paragraph (1) and submit to the congressional defense committees the updated roadmap.”
“(1) rate or rank news or information sources for the factual accuracy of their content;
“(2) provide ratings or opinions on news or in formation sources regarding misinformation, bias, adherence to journalistic standards, or ethics; or
“(3) acquire or use any service that provides any ratings, rankings, or opinions described in paragraph (1) or (2) from any other person for military recruiting contracts.”
“(H) A review of investments in artificial intelligence capabilities, including an assessment of the alignment of such investments with the milestones of the roadmap required by section 1554(a) and the current and planned uses of such capabilities by the Department of Defense.”
; and
Ҥ 9088. Duty assignments after officer training course
“(a) Requirement.—The Secretary of the Air Force shall ensure that members of the Space Force who complete an initial Space Force officer training course are assigned—
“(1) in a manner that sustains acquisition billet manning levels comparably to operational billet manning levels; and
“(2) to Space Force billets allocated to the National Reconnaissance Office at a manning level that is sufficient to maintain effective operation of the National Reconnaissance Office.
“(b) Report.—Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026, and not later than October 31 of each year through 2030, the Secretary of the Air Force shall submit to the Committees on Armed Forces of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report describing—
“(1) the number and percentage of authorized and assigned Space Force officer billets, by grade and year group, within—
“(A) acquisition career fields; and
“(B) operational career fields;
“(2) the manning rate for junior officer billets of the Space Force, disaggregated by career field and organization, including the National Reconnaissance Office;
“(3) any identified shortfalls or imbalances in acquisition manning relative to operational manning in the Space Force; and
“(4) actions taken or planned to achieve and sustain comparable manning levels for billets in acquisition and operations for Space Force officers.”
Ҥ 9089. Program Executive Officer for Assured Access to Space
“(a) Establishment.—
(1) There is a Program Executive Officer for Assured Access to Space within the Space Force.
“(2) The Program Executive Officer for Assured Access to Space shall serve a term of four years.
“(b) Grade.—The Program Executive Officer for Assured Access to Space, while so serving, shall have the grade of brigadier general, major general, lieutenant general, or general.
“(c) Additional Duties.—The Program Executive Officer for Assured Access to Space, while serving as the Program Executive Officer, shall also serve as the Commander of Space Launch Delta 45.”
Ҥ 9421. Space Force officer training course requirements
“The Secretary of the Air Force shall ensure that—
“(1) the initial Space Force officer training course provides foundational instruction in acquisition management, space mission integration, and related disciplines; and
“(2) the curriculum for such course is developed by the Commander of Space Training and Readiness Command, in coordination with the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Space Acquisition and Integration and the Director of Acquisition Career Management.”
Ҥ 20244. Eligibility for consideration for promotion: duty assignments
“(a) Regulations.—The Secretary of the Air Force shall prescribe regulations to ensure that an officer on the Space Force officer list is not considered for promotion to the grade of brigadier general unless the officer has completed—
“(1) a duty assignment with a command or other organization that has responsibility for acquisition matters; and
“(2) a duty assignment with a command or other organization that has responsibility for operations.
“(b) Implementation Date.—
(1) The Secretary of the Air Force shall prescribe the regulations required under subsection (a) not later than one year after the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026; and
“(2) The regulations required under subsection (a) shall apply to officers considered for promotion to brigadier general on or after January 1, 2035.”
“CHAPTER 2015— REPORTS
“20701. Promotion rates.
“20702. Modifications to career fields and codes.
Ҥ 20701. Promotion rates
“Not later than December 31 of each year, the Secretary of the Air Force shall submit to the Committees on Armed Forces of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report on the promotion rates of members of the Space Force for the preceding fiscal year. Such report shall include—
“(1) the number of and percentage of members of the Space Force in each grade selected for promotion;
“(2) the number of and percentage of members of the Space Force in each career specialty track selected for promotion; and
“(3) the number of members of the Space Force who were selected for promotion to the grade of brigadier general, major general, lieutenant general, or general, disaggregated by career specialty track.
Ҥ 20702. Modifications to career fields and codes
“Not later than 60 days before the date on which a change is made to the career fields or mission occupational specialty codes for the Space Force, the Secretary of the Air Force shall submit to the Committees on Armed Forces of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report that includes—
“(1) a description of the changes intended to be made to such career fields or mission occupational specialty codes; and
“(2) the plan of the Secretary to maintain the Space Force competencies and comply with requirements in law with respect to Space Force career fields and duty assignments.”
“(c) Noise Mitigation at Space Force Launch Sites.—In providing space launch support services to a commercial entity, the Secretary of the Air Force shall coordinate with the entity to—
“(1) study the noise caused by launches at launch sites of the Space Force; and
“(2) identify potential technologies and procedures to mitigate such noise to the extent practicable.”
Ҥ 2275d. Acquisition and operation of space systems for space warfighting and control
“(a) Requirement.—The Secretary of Defense shall acquire and operate space systems to be used primarily for space warfighting and control to meet the requirements specified by one or more combatant commanders in carrying out the responsibilities set forth in section 164 of this title.
“(b) Role of Commercial Space Systems.—The Secretary may use one or more commercial space systems to augment the space systems acquired and operated under subsection (a) if such commercial space systems are under the direction of a member of the armed forces with responsibility for space warfighting and control operations.
“(c) National Security Waiver.—
(1) The Secretary may waive the application of subsection (a) if the Secretary determines that such a waiver is in the national security interest of the United States.
“(2) Not later than 10 days after exercising the waiver authority under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense committees a notification of the use of such authority that includes—
“(A) a description of the national security interest upon which the exercise of such authority is based;
“(B) the anticipated vulnerabilities to national security posed by the use of such waiver;
“(C) identification of which operational commander will provide direction to the commercial space system that is used pursuant to the waiver instead of a system acquired and operated by the Secretary; and
“(D) the anticipated duration of such waiver.”
“(4) Tranche 4.
“(5) Tranche 5.
“(6) Tranche 6.”
Ҥ 430e. Vendor support to clandestine activities
“(a) Oversight, Deconfliction, and Risk Assessment Capability.—The Secretary of Defense shall establish, maintain, continuously update, and use a secure, centralized technical capability to facilitate oversight, deconfliction, and risk assessments of all commercial vendor support to the Department of Defense for clandestine activities. Such capability shall—
“(1) enable the Department of Defense to perform oversight, deconfliction, and risk assessments of past, ongoing, or planned clandestine activity involving support from commercial vendors, including all subcontractors; and
“(2) include use of the minimum information required to—
“(A) identify potential conflicts between clandestine activities;
“(B) identify the need for additional coordination with respect to clandestine activities; and
“(C) conduct aggregate risk assessments of clandestine activities involving support from commercial vendors; and
“(b) Exclusions.—
(1) Notwithstanding subsection (a), if the Secretary of Defense determines that information concerning a commercial vendor should not be used by the centralized technical capability required by subsection (a) due to operational, counterintelligence, or other national security concerns, the Secretary may exclude such information from use by such centralized technical capability.
“(2) Not later than 7 days after making a determination under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense committees, the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate, and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives notice of the determination that includes the following information disaggregated by the element of the Department of Defense with respect to which such commercial vendor provides support:
“(A) The number of commercial vendors with respect to which the Secretary made the determination under paragraph (1).
“(B) A description of the types of activities supported by such commercial vendors.
“(C) The rationale for excluding the information concerning such commercial vendors from such capability.
“(c) Deconfliction.—The Secretary of Defense shall ensure the centralized technical capability required by subsection (a) is used in each case where a commercial vendor is expected to provide support to a clandestine activity to—
“(1) deconflict the use of commercial vendors in support of clandestine activities of the Department of Defense; and
“(2) assess operational risk and counterintelligence exposure attributable to the use of commercial vendors in support of clandestine activities of the Department of Defense.
“(d) Clandestine Activity Defined.—In this section, the term ‘clandestine activity’ means any activity where it is intended that the role of the United States Government will not be apparent or acknowledged publicly.”
Ҥ 130g. Oversight of sensitive activities of the Department of Defense.
“(a) Requirement.—The Secretary of Defense shall keep the congressional defense committees fully and currently informed of Department of Defense sensitive activities.
“(b) Notification.—In addition to the requirement under subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense committees a written notification of any compromise or failure of a sensitive activity of the Department of Defense by not later than 48 hours after the date on which the Secretary determines that such a compromise or failure has occurred.
“(c) Procedures.—The Secretary, in consultation with the congressional defense committees, shall establish and submit to such committees procedures for complying with the requirements of subsections (a) and (b), including clearly established reporting thresholds and timelines for the prompt delivery of written notifications consistent with the national security of the United States and the protection of operational security. The Secretary shall promptly notify the congressional defense committees in writing of any changes to such procedures at least 14 days prior to the adoption of any such changes.
“(d) Sensitive Activities Defined.—In this section, the term ‘Department of Defense sensitive activities’ means operations, actions, activities, or programs of the Department of Defense that if compromised, could have enduring adverse effects on United States foreign policy, Department of Defense activities, or military operations, or cause significant embarrassment to the United States, its allies, or the Department of Defense. Such activities are generally handled through special access, compartmented, or other sensitive control mechanisms.”
“§ 2225. Insider threat detection”
; and
“(1) Overseeing nuclear deterrence activities of the Department of Defense and the National Nuclear Security Administration, including policy and resources, and developing options for adjusting the deterrence posture of the United States in response to evolving international security conditions.”
“(6) Evaluating safety, security, and control issues for existing weapons and for proposed new weapon program starts and approving adjustments as required.”
“(8) Providing specific guidance regarding priorities for research on—
“(A) nuclear weapon delivery systems and platforms and priorities on military capability development within the armed forces and the broader Department of Defense; and
“(B) nuclear weapons and priorities among activities, including production, surveillance, research, construction, and any other programs within the National Nuclear Security Administration.”
“(9) Coordinating and approving activities conducted by the Department of Defense and the Department of Energy for the study, development, production, and retirement of nuclear warheads and weapon systems, including concept definition studies, feasibility studies, engineering development, hardware component fabrication, warhead and weapon system production, and warhead retirement.”
“(f) Budget and Funding Matters.—
(1) The Council shall annually review the plans and budget of the National Nuclear Security Administration and the military departments to assess whether such plans and budget meet the current and projected requirements relating to nuclear weapons and related weapon systems supporting nuclear deterrence missions.”
“(n)
(1) The Secretary of the Air Force shall maintain a total inventory of intercontinental ballistic missiles sufficient to ensure that not fewer than 400 such missiles are operationally available.
“(2) Such intercontinental ballistic missiles shall be deployed among not fewer than 150 launch facilities dispersed across each of the following locations (for a total of not fewer than 450):
“(A) Francis E. Warren Air Force Base, Laramie County, Wyoming.
“(B) Malmstrom Air Force Base, Cascade County, Montana.
“(C) Minot Air Force Base, Ward County, North Dakota.
“(3) In this subsection, the term ‘intercontinental ballistic missile’ means any combination of the LGM–30G Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile or the LGM–35A Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile.”
“(b) Initial Operational Capability.—The Secretary of Defense and the Administrator for Nuclear Security shall take such actions as are necessary to ensure the program and project described in subsection (a)—
“(1) provide a limited number of assets prior to initial operational capability being achieved to enable limited operational deployment of the weapon system, in a quantity to be determined by the Nuclear Weapons Council, to meet combatant command requirements not later than September 30, 2032; and
“(2) achieve initial operational capability, as defined jointly by the Secretary of the Navy and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, by not later than September 30, 2034.”
“SEC. 211. B–21 BOMBER AIRCRAFT NUCLEAR CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENT.
“The Secretary of the Air Force shall ensure that the B–21 bomber is—
“(1) operationally certified to employ nuclear gravity bombs not later than 180 days after the date on which such aircraft achieves initial operational capability; and
“(2) operationally certified to employ the AGM–181 long-range standoff weapon not later than two years after the date on which either the B–21 bomber or the AGM–181 long-range standoff weapon achieves initial operational capability, whichever is later.”
Ҥ 9068. Air Force Global Strike Command
“(a) Establishment.—There is in the Air Force a major command, which shall be known as Air Force Global Strike Command.
“(b) Commander.—
(1) The Commander of Air Force Global Strike Command shall hold the grade of general while serving in that position, without vacating that officer’s permanent grade. The commander shall be appointed to that grade by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, for service in that position.
“(2) The commander shall serve as the single accountable officer responsible to the Secretary of the Air Force and the Chief of Staff of the Air Force for carrying out all aspects of Air Force nuclear and long-range strike missions in support of United States Strategic Command, including such aspects described in subsection (c).
“(c) Functions.—The Commander of Air Force Global Strike Command shall be responsible for carrying out all aspects and activities of the Air Force nuclear and long-range strike missions in support of United States Strategic Command. Such aspects include nuclear weapons, nuclear weapon delivery systems, long-range strike bomber aircraft, and the nuclear command, control, and communication systems. Such activities include the following:
“(1) Providing combat-ready nuclear and long-range conventional strike forces in support of Presidential and combatant commander directives.
“(2) Administrating, organizing, training, and equipping assigned and gained forces.
“(3) Assessing the readiness of assigned and gained forces and submitting to the Secretary and the Air Force Chief of Staff periodic reports with respect to such assessments.
“(4) Leading development in the Air Force of—
“(A) military requirements with respect to nuclear and long-range strike missions;
“(B) budget proposals necessary to carry out the missions of the Air Force Global Strike Command;
“(C) long-range investment plans and priorities to sustain, modernize, and recapitalize assigned forces; and
“(D) employment strategies, concepts, tactics, techniques, and procedures with respect to strategic deterrence, nuclear deterrence operation, and long-range strike operations.
“(5) Advising the Secretary, as necessary, on the adequacy of resources of the Department of the Air Force dedicated to support and execute nuclear missions.
“(6) Such other functions as the Secretary determines necessary or appropriate for execution of nuclear deterrence and long-range strike missions.”
“(2) Coordinate with and support the activities of Air Force Global Strike Command, the Air Force Nuclear Systems Center, and any other applicable Air Force organization in the sustainment and modernization of weapon systems associated with the nuclear deterrence mission of the Air Force.”
“(5) Represent Air Force nuclear deterrence mission equities on behalf of the Chief of Staff of the Air Force and the Commander of Air Force Global Strike Command within the Nuclear Weapons Council processes and other Department of Defense fora, as appropriate.”
“(1) to provide for the common defense of the United States and its citizens by deploying and maintaining a next-generation missile defense shield;
“(2) to deter and defend the United States, citizens of the United States, and critical infrastructure of the United States, against the threat of foreign attack by increasingly complex ballistic, hypersonic glide, and cruise missiles, and other advanced aerial threats; and
“(3) to guarantee the viability of an effective nuclear response capability of the United States and to support the continued deterrence of strategic attacks against the homeland of the United States.”
Ҥ 5516. Prohibition on privatized or subscription-based missile defense intercept capabilities
“(a) Prohibition.—The Secretary of Defense may only develop, deploy, test, or operate a missile defense system with kinetic missile defense capabilities if—
“(1) the missile defense system is owned and operated by the armed forces; and
“(2) such capabilities do not use a subscription-based service, a pay-for-service model, or a recurring-fee model to engage or intercept a target.
“(b) Inherently Governmental Function.—The decision to engage in kinetic missile defense activities, including targeting, launch authorization, and engagement of airborne or spaceborne threats, is an inherently governmental function that only officers or employees of the Federal Government or members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Space Force may perform.
“(c) Rule of Construction.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the Secretary of Defense from—
“(1) entering into contracts with private entities for the research, development, manufacture, maintenance, or testing of missile defense systems;
“(2) entering into or carrying out co-production or co-development arrangements, or other cooperative agreements, with allies and partners of the United States with respect to missile defense capabilities; or
“(3) procuring commercial services for remote sensing, telemetry, threat tracking, data analysis, data transport, or early warning, if such services do not directly involve the execution or command of kinetic missile defense activities.
“(d) Definitions.—For the purposes of this section:
“(1) The term ‘kinetic missile defense activities’ means any action intended to physically intercept, neutralize, or destroy a missile, projectile, aircraft, or other airborne threat, including those using kinetic interceptors or directed energy.
“(2) The term ‘kinetic missile defense capabilities’ means any system or platform that is designed to be able to carry out kinetic missile defense activities.
“(3) The term ‘subscription-based service’ means any arrangement in which a private entity provides ongoing or recurring operational access to missile defense capabilities in exchange for periodic payment.”
“(5) Intercepts.—
“(A) In general.—Each briefing under this subsection shall include, for the period covered by the briefing, details on any unidentified anomalous phenomena intercepts conducted by the North American Aerospace Defense Command or the United States Northern Command.
“(B) Summaries.—In providing a briefing under this subsection, the Director of the Office shall make available a summary of all instances of intercepts described in subparagraph (A), including—
“(i) the number, location, and nature of such intercepts; and
“(ii) a description of the procedures and protocols followed during the intercepts, including any data collected or analyzed during such intercepts.
“(C) Timely information.—The Director of the Office shall inform the appropriate congressional committees of any failure by the North American Aerospace Defense Command or the United States Northern Command to provide timely information on unidentified anomalous phenomena intercepts.”
“(A) Availability of data.—The Director of National Intelligence and the Secretary of Defense shall jointly require that each element of the intelligence community and component of the Department of Defense with data relating to unidentified anomalous phenomena makes such data available immediately to the Office in a manner that protects intelligence sources and methods.”
“(1) synchronizing”
“(2) the evaluation of tactics, techniques, and procedures for dynamic spectrum sharing technologies for joint electromagnetic operations.”
; and
“(4) An assessment of any current gaps in evaluation mechanisms for future joint use of dynamic spectrum sharing technologies.
“(5) The feasibility and advisability of establishing designated virtual ranges for the evaluation of tactics, techniques, and procedures for dynamic spectrum sharing technologies.”
Ҥ 500g. Integration of electronic warfare into Tier 1 and Tier 2 joint training exercises
“(a) Requirement.—During fiscal years 2026 through 2030, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff shall require the integration of offensive and defensive electronic warfare capabilities into Tier 1 and Tier 2 joint training exercises.
“(b) Inclusion of Opposing Force.—The Chairman shall require exercises conducted under subsection (a) to include an opposing force design based on an intelligence assessment of the electromagnetic order of battle and capabilities of an adversary that is current as of the date of the exercise.
“(c) Waiver.—The Chairman may waive the application of subsection (a) or (b) with respect to an exercise if the Chairman determines that—
“(1) the exercise does not require—
“(A) a demonstration of electronic warfare capabilities; or
“(B) a militarily significant threat from electronic warfare attack; or
“(2) the integration of offensive and defensive electronic warfare capabilities into the exercise is cost prohibitive or not technically feasible based on the overall goals of the exercise.
“(d) Briefing.—Concurrent with the submission of the budget of the President to Congress pursuant to section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, for each of fiscal years 2026 through 2030, the Chairman shall provide the congressional defense committees with a briefing on exercises conducted under subsection (a) that includes—
“(1) a description of such exercises planned and included in the budget submission for that fiscal year; and
“(2) the results of each such exercise conducted in the preceding fiscal year, including—
“(A) the extent to which offensive and defensive electronic warfare capabilities were integrated into the exercise;
“(B) an evaluation and assessment of the exercise to determine the impact of the opposing force on the participants in the exercise, including—
“(i) joint lessons learned;
“(ii) high interest training issues; and
“(iii) high interest training requirements; and
“(C) an assessment as to whether offensive and defensive electronic warfare capabilities were part of an overall joint fires and, if so, a description of the manner in which such capabilities were incorporated into the joint fires.
“(e) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1) The term ‘electromagnetic order of battle’ has the meaning given such term in Joint Publication 3–85 entitled ‘Joint Electromagnetic Spectrum Operations’, dated May 2020.
“(2) The terms ‘high interest training issue’, ‘high interest training requirement’, ‘Tier 1’, and ‘Tier 2’ have the meanings given such terms in the Joint Training Manual for the Armed Forces of the United States (Document No. CJCSM 3500.03E), dated April 20, 2015.
“(3) The term ‘joint fires’ has the meaning given such term in the publication of the Joint Staff entitled ‘Insights and Best Practices Focus Paper on Integration and Synchronization of Joint Fires’, dated July 2018.”
“243. Other Matters Relating to Awarding of Contracts 3341”.
“25. Electromagnetic Warfare 500”.
“327. Weapon Systems Development and Related Matters 4401”.
“383. Development, Application, and Support of Dual-Use Technologies 4831”.
“1413. Alternative Promotion Authority for Officers in Designated Competitive Categories 15101”.
“(L) Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.”
“(2) Any forfeiture conducted under paragraph (1) shall be made subject to the requirements for civil, criminal, or administrative forfeiture.”
“(C) If the Secretary of Transportation notifies the Secretary of Defense that the manner of implementation of this section by the Department of Defense would result in an adverse impact to civil aviation safety, the Secretary of Defense shall consult with the Secretary of Transportation to mitigate adverse impacts.”
; and
“(3) The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that the regulations prescribed or guidance issued under paragraph (1) require that, when taking an action described in subsection (b)(1), all due consideration is given to—
“(A) mitigating impacts on privacy and civil liberties under the first and fourth amendments to the Constitution of the United States;
“(B) mitigating damage to, or loss of, real and personal property;
“(C) mitigating any risk of personal injury or death; and
“(D) when practicable, obtaining the identification of, or issuing a warning to, the operator of an unmanned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft prior to taking action under subparagraphs (C) through (F) of subsection (b)(1), unless doing so would—
“(i) endanger the safety of members of the armed forces or civilians;
“(ii) create a flight risk or result in the destruction of evidence; or
“(iii) seriously jeopardize an investigation, criminal proceeding, or legal proceeding pursuant to subsection (c).”
“(A) is necessary to support an ongoing action described in subsection (b)(1);”
“(C) is necessary to support the counter-unmanned aircraft systems activities of another Federal agency with authority to mitigate the threat of unmanned aircraft systems or unmanned aircraft in mitigating such threats; or”
“(f) Claims.—Claims for loss of property, injury, or death pursuant to actions under subsection (b) may be made consistent with chapter 171 of title 28, and chapter 163 of this title, as applicable.”
“(2) Each report under paragraph (1) shall include—”
; and
“(i) Briefing, Report, and Publication.—
(1) Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this subsection, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees and publish on a publicly available website a report summarizing all detection and mitigation activities conducted under this section during the previous year to counter unmanned aircraft systems.
“(2) Each report under paragraph (1) shall include—
“(A) information on any violation of, or failure to comply with, the privacy and civil liberties protections referenced in this section by personnel authorized to conduct detection and mitigation activities, including a description of any such violation or failure;
“(B) data on the number of detection activities conducted, the number of mitigation activities conducted, and the number of instances of communications interception from an unmanned aircraft system;
“(C) whether any unmanned aircraft that experienced mitigation was engaged in or attempting to engage in activities protected under the first amendment to the Constitution if such intent is readily and reasonably ascertainable;
“(D) whether any unmanned aircraft or unmanned aircraft system was properly or improperly seized, disabled, damaged, or destroyed and an identification of any methods used to seize, disable, damage, or destroy such aircraft or system; and
“(E) a description of the efforts of the Federal Government to protect privacy and civil liberties when carrying out detection and mitigation activities under this section to counter unmanned aircraft systems.
“(3) Each report required under paragraph (1) shall be submitted and published in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex.”
“(k) Interagency Executive Committees on Execution of Department of Defense Counter Unmanned Aviation Authority.—
(1) The Secretary of Defense, the Attorney General, and the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall jointly establish by memorandum of understanding an interagency executive committee (referred to in this subsection as the ‘executive committee’), for the purpose of exchanging views, information, and advice relating to the execution of this section.
“(2) The memorandum of understanding entered into under paragraph (1) shall include—
“(A) a description of the officials and other individuals to be invited to participate as members in the executive committee;
“(B) a procedure for creating a forum to carry out the purpose described in paragraph (1);
“(C) a procedure for rotating the Chairperson and meeting location of the executive committee; and
“(D) a procedure for scheduling regular meetings of the executive committee no fewer than three times each calendar year.
“(l) Additional Annual Report.—Not later than April 1 of each year this section is in force, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the Committee on Armed Services of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate a report containing—
“(1) a summary of the use of activities described in subsection (b);
“(2) an identification of additional missions of the Department of Defense for which the actions described in subsection (b)(1) are appropriate, as identified by the Secretary and including the specific list of facilities, installations, or assets, if any, that would be included if protections described in subsection (b)(1) were extended to facilities associated with the missions in such report;
“(3) an updated copy of the memorandum of understanding required by subsection (k);
“(4) a summary of actions taken by the interagency executive committee required by subsection (k);
“(5) a summary of recommendations produced by each member of the interagency executive committee required by subsection (k), disaggregated by department or agency; and
“(6) a summary of actions taken as a result of meetings or decisions taken by the interagency executive committee required by subsection (k) to change procedures, regulations, guidelines, or other governing instruction of the Department of Defense relating to the use of authority provided by this section.”
“(3) The term ‘contractor’ means a person who—
“(A) performs functions that support or carry out actions authorized in this section pursuant to a contract or subcontract entered into with an entity of the Department of Defense; and
“(B) has completed training for the counter-unmanned aircraft system the person will use in performance of such functions, as certified by the Secretary of Defense.’ ”
’; and
“(A) means any facility or asset that—”
“(X) the physical security of other installations or property owned, leased, or operated by the Department of Defense to which the public is not permitted regular, unrestricted access, determined by the Secretary on a site by site basis to be critical to the national defense and certified as such to the Secretary of Transportation, the Attorney General, and the appropriate congressional committees; or
“(XI) assistance to Federal, State, or local officials in responding to incidents involving nuclear, radiological, biological, or chemical weapons, high-yield explosives, or related materials or technologies, as well as support pursuant to section 282 of this title; and”
; and
“(B) includes any persons physically present at any such facility or asset.”
; and
“(n) Termination.—The authority to carry out this section shall terminate on December 31, 2030.”
Ҥ 3102. Objectives of the defense acquisition system
“(a) In General.—The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that the defense acquisition system expeditiously provides the armed forces with the capabilities necessary to operate effectively, to address evolving threats, and to sustain the military advantage of the United States in the most cost-effective manner practicable.
“(b) Guidance.—The Secretary of Defense shall issue guidance to carry out subsection (a) and shall ensure that the defense acquisition system prioritizes the needs of end users and is validated by direct engagement, experimentation, and iteration. Such guidance shall require the following:
“(1) All activities of the defense acquisition system contribute to the expeditious delivery of capabilities to enhance the operational readiness of the armed forces and enable the missions of the Department of Defense.
“(2) A leadership culture and organizational structure that empowers individuals in the management of the defense acquisition system and encourages appropriate delegation authority, collaboration, and mission-focused risk-taking.
“(3) Sufficient numbers of members of the acquisition workforce to support the defense acquisition system, and that such members are properly trained and assigned.
“(4) Resource decisions for the defense acquisition system to prioritize best value and seek to balance life-cycle costs, schedule, performance, and quantity through continuous trade-off analysis informed by prototyping and direct feedback from end users.
“(5) Adoption and integration in the defense acquisition system of advanced approaches in digital engineering, model-based engineering, and simulation environments to enable rapid, iterative designs and technology insertion to maximize mission outcomes.
“(6) Active pursuit of innovative solutions to enhance effectiveness of the armed forces and responsiveness to emerging threats, including the acquisition and integration of commercial products and commercial services.
“(7) Approaches to workforce training and development that equally balance emphasis on functional and technical skills with skills in cross-functional integration, critical thinking, and innovative approaches that best deliver solutions to operational problems.”
“(1) ensure that all operational test and evaluation activities are aligned with, and are conducted in a manner that supports, the objectives of the defense acquisition system established pursuant to section 3102 of this title;”
“(1) implement strategies to adapt rapidly to evolving end-user requirements, validated through end user engagement;
“(2) use data analytics to manage trade-offs among life-cycle costs, delivery schedules, performance objectives, technical feasibility, and procurement quantity objectives to maximize best value for the end user;
“(3) conduct iterative cycles to develop, test with end-users, and terminate capabilities that deviate from priorities or significantly exceed cost or schedule thresholds;
“(4) notify the Joint Requirements Oversight Council within 30 days after changes to a defense acquisition program that result in a material difference in capability requirements, procurement quantities, or delivery schedules;
“(5) assign personnel to critical acquisition positions (as defined in section 1731 of this title) to build expertise and accountability, equipping such personnel with strategies to empower teams, delegate authority, and embrace mission-focused risk-taking; and
“(6) foster mutual transparency and cooperation between the Government and private sector entities and require collaboration with such entities to ensure delivery of safe, suitable, and effective systems on relevant timelines and on established cost baselines.”
“(1) The development of capability requirement statements for equipping the armed force concerned that—
“(A) describes the operational problem to provide necessary context for the capability requirement;
“(B) proposes nonprescriptive solutions to operational problems; and
“(C) ensures system interoperability, where appropriate, between and among joint military capabilities (as defined in section 181 of this title).
“(2) Implement strategies to support timely adjustments to capability requirement statements developed in paragraph (1).
“(3) Advise on trade-offs among life-cycle costs, delivery schedules, performance objectives, technical feasibility, and procurement quantity objectives to maximize best value for the end user.
“(4) In consultation with the Joint Requirements Oversight Council, prioritize—
“(A) capability needs for investment; and
“(B) resource allocation to meet operational readiness requirements (as defined in section 4324 of this title) and the materiel readiness objectives established under section 118(c) of this title.
“(5) Make available appropriate personnel to provide end-user feedback for the development of new capabilities.
“(6) Recommend modification, discontinuation, or termination of the development of capabilities—
“(A) that no longer align with a capability requirement established by the Secretary of Defense; or
“(B) that are experiencing significant cost growth, technical or performance deficiencies, or delays in schedule.
“(7) Build acquisition career paths for officers and personnel (as required by section 1722a of this title) to ensure such officers and personnel have the necessary skills and opportunities for career progression to fulfill the objectives established pursuant to section 3102 of this title.”
“(d) Requirements Document Defined.—In this section, the term ‘requirements document’ means a document that establishes the need for a materiel approach to address an operational problem.”
Ҥ 3101. Definitions
“In this chapter:
“(1) The term ‘best value’ means, with respect to an acquisition, the optimal combination of cost, quality, technical capability or solution quality, and delivery schedule.
“(2) The term ‘capability requirement’ means a capability that is critical or essential to address an operational problem.
“(3) The term ‘cost-effective’ means, with respect to an acquisition, delivering superior end-user results at equal or lower cost compared to alternatives.
“(4) The term ‘operational problem’ means—
“(A) a challenge of a military department in achieving an assigned military objective based on current doctrine, emerging threats, or future concepts; and
“(B) may include limitations in capabilities, capacity, resources, or the ability to effectively and efficiently coordinate across the joint force, with another combatant command, or among military capabilities.
“(5) The term ‘service chief’ means—
“(A) the Chief of Staff of the Army, with respect to matters concerning the Army;
“(B) the Chief of Naval Operations, with respect to matters concerning the Navy;
“(C) the Commandant of the Marine Corps, with respect to matters concerning the Marine Corps;
“(D) the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, with respect to matters concerning the Air Force; and
“(E) the Chief of Space Operations, with respect to matters concerning the Space Force.”
Ҥ 1732. Portfolio acquisition executive
“(a) In General.—A portfolio acquisition executive is the senior acquisition official designated by the component acquisition executive or the service acquisition executive of the military department concerned, as applicable, to lead a portfolio of capabilities, with authority for plans, budgets, and execution of programs assigned to the portfolio, including life-cycle management.
“(b) Reporting Relationships.—To ensure streamlined accountability for management, the following relationships shall apply:
“(1) Each program manager (as defined in section 1737 of this title) for a defense acquisition program shall report directly to the portfolio acquisition executive for such program unless otherwise directed by the component acquisition executive or service acquisition executive of the military department concerned (as applicable).
“(2) Each portfolio acquisition executive shall report directly to the component acquisition executive or the service acquisition executive of the military department concerned (as applicable).
“(3) The component acquisition executive or service acquisition executive of the military department concerned (as applicable) shall oversee the designation of, performance of, and resource allocation for all portfolio acquisition executives.
“(c) Responsibilities.—For the defense acquisition programs assigned to a portfolio acquisition executive, such portfolio acquisition executive shall—
“(1) ensure that activities carried out under such programs are aligned with, and are conducted in a manner that supports, the objectives of the defense acquisition system established pursuant to section 3102 of this title;
“(2) subject to the authority, direction, and control of the component acquisition executive or service acquisition executive of the military department concerned (as applicable)—
“(A) carry out all powers, functions, and duties of the component acquisition executive or service acquisition executive concerned (as applicable) with respect to members of the acquisition workforce assigned to the portfolio acquisition executive; and
“(B) ensure that the policies of the Secretary of Defense established in accordance with this chapter are implemented in such portfolio;
“(3) coordinate with the relevant service chief (as defined in section 3101 of this title) when evaluating, modifying, or implementing requirements determinations, performance objectives, procurement quantity objectives, and materiel readiness objectives established under section 118(c) of this title;
“(4) liaise and collaborate directly with operational users of such defense acquisition programs to receive regular feedback to ensure the effectiveness and suitability of capabilities;
“(5) provide timely information to the relevant service chief, the Joint Staff, the Director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation, and other officials identified by the Secretary of Defense on cost, schedule, and performance trade-offs of defense acquisition programs assigned to the portfolio acquisition executive;
“(6) employ iterative development cycles with the authority to modify, discontinue, or terminate the development of capabilities—
“(A) that no longer align with a joint capability requirement (as defined in section 181 of this title) or other capability requirement established by the Secretary or relevant service chief; or
“(B) that are experiencing significant cost growth, technical or performance deficiencies, or delays in schedule;
“(7) collaborate with mission engineering functions of the Department of Defense to conduct cross-service technical and operational activities to coordinate integration of emerging technologies, prototypes, and operational concepts, as appropriate; and
“(8) ensure effective market research and, to the maximum extent practical, prioritize—
“(A) the use of transactions for prototype projects under section 4022; and
“(B) the procurement of commercial products and commercial services under chapter 247 of this title.
“(d) Personnel and Resources.—
(1) The Secretary concerned with respect to a portfolio acquisition executive shall ensure that each such portfolio acquisition executive is assigned dedicated personnel and other resources required to successfully perform the assigned duties and responsibilities of such portfolio acquisition executive.
“(2) Personnel shall be under the authority and control of such portfolio acquisition executive subject to the component acquisition executive or service acquisition executive of the department concerned. Personnel and resources shall not be provided through matrixed, collateral duty, or dual-reporting arrangements, except as specifically authorized by the Secretary concerned in writing.
“(3) Personnel and resources required include—
“(A) contracting and contract management;
“(B) estimating costs;
“(C) financial management and business;
“(D) life-cycle management and product support;
“(E) program management;
“(F) engineering and technical management;
“(G) developmental testing and evaluation; and
“(H) other personnel as determined by the Secretary concerned, as appropriate.”
“(4) The term ‘portfolio acquisition executive’ means an individual described in section 1732(a) of this title.”
Ҥ 1733. Product support manager
“(a) In General.—A product support manager is the individual responsible for managing product support required to field and maintain the readiness and operational capability of a covered system throughout the life cycle of the covered system.
“(b) Designation.—The Secretary of Defense shall designate a product support manager for each covered system who shall be coequal with the program manager for such covered system and report directly to the portfolio acquisition executive responsible for such covered system.
“(c) Objectives.—The product support manager shall seek to achieve the objectives of the defense acquisition system established pursuant to section 3102 of this title and shall identify, develop, implement, incentivize, and measure quantifiable best value outcome-based product support that optimizes life-cycle cost, readiness, and operational capability of a covered system.
“(d) Specific Responsibilities.—A product support manager shall be responsible for the following with respect to a covered system:
“(1) Developing and executing the product support strategy required under section 4324 of this title.
“(2) Providing product support and subject matter expertise to the relevant program manager and portfolio acquisition executive.
“(3) Collaborating with chief engineers and systems engineers—
“(A) in developing the life-cycle sustainment plan and product support strategy required under section 4324 of this title; and
“(B) to analyze the operating and support costs to ensure cost-effective operation, management, and availability of the covered system.
“(3) Adopting predictive analytics and simulation and modeling tools to improve materiel availability and reliability, increase operational availability rates, and reduce operation and sustainment costs.
“(4) Conducting product support business case analyses to provide a structured, iterative methodology to compare and assess the full impact of product support alternatives and provide data-informed recommendations that balance requirements with affordability. Such analyses shall—
“(A) enable the development of the product support strategy as early as possible, but not later than Milestone B approval has been granted for the covered system; and
“(B) inform proposed updates or changes in the product support strategy as needed.
“(5) Reviewing and recommending resource allocations across product support integrators and product support providers to meet performance requirements of the product support strategy.
“(6) Coordinating product support arrangements between product support integrators and product support providers across materiel commands, depots, sustainment working capital funds, and commercial entities to execute the product support strategy and maintain updated parts cataloging and provisioning.
“(7) Seeking to resolve issues relating to diminishing manufacturing supply, material shortages, critical readiness items of supply.
“(8) Managing the end-to-end coordination process related to qualification, certification, and testing of alternative sources of supply for critical readiness items of supply.
“(9) Ensuring the evaluation and selection of product support integrators and product support providers that are best suited to execute the product support strategy.
“(e) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1) The term ‘best value’ has the meaning given in section 3101 of this title.
“(2) The terms ‘covered system’, ‘critical readiness items of supply’, ‘product support’, ‘product support arrangement’, ‘product support integrator’, and ‘product support provider’ have the meanings given, respectively, in section 4324 of this title.”
“(c) Product Support Manager.—Before being assigned to a position as product support manager, a person—
“(1) shall have completed all life-cycle logistics certification and training requirements prescribed by the Secretary of Defense;
“(2) shall have executed a written agreement as required in section 1734(b)(2) of this title; and
“(3) in the case of—
“(A) a product support manager of a major defense acquisition program, shall have at least eight years of experience in life-cycle logistics, at least two years of which were performed in a systems program office or similar organization;
“(B) a product support manager of a significant nonmajor defense acquisition program, shall have at least six years of experience in life-cycle logistics; and
“(C) a product support manager for a covered system (as defined in section 4324 of this title), shall be designated as a key leadership position.”
“(iv) Product support manager.”
Ҥ 4323. Sustainment reviews
“(a) Review Required.—The Secretary of Defense shall require each Secretary of a military department, in coordination with the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, to conduct an assessment of the actual performance of each major weapon system against the operational readiness requirements and materiel readiness objectives (established under section 118(c) of this title). Each Secretary of a military department shall use such assessment to—
“(1) identify any factors contributing to the failure of a major weapon system to meet such requirements and objectives;
“(2) develop and implement a corrective action plan to address such factors in an expeditious manner; and
“(3) inform the submission of materials to Congress required by section 118(c)(2) of this title and the development of the future-years defense program required by section 221 of this title.
“(b) Submission to Congress.—Not later than five days after the date on which the budget of the President is submitted to Congress pursuant to section 1105 of title 31, each Secretary of a military department, in coordination with the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report that includes the following:
“(1) Findings from a review of the effectiveness of the life-cycle sustainment plan required under section 4324 of this title for a major weapon system.
“(2) A description of how such assessments informed the submission of materials to Congress required by section 118(c)(2) of this title and the development of the future-years defense program required by section 221 of this title.
“(3) For a covered system which has been declared to meet initial operational capability, and that for two consecutive calendar years has failed to meet established materiel readiness objectives for materiel availability or operational availability (as such terms are defined, respectively, in section 118 of this title), such report shall include—
“(A) an identification of factors contributing to such failure;
“(B) a mitigation plan to address supply, maintenance, or other issues contributing to such failure; and
“(C) a description of any corrective action plan required by subsection (a)(2) and an update on progress made in implementing such a plan.
“(4) A summary of actions taken by the Secretary to ensure that each covered system of the military department under the jurisdiction of the Secretary meets the applicable operational readiness requirements and materiel readiness objectives in the most cost-effective manner practicable.
“(c) Covered System Defined.—In this section, the term ‘covered system’ has the meaning given in section 4324 of this title.”
Ҥ 4324. Life-cycle management and product support
“(a) In General.—The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that each covered system is supported by a performance-based life-cycle sustainment plan—
“(1) that is approved by the service acquisition executive responsible for such covered system; and
“(2) that meets applicable operational readiness requirements and materiel readiness objectives (established under section 118(c) of this title) in the most cost-effective manner practicable.
“(b) Life-cycle Sustainment Plan.—
(1) A product support manager shall develop, update, and implement a life-cycle sustainment plan for each covered system for which the product support manager is responsible. Such plan shall include the following:
“(A) A comprehensive product support strategy that addresses each Integrated Product Support Element in a manner—
“(i) to best achieve operational readiness requirements and materiel readiness objectives throughout the planned life cycle of such system; and
“(ii) that allows evaluation and selection of product support integrators and product support providers appropriate to execute the product support strategy.
“(B) A life-cycle cost estimate for the covered system that—
“(i) is based on the product support strategy described in subparagraph (A); and
“(ii) if the covered system is a major defense acquisition program or major subprogram, is developed in accordance with the requirements to support a Milestone A approval, Milestone B approval, or Milestone C approval.
“(C) Recommended engineering and design considerations that support cost-effective sustainment of the covered system and best value solutions in life cycle planning and management.
“(D) An intellectual property management plan for product support developed in accordance with section 3774 of this title, including requirements for technical data, software, and modular open system approaches (as defined in section 4401 of this title).
“(E) A strategy to maximize use of public and private sector capabilities including public-private partnerships, when appropriate.
“(F) After consideration of the views received by the milestone decision authority from appropriate materiel, logistics, or fleet representatives, a plan to transition the covered system from production to initial fielding that addresses specific products or services required for successful initial fielding of the covered system, including—
“(i) a description of the necessary tooling or other unique support equipment, requirements for initial spare parts and components, technical handbooks and maintenance manuals, maintenance training, and facilities;
“(ii) an identification of the funding required to provide such products and services for any initial fielding location of the covered system; and
“(iii) an assessment of the required number of training simulators, including the initial operational capability and overall fielding of such simulators.
“(2) In developing each life-cycle sustainment plan required by this section, the product support manager shall—
“(A) consider affordability constraints and key cost factors that could affect operating and support costs during the life cycle of the covered system;
“(B) consider sustainment risks or challenges to sustaining the covered system in operational environments, including contested logistics environments (as defined in section 2926 of this title);
“(C) seek to comply with—
“(i) requirements to maintain a core logistics capability under section 2464 of this title; and
“(ii) limitations on the performance of depot-level maintenance of materiel under section 2466 of this title;
“(D) seek to integrate commercial best practices, use commercial standards, and use advanced technologies to enhance the product support of each covered system; and
“(E) seek to maintain a robust, resilient, and innovative defense industrial base to support requirements throughout the life cycle of the covered system.
“(d) Definitions.—In this chapter:
“(1) The terms ‘milestone decision authority’ and ‘Milestone A approval’ have the meanings given, respectively, in section 4251 of this title.
“(2) The term ‘Milestone B approval’ and ‘Milestone C approval’ has the meaning given in section 4172 of this title.
“(3) The term ‘covered system’ means—
“(A) a major defense acquisition program as defined in section 4201 of this title;
“(B) a major subprogram as described in section 4203 of this title; or
“(C) an acquisition program or project that is carried out using the rapid fielding or rapid prototyping acquisition pathway under section 3602 of this title that is estimated by the Secretary of Defense to require an eventual total expenditure described in section 4201(a)(2) of this title.
“(4) The term ‘critical readiness items of supply’ means—
“(A) parts and systems designated as Mission Impaired Capability Awaiting Parts, Not Mission Capable Supply, or Casualty Report Category 3 or 4 status (as defined by the Secretary of Defense or a Secretary of a military department); or
“(B) parts or systems designated by the Secretary of Defense as negatively impacting the materiel readiness objectives of a covered system.
“(5) The term ‘Integrated Product Support Elements’ means, with respect to a covered system—
“(A) product support management;
“(B) design interface;
“(C) sustaining engineering;
“(D) maintenance planning and management;
“(E) supply support;
“(F) support equipment;
“(G) technical data;
“(H) training and training support;
“(I) information technology systems continuous support;
“(J) facilities and infrastructure;
“(K) packaging, handling, storage, and transportation; and
“(L) manpower and personnel.
“(6) The term ‘product support’ means the package of support functions required to field and sustain the readiness and operational capability of covered systems (including subsystems and components of such covered systems).
“(7) The term ‘product support arrangement’—
“(A) means a contract, task order, or another contractual arrangement, or any type of agreement or non-contractual arrangement entered into by the Federal Government, for the performance of sustainment or logistics support required for covered systems (including subsystems and components of such covered systems); and
“(B) includes arrangements for any of the following:
“(i) Performance-based logistics.
“(ii) Sustainment support.
“(iii) Contractor logistics support.
“(iv) Life-cycle product support.
“(8) The term ‘product support integrator’ means an entity responsible for integrating private and public sources of product support within the scope of a product support arrangement.
“(9) The term ‘product support provider’ means an entity that provides product support functions.”
“(3) The term ‘materiel readiness objective’ means the minimum required availability of each covered system that is necessary to fulfill the requirements of the strategic framework and guidance referred to in subsection (a).”
“(3) require each Secretary of a military department to update estimates of operating and support costs periodically throughout the life cycle of a major weapon system, and make necessary adjustments to the life-cycle sustainment plan required by section 4324 of this title to ensure such major weapon system meets applicable operational readiness requirements and materiel readiness objectives (established in accordance with section 118(c) of this title) in the most cost-effective manner practicable;”
“(9) prior to the Milestone B approval (or equivalent approval) for a major weapon system, require the Secretary concerned to ensure the completion of an intellectual property management plan for product support required under section 4324(b)(1)(D) of this title; and”
; and
“(10) require each Secretary of a military department to create and retain an independent cost estimate for the remainder of the life cycle of the covered weapon system every five years.”
“(i) in the case of a prime contract entered into after June 30, 2026, the price of the subcontract is expected to exceed $10,000,000; or
“(ii) in the case of a prime contract entered into on or before June 30, 2026, the price of the subcontract is expected to exceed $2,000,000.”
“(A) the strategy clearly describes the proposed business case and capability management approach for the program or system, and to the maximum extent practicable, describes how capability requirements will be met through delivery of such program or system;”
; and
“(2) Each strategy shall, where appropriate, consider the following:
“(A) An approach that delivers required capabilities in increments, each depending on available mature technology, and that recognizes up front the need for future capability improvements or transitions to alternative end items through use of continuous competition.
“(B) Requirements related to logistics, maintenance, and sustainment in accordance with sections 2464 and 2466 of this title, and the acquisition of technical data, computer software, and associated licenses, to enable such requirements in accordance with sections 3771 through 3775 of this title.
“(C) A process for collaborative interaction and market research with the science and technology community, including Department of Defense science and technology reinvention laboratories, government innovation cells, academia, small businesses, nontraditional defense contractors, and other contractors.
“(D) Identification of enterprise-wide designs and standards in support of an architecture that provides for an integrated suite of capabilities that focuses on simplicity of implementation and speed of delivery.
“(E) Overarching roadmaps that create integrated strategic schedules of legacy systems and new capabilities.
“(F) A contracting strategy that develops long-term partnerships with multiple companies to actively contribute to architectures, development, production, and sustainment across the capabilities to be developed by decomposing large systems into smaller sets of projects across time and technical component.
“(G) An assignment of roles and responsibilities of key personnel of the acquisition workforce, identification of external stakeholder dependencies, and the need for subject matter expert inputs at critical points in the program, including the need for special hiring authority or advisory and assistance services, in order to deliver the desired capabilities.
“(H) A process of testing and experimentation with the test community and end users to ensure continuous user feedback, acceptance, and development of concepts of operations.”
; and
“(d) Review.—The decision authority shall review and approve, as appropriate, the acquisition strategy for a major defense acquisition program or major system prior to the acquisition decision memorandum and ensure that the strategy is updated at regular intervals to incorporate significant changes to program requirements, resourcing, or acquisition decisions.
“(e) Decision Authority Defined.—In this section, the term ‘decision authority’, with respect to a major defense acquisition program or major system, means the official within the Department of Defense designated with the overall responsibility and authority for acquisition decisions for the program or system, including authority to approve entry of the program or system into the next phase of the acquisition process.”
“(1) Members, chairman, and appointment.—The Board shall consist of 5 voting members and 2 nonvoting members.
“(A) Voting members.—One voting member is the Administrator of Federal Procurement Policy, who serves as Chairman. The other 4 members, all of whom shall have experience in Federal Government contract cost accounting, are as follows:
“(i) 2 representatives of the Federal Government, each of whom has substantial experience in administering and managing covered contracts—
“(I) one of whom is a representative of the Department of Defense appointed by the Secretary of Defense; and
“(II) one of whom is an officer or employee of the General Services Administration appointed by the Administrator of General Services.
“(ii) 2 individuals from the private sector, each of whom is appointed by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget—
“(I) one of whom is a senior employee or retired senior employee of a Government contractor with substantial experience in the private sector involving administration and management of covered contracts; and
“(II) one member of the accounting profession, with substantial experience as an accountant.
“(B) Nonvoting members.—There may be up to 2 nonvoting members appointed by the Board from academia, a nonprofit organization, or a private entity with substantial experience in establishing financial accounting and reporting standards in compliance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.”
“(4) Ineligibility.—Beginning on January 1, 2028, an individual who is a member of an audit entity of an executive agency is not eligible to serve as a member of the Board.”
“(4) ensure that any action taken pursuant to paragraph (3) is not taken solely for the purpose of tailoring such standard to favor a party in the dispute.”
“(3) including a summary of rulemaking activities related to any changes to such standards and any associated timelines for such activities.”
“(j) Covered Contract Defined.—In this section, the term ‘covered contract’ means a contract that is subject to the cost accounting standards issued pursuant to section 1502 of this title.”
“(b) Amount of Adjustment.—A contract price adjustment undertaken under section 1502(f)(2) of this title shall be made, where applicable, on relevant contracts that are subject to the cost accounting standards so as to protect the Federal Government from payment, in the aggregate, of increased costs, as defined by the Cost Accounting Standards Board and in accordance with the following requirements:
“(1) The Federal Government may not recover costs greater than the aggregate increased cost to the Federal Government, as defined by the Board, on the relevant contracts subject to the price adjustment unless the contractor or subcontractor made a change in its cost accounting practices of which the contractor or subcontractor was aware or should have been aware at the time of the price negotiation and which contractor or subcontractor failed to disclose to the Federal Government.
“(2) For such changes in cost accounting practices—
“(A) costs recovered by the Federal Government shall exclude any contract or subcontract (or any portion of such contract or subcontract) that is firm, fixed-price, or that is not price-redeterminable based on costs; and
“(B) for a fiscal year, for any contract or subcontract (or any portion of such contract or subcontract) that is not a firm, fixed-price contract or subcontract the costs recovered by the Federal Government shall not exceed the net increased costs, if any, paid to the contractor or subcontractor for all changes in cost accounting practices implemented within the same fiscal year.”
“(1) evaluating global trends, emerging threats, and adversary capabilities to inform understanding of joint operational problems and to shape joint force design;
“(2) coordinating with commanders of combatant commands to compile, refine, and prioritize joint operational problems;
“(3) continuously reviewing and assessing joint military capabilities of elements of the Department of Defense listed in section 111(b) of this title in a manner that meets applicable requirements in the national defense strategy under section 113(g) of this title;
“(4) identifying and prioritizing gaps and opportunities in joint military capabilities, including making recommendations for changes to address such capability and capacity gaps;
“(5) identifying advances in technology, innovative commercial solutions, and concepts of operation that could improve the military advantage of the joint force;
“(6) recommending joint capability requirements that—
“(A) describe the joint operational problem to provide necessary context for the joint capability requirement;
“(B) proposes nonprescriptive solutions to joint operational problems; and
“(C) ensures system interoperability, where appropriate, between and among joint military capabilities;
“(7) designing the joint force in a manner that—
“(A) addresses joint operational problems; and
“(B) evaluates force design initiatives of the Armed Forces to recommend acceptance, mitigation, or alternative force designs for the joint force;
“(8) maintaining a repository of joint operational problems and identification of capabilities to address those problems; and
“(9) evaluating effect of joint military capability requirements for the purposes of section 4376(a) of this title.”
“(5) Input from industry.—The Council shall seek views from private entities on commercially available technology to address joint operational problems or gaps in joint military capabilities.”
“(e) Responsibility for Capability Requirements.—Each service chief is responsible for the capability requirements of the armed force of such service chief.”
“(1) The term ‘joint capability requirement’ means a capability that is critical or essential to address a joint operational problem.”
“(3) The term ‘joint operational problem’—
“(A) means a challenge across the joint force in achieving an assigned military objective based on current doctrine, emerging threats or future concepts; and
“(B) may include limitations in capabilities, capacity, resources, or the ability to effectively and efficiently coordinate across the joint force, with another combatant command, or among joint military capabilities.”
; and
“(5) The term ‘service chief’ has the meaning given in section 3101 of this title.”
“(b) Applicability of Defense-unique Statutes to Contracts for Commercial Products and Commercial Services.—The Department of Defense Supplement to the Federal Acquisition Regulation shall include a list of defense-unique contract clause requirements based on laws, executive orders, or acquisition policies that may be applied to contracts for the procurement of commercial products and commercial services entered into by the Department of Defense.
“(c) Applicability of Defense-unique Statutes to Subcontracts for Commercial Products and Commercial Services.—
(1) The Department of Defense Supplement to the Federal Acquisition Regulation shall include a list of defense-unique contract clause requirements based on laws, executive orders, or acquisition policies that may be applied to subcontracts for the procurement of commercial products and commercial services.
“(2) In this subsection, the term ‘subcontract’—
“(A) includes a transfer of commercial products and commercial services between divisions, subsidiaries, or affiliates of a contractor or subcontractor; and
“(B) does not include any agreement entered into by a contractor or subcontractor for the supply of products or services that are intended for use in the performance of multiple contracts with the Department of Defense or with other parties, and that are not identifiable to any particular contract.
“(3) This subsection does not authorize the waiver of the applicability of any provision of law or contract clause requirement with respect to any first-tier subcontract under a contract with a prime contractor reselling or distributing commercial products and commercial services of another contractor without adding value.
“(d) Applicability of Defense-unique Statutes to Contracts or Subcontracts for Commercially Available, Off-the-shelf Items.—The Department of Defense Supplement to the Federal Acquisition Regulation shall include a list of defense-unique contract clause requirements based on laws, executive orders, or acquisition policies that are applicable to contracts or subcontracts for the procurement of commercially available off-the-shelf items entered into by the Department of Defense.
“(e) Applicable Requirements.—The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that the lists required by subsections (b) and (c)(1) shall include any contract clause to implement the requirements of—
“(1) chapter 385 of this title;
“(2) section 5949 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 (Public Law 117–263; 41 U.S.C. 4713 note);
“(3) section 805 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 (Public Law 118–31); or
“(4) a statute that specifically refers to this section and provides that, notwithstanding this section, such statute shall be applicable to contracts for the procurement of commercial products and commercial services.”
“(d) Non-commercial Determination Required.—
(1) The head of an agency shall establish a process for determinations regarding the non-availability of commercial products or commercial services, including that—
“(A) a product or service that is not a commercial product or commercial service may not be procured until the head of the agency determines that the market research conducted in accordance with subsection (c)(2) resulted in a determination that no commercial product, commercial service, or nondevelopmental item exists that is suitable to meet the needs of the agency; and
“(B) prior to acquiring a product or service that is not a commercial product or commercial service, the relevant program manager shall submit a written memorandum confirming the results of the determination in subparagraph (A), which shall be signed by the portfolio acquisition executive; and
“(2) ensure the determination in paragraph (1)(A) does not inhibit the ability of a contracting officer to determine whether a product, component of a product, or service is a commercial product or commercial service (as applicable).”
; and
“(2) assist each Secretary of a military department and each head of a Defense Agency with performing market research in accordance with the requirements of section 3453 of this title relating to market research and the determination regarding the non-availability of commercial products or commercial services, and other analysis, used to determine the reasonableness of price for the purposes of procurements by the Department of Defense.”
; and
“(a) Authority.—The Secretary of Defense and each Secretary of a military department may acquire commercial products, commercial services, or nondevelopmental items through a competitive selection of proposals resulting from a general solicitation and a peer review, technical review, or operational review (as appropriate) of such proposals.”
“(c) Follow-on Production Agreements.—With respect to a product, service, or item acquired through the competitive procedures described under subsection (a), the Secretary of Defense or each Secretary of a military department may enter into—
“(1) a follow-on production contract (including a sole source contract), subject to the approval requirements of section 3204(e) of this title; or
“(2) a follow-on production contract or transaction, as defined in section 4022 of this title.”
Ҥ 3459. Limitation on required flowdown of contract clauses to subcontractors providing commercial products or commercial services
“(a) In General.—The Secretary of Defense may not require that a clause be included in a subcontract for the acquisition of commercial products or commercial services other than a clause that is on the lists required by section 3452 of this title or unless otherwise applicable pursuant to subsection (e) of such section.
“(b) Applicability to Other Supply Agreements.—The Secretary of Defense may not require the application of any contract clauses to other supply agreements unless otherwise applicable pursuant to subsection (e) of section 3452 of this title.
“(c) Definitions.—In this section, the terms ‘other supply agreement’ and ‘subcontract’ have the meanings given such terms, respectively, in section 3452(c)(2) of this title.
“(d) Applicability.—Subsection (a) shall apply only with respect to subcontracts entered into after the earliest date on which the lists required by section 3452 of this title are published in the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement.”
Ҥ 3605. Authority to acquire consumption-based solutions
“(a) Authority.—The Secretary of Defense and the Secretaries of the military departments may acquire services through consumption-based solutions.
“(b) Guidance Required.—The Secretary of Defense shall amend the Department of Defense Supplement to the Federal Acquisition Regulation to implement the authority under subsection (a), including creating a new subcategory of services under part 237 of the Department of Defense Supplement to the Federal Acquisition Regulation, entitled ‘Consumption-based solutions’, that—
“(1) is any combination of hardware, equipment, software, labor, or services that together provides a seamless capability;
“(2) has the ability to be metered and billed based on actual usage;
“(3) has predetermined pricing at fixed-price units;
“(4) requires the awardee to notify the Department of Defense contracting officer when consumption under the contract reaches 75 percent and 90 percent of the funded amount, respectively, of the contract; and
“(5) treats modifications to a contract entered into under the authority established in subsection (a) to add new features or capabilities in an amount less than or equal to 25 percent of the total value of such contract, as originally awarded, as procurements made using competitive procedures for the purposes of chapter 221 of this title.
“(c) Funding.—Amounts authorized to be appropriated for acquisitions using the authority under subsection (a)—
“(1) may be used for expenses for—
“(A) research, development, test and evaluation;
“(B) procurement;
“(C) production;
“(D) modification; and
“(E) operation and maintenance; and
“(2) may be used to enter into incrementally funded contracts or other agreements, including advanced payments.
“(d) Consumption-based Solution Defined.—In this section, the term ‘consumption-based solution’ means a model under which a service is provided to the Department of Defense and may utilize any combination of software, hardware or equipment, data, and labor or services that provides a capability that is metered and billed based on actual usage at fixed-price units.
“(e) Rule of Construction.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the use of the authority created under this section in combination with another contract type provided for under the Department of Defense Supplement to the Federal Acquisition Regulation.”
“(2) For the purposes of section 3803 of this title, a payment for covered services acquired through a commercially utilized acquisition strategy shall not be considered an advance payment made under section 3801 of this title.”
; and
“(e) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1) The term ‘commercially utilized acquisition strategy’ means an acquisition of a service by the head of an agency under terms and conditions that—
“(A) are similar to the terms and conditions under which such service is available to the public; and
“(B) provide such service—
“(i) as a consumption-based solution (as defined in section 3605 of this title); or
“(ii) under a technology subscription model or other model based on predetermined pricing for access to such service.
“(2) The term ‘covered service’ means a commercial service that includes access to or use of any combination of hardware, equipment, software, labor, or services, including access to commercial satellite data and associated services, that is integrated to provide a capability.”
“(2) ensure major system interfaces are adequately designated and defined to achieve a modular open system approach and are delivered with supporting documentation necessary to enable the integration of components or modules provided by a third party into the modular system;”
“(f) Advanced Manufacturing Defined.—In this section, the term ‘advanced manufacturing’ means manufacturing through the use of interconnected, advanced technologies throughout the design and manufacturing process that enables modular, adaptable, and efficient manufacturing, including software-controlled subtractive manufacturing, additive manufacturing, powder bed fusion manufacturing, and other similar manufacturing techniques.”
“(e) Advanced Manufacturing Crisis Qualification Frameworks.—The head of the agency shall establish a process to streamline and expedite the qualification of advanced manufacturing sources, processes, or products prior to or during wartime or upon activation of the Civil Reserve Manufacturing Network (as defined in section 1832 of National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026), that addresses materials, systems, and processes using a risk framework suitable for wartime or during periods in which the CRMN is activated.”
“(c) Cochairs.—The Consortium shall be cochaired by the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment and the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering.”