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TITLE VIII--ACQUISITION POLICY, ACQUISITION MANAGEMENT, AND RELATED MATTERS

Subtitle D--Provisions Relating to the Acquisition System

P. L. 116-92

House Conference Report 116-333

(a) Report.--Not later than December 15, 2019, the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report that includes the guidance required under section 804(a) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 (Public Law 114-92; 10 U.S.C. 2302 note). The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment shall ensure such guidance includes the business case elements required by an acquisition program established pursuant to such guidance and the metrics required to assess the performance of such a program.

(b) Limitation.--

(1) In general.--Beginning on December 15, 2019, if the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment has not submitted the report required under subsection (a), not more than 75 percent of the funds specified in paragraph (2) may be obligated or expended until the date on which the report required under subsection (a) has been submitted.

(2) Funds specified.--The funds specified in this paragraph are the funds authorized to be appropriated by this Act or otherwise made available for fiscal year 2020 for the Department of Defense that remain unobligated as of December 15, 2019, for the following:

(A) The execution of any acquisition program established pursuant to the guidance required under such section 804(a).

(B) The operations of the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research & Engineering.

(C) The operations of the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition & Sustainment.

(D) The operations of the Office of the Director of Cost Analysis and Program Evaluation.

(E) The operations of the offices of the service acquisition executives of the military departments.

The House amendment contained a provision (sec. 821) that would amend section 804 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 (Public Law 114-92) to direct the Secretary of Defense to ensure the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation, the Director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation, and the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering have access to certain data on acquisitions carried out under the authority, and would limit use of the authority to programs below the major defense acquisition threshold unless the Secretary were to issue a waiver.

The House amendment also contained a provision (sec. 861(f)) that would direct the Secretary to submit a report that would include the guidance required by section 804 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 (Public Law 114-92) and, would limit the Department's ability to obligate or expend funds on Middle Tier programs until that report is submitted.

The Senate bill contained no similar provision.

The Senate recedes with amendments that would strike the provision amending section 804, and, relating to the report and guidance, would expand the limitation of funds beyond acquisition programs, to the organizations which are parties to the disagreements that are preventing the guidance from being finalized.

The conferees believe the difficulty the Department has faced in reaching agreement illustrates the tension of balancing empowered execution by the Services with appropriate oversight by the Director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation, the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation, and the Under Secretaries of Defense for Research and Engineering and for Acquisition and Sustainment, as well as Congressional oversight. To address the latter, the conferees direct the Defense Acquisition Executive and the Service Acquisition Executives to notify the congressional defense committees within 30 days of a decision to designate a program to use the authority provided for under section 804 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 (Public Law 114-92). The conferees note the inability of the parties to reach agreement on the use of this authority threatens the momentum of the very initiatives that would most benefit from it. The conferees encourage the parties to focus immediately on the most critical issues, bring them to resolution, and publish the guidance required by section 804.

House Report 116-120

Section 821--Modifications to the Middle Tier of Acquisition Programs

This section would amend section 804 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 (Public Law 114-92) by directing the Secretary of Defense to develop a process to provide the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation, the Director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation, and the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering access to all technical data, records, and information necessary to evaluate the technical maturity of acquisitions carried out under the rapid prototyping and rapid fielding authority. This section would also clarify that no program under this authority shall be the same size or exceed the dollar value of a major defense acquisition program, unless a waiver is granted from the Secretary of Defense.