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

Subtitle B—Amendments to General Contracting Authorities, Procedures, and Limitations.

P. L. 116-

House Conference Report   116-617

(1) in subsection (a)--

(A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking ``and each major automated information system program'' and inserting ``(as defined in section 2430 of this title), each acquisition program that is estimated by the Secretary of Defense to require an eventual total expenditure greater than the amount described in section 2430(a)(1)(B) of this title, and any other acquisition program identified by the Secretary''; and

(B) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

``(14) Program lead software.''; and (2) by striking subsection (c).

The Senate amendment contained a provision (sec. 881) that would include software in government performance of acquisition functions.

The House bill contained no similar provision.

The House recedes with an amendment that would limit the scope of the provision to any acquisition program exceeding the cost level equivalent to a major defense acquisition program, or other programs identified by the Secretary of Defense.

The conferees direct the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment to provide a briefing by March 1, 2021, to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives detailing how the Department of Defense complies with section 1706 of title 10, United States Code, including a presentation of data on the extent to which the goal in subsection (a) is met and the implications for resource requirements, as well as a description of the strategic management and resourcing decisions involved in planning for recruiting, training, and career development of military and civilian employees listed in subsection (a).

Senate Committee Report 116-236 to Accompanying S. 4049

Inclusion of software in government performance of acquisition functions (sec. 881)

The committee recommends a provision that would add software to the list of government performance of acquisition functions to ensure that each acquisition program has a software program lead position that is performed by a properly qualified member of the Armed Forces or a full-time employee of the Department of Defense. Additionally, the provision would remove the statutory reference to the categories of Major Automated Information System and Major Defense Acquisition Program so that software expertise is required for all acquisition programs, as needed.

As noted in the February 2018 Defense Science Board report titled ``Design and Acquisition of Software for Defense Systems,'' software is a crucial and growing part of weapon systems and the Department needs to be able to sustain software indefinitely. In the administration proposal on this provision, the Department noted that it ``lacks modern software development expertise in its program offices or the broader functional acquisition workforce'' and that the Department ``needs to ensure software management and expertise is developed and established as core to major programs.'' As part of implementing the Department's high priority of improving software acquisition, the Department must ensure that properly qualified professionals occupy key leadership positions responsible for software.