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

Subtitle H - Other Matters

P. L. 114-

House Conference Report. 114-840

“(10) (A) keeping the Commandant informed of the progress of major acquisition programs (as that term is defined in section 581);

“(B) informing the Commandant on a continuing basis of any developments on such programs that may require new or revisited trade-offs among cost, schedule, technical feasibility, and performance, including—

“(i) significant cost growth or schedule slippage; and

“(ii) requirements creep (as that term is defined in section 2547(c)(1) of title 10); and

“(C) ensuring that the views of the Commandant regarding such programs on cost, schedule, technical feasibility, and performance trade-offs are strongly considered by program managers and program executive officers in all phases of the acquisition process.”.

(b) Customer Service Mission Of Directorate.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 15 of title 14, United States Code, is amended—

(A) in section 561(b)—

(i) in paragraph (1), by striking “; and” and inserting a semicolon;

(ii) in paragraph (2), by striking the period and inserting “; and”; and

(iii) by adding at the end the following:

“(3) to meet the needs of customers of major acquisition programs in the most cost-effective manner practicable.”;

(B) in section 562, by repealing subsection (b) and redesignating subsections (c), (d), (f), and (g) as subsections (b), (c), (d), and (e), respectively;

(C) in section 563, by striking “Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010, the Commandant shall commence implementation of” and inserting “The Commandant shall maintain”;

(D) by adding at the end of section 564 the following:

“(c) Acquisition Of Unmanned Aerial Systems.—

“(1) IN GENERAL.—During any fiscal year for which funds are appropriated for the design or construction of the Offshore Patrol Cutter, the Commandant—

“(A) may not award a contract for design of an unmanned aerial system for use by the Coast Guard; and

“(B) may acquire an unmanned aerial system only—

“(i) if such a system has been acquired by, or has been used by, the Department of Defense or the Department of Homeland Security, or a component thereof, before the date on which the Commandant acquires the system; and

“(ii) through an agreement with such a department or component, unless the unmanned aerial system can be obtained at less cost through independent contract action.

“(2) LIMITATIONS ON APPLICATION.—

“(A) SMALL UNMANNED AERIAL SYSTEMS.—The limitations in paragraph (1)(B) do not apply to any small unmanned aerial system that consists of—

“(i) an unmanned aircraft weighing less than 55 pounds on takeoff, including all components and equipment on board or otherwise attached to the aircraft; and

“(ii) associated elements (including communication links and the components that control such aircraft) that are required for the safe and efficient operation of such aircraft.

“(B) PREVIOUSLY FUNDED SYSTEMS.—The limitations in paragraph (1) do not apply to the design or acquisition of an unmanned aerial system for which funds for research, development, test, and evaluation have been received from the Department of Defense or the Department of Homeland Security”;

(E) in subchapter II, by adding at the end the following:

Ҥ 578. Role of Vice Commandant in major acquisition programs

“The Vice Commandant—

“(1) shall represent the customer of a major acquisition program with regard to trade-offs made among cost, schedule, technical feasibility, and performance with respect to such program; and

“(2) shall advise the Commandant in decisions regarding the balancing of resources against priorities, and associated trade-offs referred to in paragraph (1), on behalf of the customer of a major acquisition program.

Ҥ 579. Extension of major acquisition program contracts

“(a) In General.—Notwithstanding section 564(a)(2) of this title and section 2304 of title 10, and subject to subsections (b) and (c) of this section, the Secretary may acquire additional units procured under a Coast Guard major acquisition program contract, by extension of such contract without competition, if the Director of the Cost Analysis Division of the Department of Homeland Security determines that the costs that would be saved through award of a new contract in accordance with such sections would not exceed the costs of such an award.

“(b) Limitation On Number Of Additional Units.—The number of additional units acquired under a contract extension under this section may not exceed the number of additional units for which such determination is made.

“(c) Determination Of Costs Upon Request.—The Director of the Cost Analysis Division of the Department of Homeland Security shall, at the request of the Secretary, determine for purposes of this section—

“(1) the costs that would be saved through award of a new major acquisition program contract in accordance with section 564(a)(2) for the acquisition of a number of additional units specified by the Secretary; and

“(2) the costs of such award, including the costs that would be incurred due to acquisition schedule delays and asset design changes associated with such award.

“(d) Number Of Extensions.—A contract may be extended under this section more than once.”; and

(F) in section 581—

(i) by redesignating paragraphs (7) through (10) as paragraphs (9) through (12), respectively, and by redesignating paragraphs (3) through (6) as paragraphs (4) through (7), respectively;

(ii) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:

“(3) CUSTOMER OF A MAJOR ACQUISITION PROGRAM.—The term ‘customer of a major acquisition program’ means the operating field unit of the Coast Guard that will field the system or systems acquired under a major acquisition program.”; and

(iii) by inserting after paragraph (7), as so redesignated, the following:


“(8) MAJOR ACQUISITION PROGRAM.—The term ‘major acquisition program’ means an ongoing acquisition undertaken by the Coast Guard with a life-cycle cost estimate greater than or equal to $300,000,000.”.

(2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis at the beginning of such chapter is amended by adding at the end of the items relating to subchapter II the following:

“578. Role of Vice Commandant in major acquisition programs.

“579. Extension of major acquisition program contracts.”.

(c) Review Required.—

(1) REQUIREMENT.—The Commandant of the Coast Guard shall conduct a review of—

(A) the authorities provided to the Commandant in chapter 15 of title 14, United States Code, and other relevant statutes and regulations related to Coast Guard acquisitions, including developing recommendations to ensure that the Commandant plays an appropriate role in the development of requirements, acquisition processes, and the associated budget practices;

(B) implementation of the strategy prepared in accordance with section 562(b)(2) of title 14, United States Code, as in effect before the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017; and

(C) acquisition policies, directives, and regulations of the Coast Guard to ensure such policies, directives, and regulations establish a customer-oriented acquisition system.

(2) REPORT.—Not later than March 1, 2017, the Commandant 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 containing, at a minimum, the following:

(A) The recommendations developed by the Commandant under paragraph (1) and other results of the review conducted under such paragraph.

(B) The actions the Commandant is taking, if any, within the Commandant’s existing authority to implement such recommendations.

(3) MODIFICATION OF POLICIES, DIRECTIVES, AND REGULATIONS.—Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commandant of the Coast Guard shall modify the acquisition policies, directives, and regulations of the Coast Guard as necessary to ensure the development and implementation of a customer-oriented acquisition system, pursuant to the review under paragraph (1)(C).

(d) Analysis Of Using Multiyear Contracting.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—No later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, 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 an analysis of the use of multiyear contracting, including procurement authority provided under section 2306b of title 10, United States Code, and authority similar to that granted to the Navy under section 121(b) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1998 (Public Law 105–85; 111 Stat. 1648) and section 150 of the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011 (Public Law 111–242; 124 Stat. 3519), to acquire any combination of at least five—

(A) Fast Response Cutters, beginning with hull 43; and

(B) Offshore Patrol Cutters, beginning with hull 5.

(2) CONTENTS.—The analysis under paragraph (1) shall include the costs and benefits of using multiyear contracting, the impact of multiyear contracting on delivery timelines, and whether the acquisitions examined would meet the tests for the use of multiyear procurement authorities.

The House amendment contained a provision (sec. 835) that would amend section 56(c) of title 14, United States Code, to direct the Chief Acquisitions Officer of the Coast Guard to inform the Commandant of developments in major acquisition programs that have new or revisited trade-offs between costs, scheduling, feasibility, and performance.

This section also would amend chapter 15 of title 14, United States Code, to clarify the role of the Acquisition Directorate in ensuring that the needs of customers in major acquisition programs are met in the most cost-effective manner practicable. The Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard would be responsible for representing the operating field units and would serve an advisory role to the Commandant for major acquisition programs. The customer of a major acquisition program would be specified as the operating field unit that would field the acquired system and “major acquisition program” would be defined as a program with a lifecycle cost estimate of $300.0 million or more.

This section also would prohibit the Commandant of the Coast Guard from awarding a contract for the design of an unmanned aerial system (UAS) for use by the Coast Guard, and would require the Commandant to use and operate only UASs that have already been acquired by either the Department of Defense or the Department of Homeland Security.

This section also would allow the Coast Guard to extend major acquisition program contracts if the Comptroller General of the United States finds that extending a current contract would be more cost effective than awarding a new contract. The Comptroller General would determine the costs for acquiring additional vessels under an existing contract, as well as the incurred costs due to schedule delays and asset design changes that would result from awarding a new contract.

This section also would require the Commandant to review all authorities provided under chapter 15 of title 14, United States Code, and other relevant statutes and deliver a report to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives on how the Commandant can play a more appropriate role in the acquisition process with regard to policies, requirements, and implementing a more customer oriented acquisition system.

This section also would require the Secretary for the department in which the Coast Guard is operating to submit a report to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives on an analysis of multiyear procurement authorities for the procurement of at least five Fast Response Cutters (beginning with hull 43) and Offshore Patrol Cutters (beginning with hull 5). The report would include an assessment of costs and benefits, impact on delivery times, and whether acquisitions would meet the four part test under section 2306b of title 10, United States Code.

The Senate bill contained no similar provision.

The Senate recedes with an amendment that would allow the Coast Guard to acquire unmanned aerial systems that have been previously funded by the Departments of Defense or Homeland Security. The amendment would also require the Cost Analysis Division of the Department of Homeland Security to determine if contracts for procurement of additional units under an existing Coast Guard major acquisition program contract would be cost effective.