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

Subtitle H—Other Matters

P. L. 116-92

House Conference Report 116-333

(a) In General.--Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report on efforts of the Secretary of Defense to improve the oversight of
contractors providing private security functions to fulfill non-combat requirements for security in contingency operations, humanitarian operations, peacekeeping operations, or other similar operations or exercises since January 1, 2009.

(b) Elements.--The report required under subsection (a) shall evaluate--

(1) the nature and extent to which the Department of Defense has used contractors to perform private security functions described under subsection (a), including the type of operation or exercise, the functions performed by a contractor, the place of performance, and contract obligations;

(2) the processes for tracking and reporting on the use of such contractors;

(3) changes to law, regulation, and policy on the use of such contractors and how the Secretary has implemented such changes, including--

(A) the Montreux Document on Pertinent International Legal Obligations and Good Practices for States Related to Operations of Private Military and Security Companies During Armed Conflict (published on May 2, 2011);

(B) using standards for such contractors issued by the American National Standards Institute and the International Organization for Standardization; and

(C) using other associated accreditation and certification standards for such contractors; and

(4) the oversight outcomes of the Department due to implementing the processes described in paragraph (2) and the changes described in paragraph (3), including--

(A) progress with certification and accreditation of companies;

(B) the use of the maturity model of the Department to assess contractors; and

(C) the nature and extent of referrals for suspension and debarment and the number of suspensions and debarments that have resulted from such referrals.

(c) Form of Report.--The report required by subsection (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form, to the maximum extent possible, but may contain a classified annex, if necessary.

The House amendment contained a provision (sec. 899L) that would direct the Inspector General of the Department of Defense to report on certain contracts for private security performed in contingency operations since 2001, to include data
on costs, locations, civilians killed or wounded while performing the work, and disciplinary actions taken against the contractors.

The Senate bill contained no similar provision.

The Senate recedes with an amendment that would re-direct the study to the Comptroller General of the United States, and realign the substance of the review to evaluate Department of Defense's efforts to improve its oversight of contractors providing private security functions since 2009, to include how it has implemented certain new industry-wide law, policy, regulation, standards, and guidance.

The conferees note the significant changes that have occurred in the private security sector since certain reforms were initiated following the final report and recommendations of the Commission on Wartime Contracting in 2011.