Mike D. Rogers
Representative for Alabama · Republican · United States
“(8) An assessment of NATO's deterrence efforts in Romania, including a description and evaluation of-- (A) United States force posture in Romania, including any new rotations to Romania intended to enhance deterrence following the 2025 decision to end the rotational presence of a United States brigade; (B) consultations with NATO allies r…”
“(8) An assessment of NATO's deterrence efforts in Romania, including a description and evaluation of-- (A) United States force posture in Romania, including any new rotations to Romania intended to enhance deterrence following the 2025 decision to end the rotational presence of a United States brigade; (B) consultations with NATO allies r…”
“(a) Requirement for Risk-based Approach.--Section 3843 of title 10, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: ``Sec. 3843. Contractor business systems: monitoring and surveillance standards ``(a) Requirement for Risk-based Approach.--The Secretary shall implement an agile, streamlined risk-based approach to surveillance of contra…”
“(a) Requirement for Risk-based Approach.--Section 3843 of title 10, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: ``Sec. 3843. Contractor business systems: monitoring and surveillance standards ``(a) Requirement for Risk-based Approach.--The Secretary shall implement an agile, streamlined risk-based approach to surveillance of contra…”
“(b) Modification of Certain Certifications and Assessments.-- (1) Certifications.--Section 1249(b) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 (Public Law 119-60) is amended-- (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking ``The certification described'' and inserting following: ``(1) In general.--Except as prov…”
“(b) Objectives.--The Commander shall ensure that the Cognitive Performance Enhancement Program-- (1) improves readiness, resilience, and recovery, using evidence-based holistic and proactive high-performance brain training that has a validated ability to scale cost- effectively across the special operations forces enterprise; [[Page H4842…”
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“(d) Coordination With Joint Force Requirements.--Pathways tailored under this section shall align with joint force operational needs for intermediate-range fires, including complementary employment with existing capabilities such as hypersonic systems, cruise missiles, and other precision fires. (e) Briefing.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall provide a briefing to the congressional defense committees detailing-- (1) the acquisition pathways tailored under this section; (2) the capabilities prioritized; (3) anticipated timelines for prototype demonstration and initial limited operational capability; and (4) a recommended funding profile for fiscal years 2027 through 2031.”
“(9) Software.--The Secretary shall consider establishing software test and digital engineering infrastructure approaches based on commercial best practices that software- in-the-loop and hardware-in-the-loop test infrastructure to enable continuous validation of autonomy and mission software and integration. (c) Portfolio Alignment.--The Secretary shall determine whether such capabilities are best pursued as-- (1) a new start program within the fires portfolio; (2) an expansion or modification of an existing effort; or (3) an Army-wide cross-portfolio initiative under the authority of the Portolio Acquisition Executive.”
“(7) Co-production arrangements.--The Secretary may consider co-production arrangements with trusted allies and partners to establish secondary production lines, subject to applicable technology security and foreign disclosure requirements and provided that such arrangements do not undermine required rights and deliverables for modular system interfaces and government integration. (8) Autonomous or semi-autonomous weapon systems.--The Secretary shall ensure that any autonomous or semi-autonomous weapon system is developed, verified, validated, tested, and fielded consistent with Department of Defense policy on autonomy in weapon systems, including appropriate levels of human judgment over the use of force, rigorous verification and validation, and realistic developmental and operational test and evaluation.”
“(4) Integration.--The Secretary shall ensure integration across stakeholders and may formalize partnerships between and among the Army, the Defense Innovation Unit, and the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment to accelerate capability integration. (5) Mitigation of risks.--The Secretary shall identify and mitigate long-lead risks, including test range access, airworthiness and safety certification processes, and supply- chain constraints associated with intermediate-range attritable munitions. (6) Transition considerations.--The Secretary shall consider funding and resource needs, requirements, and opportunities to transition evolving prototypes into programs of record or enduring portfolio elements, including strategies for transitioning from research, development, test, and evaluation to procurement.”
“(F) a deployment system capacity, power needs, and integration with existing logistics and fires platforms; (G) demonstrated producibility and scalable manufacturing, including identification of achievable monthly and annual production rates and the constraints to scaling; and (H) commercial off-the-shelf components and manufacturing processes to reduce cost and enable production at scale. (3) Authorities.--To the greatest extent practicable, the pathways tailored under subsection (a) shall leverage existing, alternative acquisition authorities and pathways, such as other transaction authority, rapid prototyping and rapid fielding pathways, middle tier acquisition pathways, and any new or modified acquisition methods available to the Army and identified by the Portfolio Acquisition Executive.”
“(2) Capabilities.--The characteristics of the capabilities referred to in paragraph (1) may include-- (A) operational ranges relevant to combatant command requirements; (B) low-cost munitions and the associated deployment and launch system, payloads, autonomy software, and associated support; (C) autonomy solutions and collaborative mission software enabling resilience to operate in denied, degraded, intermittent, and limited communications and Global Positioning System-denied environments; (D) interoperability and iterative characteristics that enable incremental development and field-swappable payloads and support competition for upgrades, sustainment, and follow-on production; (E) ability for deployment and operations with minimal specialized infrastructure, including in austere environments.”
“(a) Tailored Pathways.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Army, acting through the Army Portfolio Acquisition Executive for Fires (the ``Portolio Acquisition Executive''), shall tailor and employ existing acquisition pathways to accelerate the development, testing, evaluation, and procurement of non- traditional intermediate-range fires capabilities, including affordable intermediate-range one-way attack munitions. (b) Elements.-- (1) In general.--The pathways tailored under subsection (a) shall enable rapid development, testing, evaluation, and procurement of intermediate-range, affordable, attritable, and autonomous fires capabilities outside of traditional, legacy munitions.”
“Such a determination shall be provided to the applicant not later than 14 days after such applicant submits such Source Approval Request, along with a request from the Expedited Qualification Panel for any additional information needed from the application to complete the expedited qualification process. SEC. 872. TAILORED ACQUISITION PATHWAYS FOR NON-TRADITIONAL INTERMEDIATE-RANGE FIRES CAPABILITIES.”
“(c) Expedited Qualification.-- (1) Acceptance of certification.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), an Expedited Qualification Panel established under subsection (f) of such section 865 shall accept a certification [[Page H4830]] made under subsection (b) as the full engineering evaluation necessary for the review of a Source Approval Request by the Expedited Qualification Panel. (2) Additional evaluation.--An Expedited Qualification Panel may determine in writing that additional engineering evaluation of a Source Approval Request is required based on safety or mission criticality, novelty, or complexity of the item.”
“(b) Applicability.--The pathway established by subsection (a) shall apply in cases where-- (1) a qualified engineering designee has certified in writing that the engineering data included in the applicable Source Approval Request, including the technical data package, conforms to the applicable technical data package or reverse engineering standards; and (2) the applicant, or the relevant majority-owned manufacturing subsidiary of such applicant, holds a current AS9100 Rev D certification (or successor standard) issued by an accredited third-party certification body.”
“Upon making such a determination, the Secretary concerned shall submit to the congressional defense committees a written notification of the determination, including a detailed explanation of the security concerns and the reasons why those concerns cannot feasibly be addressed by redaction or other means.''. Subtitle E--Other Matters SEC. 871. ENHANCEMENT TO DEFENSE SUPPLY CHAIN RESILIENCE AND SECONDARY SOURCE QUALIFICATION. (a) Streamlined Acceptance.--In implementing section 865 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025 (Public Law 118-159; 10 U.S.C. 4811 note), the Secretary of Defense shall establish a pathway to streamline and consolidate the approval authority of the process established under such section for applications for Source Approval Requests submitted by the manufacturer of record for such capability.”
“``(2) The report required by this subsection shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex. ``(3) For each report, the Secretary concerned shall make a summary of the report publicly available on an appropriate website of the Department of Defense not later than 60 days after the date on which it is submitted to the congressional defense committees unless the Secretary concerned, in coordination with the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, determines that it is not feasible to make a summary publicly available due to classification or other security concerns.”
“``(C) 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-- ``(i) an identification of factors contributing to such failure; and ``(ii) a corrective action plan described in subsection (c), including any updates to a previously submitted corrective action plan. ``(D) 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.”
“``(d) Submission to Congress.--(1) 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 concerned, 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: ``(A) Findings from the assessments required by subsection (a). ``(B) 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)(A) The Secretary concerned shall consider seeking assistance from the Intellectual Property Ombudsman (established in accordance with section 3792 of this title) in developing and implementing the corrective action plan if questions or disputes arise involving intellectual property acquired or licensed (or proposed to be acquired or licensed) by the Department for a major weapon system or critical readiness item of supply assessed under subsection (a), including questions or disputes involving rights and obligations relating to the delivery of, or access to, such intellectual property. ``(B) If such questions or disputes are not resolved through assistance from the Intellectual Property Ombudsman, the Secretary concerned shall consider submitting a written request for expert mediation in accordance with section 3792a of this title.”
“``(2) In developing and executing the corrective action plan, the Secretary concerned shall, to the maximum extent practicable, first seek to resolve any identified deficiencies through existing contractual and statutory authorities, including-- ``(A) authorities described in subchapter I of chapter 275 of this title, to exercise an option, modify an existing contract or agreement, or enter into negotiations with a covered contractor for a covered system, including-- ``(i) providing the covered contractor with the opportunity to submit an alternative corrective action plan to identify, qualify and secure other sources for the required parts, services, software, and intellectual property; and ``(ii) entering into another contract or agreement, or modifying an existing contract or agreement, with the covered contractor to create, develop, and validate technical instructions and procedures; or ``(B) the use of alternative sources, including advanced manufacturing, reverse engineering, re-engineering, or fabrication of parts by Government personnel or covered Government support contractors (as defined in section 3775 of this title).”
“``(c) Corrective Action Plan.--(1) Upon completion of a root cause analysis under subsection (b), the Secretary concerned shall develop and maintain a corrective action plan to address deficiencies identified by such analysis.”
“``(b) Analysis of Deficiencies.--For any major weapon system or critical readiness item of supply that fails to meet the requirements and objectives described in subsection (a), the Secretary concerned shall evaluate the applicable life-cycle sustainment plan (in accordance with section 4324 of this title) or other sustainment plan, as appropriate. If the Secretary concerned determines such a plan does not effectively meet the requirements and objectives at an affordable cost, the Secretary shall conduct a root cause analysis to determine the reasons and to identify the specific parts, services, software, and corresponding intellectual property required to meet the requirements and objectives.”
“(2) The term ``portfolio acquisition executive'' has the meaning given in section 1732 of title 10, United States Code. (3) The term ``covered Government support contractor'' has the meaning given in section 3775 of title 10, United States Code. SEC. 867. PRIORITIZING MAINTENANCE, REPAIR, AND OVERHAUL FOR READINESS. Section 4323 of title 10, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: ``Sec. 4323. Continuous sustainment review and analysis ``(a) Review Required.--The Secretary of Defense shall require each Secretary concerned to conduct an assessment, updated not less frequently than annually, of the performance of each major weapon system and each critical readiness item of supply against established operational readiness requirements and the materiel readiness objectives under section 118(c) of this title.”
“(c) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the House of Representatives and the Senate an update on the assessment required by subsection (a). (d) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall preclude the Secretary of Defense from establishing a pay-to- print program before the submission of the report required in subsection (c). (e) Definitions.--In this section: (1) The term ``pay-to-print'' means a business approach where the customer pays a fee to access the original equipment manufacturer's digital design file for the purpose of printing a physical product using additive manufacturing processes.”
“(b) Elements.--In conducting the assessment required by subsection (a), the Secretary of Defense shall-- (1) identify such parts included in a program, project, or activity in a portfolio assigned under the leadership of a portfolio acquisition executive that could be produced by Government personnel or covered Government support contractors via additive manufacturing processes; (2) review technical standards, qualification processes, design templates, contracting methods, and policies and determine if any changes are necessary to ensure the feasibility of establishing the Pay-to-Print Program; (3) review methods of data access and methods to track the use of the data for the Pay-to-Print Program, and identify any lessons learned or best practices that could be implemented for the Pay-to-Print Program; (4) identify funding authorities and mechanisms necessary to establish the Pay-to-Print program; and (5) identify any other considerations for the implementation of the Pay-to-Print Program, as determined by the Secretary.”
“(a) Assessment.--The Secretary of Defense shall assess the feasibility and utility of establishing a Department of Defense-wide program to be known as the ``Pay-to-Print Program'' for the purposes of-- (1) increasing the availability of parts in any supply chains of a weapon system of the Department of Defense; (2) reducing manufacturing time or costs of such parts; and (3) increasing the ability to rapidly scale production of such parts.”
“(d) Responsibilities of Product Support Managers.--Section 1733(d) of title 10, United States Code, is amended-- (1) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through (9) as paragraphs (5) through (10), respectively; (2) by redesignating the second paragraph (3) (relating to ``Adopting predictive analytics'') as paragraph (4); and (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph: ``(11) Maximizing the qualification, approval, integration, and adoption of advanced technologies and processes.''. SEC. 866. ASSESSMENT OF A PAY-TO-PRINT PROGRAM.”
“[[Page H4829]] (c) Responsibilities of Portfolio Acquisition Executives.-- Section 1732(c) of title 10, United States Code, is amended-- (1) in paragraph (7), by striking ``and'' at the end; (2) in paragraph (8), by striking the period at the end and inserting ``; and''; and (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph: ``(9) establish incentives for effective use by contractors of software-enabled solutions that expand the collection of decision-quality data to reduce unanticipated growth work during maintenance cycles or expedite the construction or procurement of capabilities.''.”
“(b) Life-cycle Sustainment Planning by Product Support Managers.--Section 4324(b)(2) of title 10, United States Code, is amended-- (1) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``and'' at the end; (2) in subparagraph (E), by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and (3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraphs: ``(F) maximize software-enabled solutions that reduce unanticipated growth work during maintenance cycles; and ``(G) maximize the use of consumption-based solutions as described in section 3605 of this title.''.”
“SOFTWARE ACCOUNTABILITY IMPROVEMENTS OVER LIFECYCLES. (a) Software Sustainment Framework.--Section 4324(b)(1) of title 10, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: ``(G) A software sustainment framework that-- ``(i) defines metrics for software-enabled elements, including patch currency, vulnerability remediation timelines, and version lifecycle status; and ``(ii) provides for periodic review of such metrics.''.”
“(b) Long-term Technical Data Needs.--Section 3774 of title 10, United States Code, is amended-- (1) in subsection (a)(1)-- (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``and'' at the end; (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period at the end and inserting ``; and''; and (C) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: ``(C) include in any contract solicitation for such a system or subsystem requirements relating to technical data and license rights necessary for sustainment of the system or subsystem.''; and (2) in subsection (b)-- (A) by redesignating paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) as paragraphs (3), (4), and (5) respectively; and (B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following: ``(2) be developed in accordance with the intellectual property management plan described in section 4324(b)(1)(D) of this title.''. SEC. 865.”
“(a) Intellectual Property Management Plan.--Section 4324(b)(1)(D) of title 10, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: ``(D) An intellectual property management plan for product support developed in accordance with section 3774 of this title, including-- ``(i) requirements for technical data, software, and modular open system approaches (as defined in section 4401 of this title); ``(ii) a method to obtain technical data and license rights necessary for maintenance, repair, and overhaul of the covered system before the Milestone B approval (or equivalent approval); and ``(iii) a method to satisfy all other aspects of sustainment for the covered system before the Milestone C approval (or equivalent approval) in accordance with the product support strategy described in subparagraph (A).''.”
“(2) Recommendations.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall also include recommendations by the Under Secretary to address any gaps in statute, regulation, or policy that undermine the Department's ability to access technical data necessary for maintenance and sustainment, asserting existing rights, or protecting interests in intellectual property, and any other recommendations the Under Secretary considers appropriate. SEC. 863. EXPANSION OF REVERSE ENGINEERING AUTHORITY FOR PROTOTYPE PROJECTS. Subsection (f)(5)(B) of section 4022 of title 10, United States Code, as redesignated by section 823, is amended by striking ``to address obsolescence''. SEC. 864. CLARIFICATIONS TO SUSTAINMENT PLANNING REQUIREMENTS FOR COVERED SYSTEMS.”
“(c) Annual Report.-- (1) In general.--Not later than March 1, 2028, and each of the next five years thereafter, the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment shall submit to the congressional defense committees an annual report on the effectiveness of the Intellectual Property Ombudsman established under section 3792 of title 10, United States Code, as inserted by this Act, and the mediation process established under section 3792a of title 10, United States Code, as inserted by this Act, on-- (A) encouraging prime contractors and subcontractors of the Department of Defense to quickly and equitably resolve disputes with the Department concerning intellectual property in order to address critical operational readiness issues; (B) encouraging contractors to leverage privately-funded innovation and offer their full range of relevant technologies when competing for and performing defense contracts; (C) improving clarity for both Department and contractor personnel regarding rights in technical data, computer software, and computer software documentation during the procurement process; (D) resolving data rights disputes more rapidly and collaboratively than through litigation, while protecting contractors' legitimate investments in privately funded innovation; and (E) expeditiously addressing the Department's national security, sustainment, and competitive procurement needs.”
“(b) Implementation.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall-- (1) implement sections 3792 and 3792a of title 10, United States Code, as inserted by this section; (2) provide a briefing to the congressional defense committees on the implementation of such sections; and (3) submit to the congressional defense committees an assessment of, and recommendations for, pay and compensation under current law to provide competitive compensation for the Intellectual Property Ombudsman established under section 3792 of title 10, United States Code, as inserted by this Act.”
“``(j) Definitions.--In this section-- ``(1) the term `covered contractor' includes a contractor or subcontractor; ``(2) the term `covered data' means technical data and computer software required to enable the Department of Defense or government authorized repair contractors performing under a support contract, to perform repair or maintenance actions on a covered system; ``(3) the term `covered system' means-- ``(A) a major defense acquisition program, as defined in section 4201 of this title; or ``(B) an acquisition program or project that is carried out using the rapid prototyping or rapid fielding 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 `non-deliverable access' means a model under which the contractor provides access to intellectual property, including any associated license agreements for such intellectual property; and ``(5) the term `subcontractor' includes a subcontractor at any tier.''.”
“``(2) Each member of the panel shall-- ``(A) sign a nondisclosure agreement, as appropriate, to protect proprietary or nonpublic data; ``(B) access and use proprietary or nonpublic data furnished to the panel only for the purposes of the mediation; ``(C) take all reasonable steps to protect proprietary and nonpublic data furnished to the panel; and ``(D) not use proprietary or nonpublic data furnished to the panel to compete for Government or nongovernment contracts.”
“``(C) If the Secretary approves the recommendation, the recommendation shall be binding on the covered contractor and the Department, subject to the availability of appropriations. The parties shall memorialize the recommendation in a settlement agreement, as described in paragraph (2). To the extent the recommendation does not reach a full resolution of the dispute, paragraph (3) shall apply. ``(i) Confidentiality; Protection of Information.--(1) The mediation shall be conducted in accordance with section 574 of title 5.”
“3771 note) and an insufficiency was identified under subsection (d) of such section. ``(B) Such a recommendation-- ``(i) shall ensure release rights consistent with commercially reasonable terms and conditions (subject to later definitized consideration to reflect development at private expense); and ``(ii) may include a right to release to a covered government support contractor (as defined in section 3775 of this title)-- ``(I) subject to a prohibition that the covered government support contractor to which the data is released may not further release, disclose, or use the covered data beyond the purpose for which it was released; and ``(II) subject to notice by the contracting officer to the covered contractor of any such release.”
“``(4) In a case in which the request to initiate the mediation regarding a contract entered into after the date of the enactment of this section was made by the Department and no resolution is reached, the following shall apply: ``(A) The panel may recommend to the Secretary of Defense that the covered contractor with rights in the subject covered data be required to provide non-deliverable access to such covered data if-- ``(i) the panel finds that access to such covered data is necessary-- ``(I) to address a critical operational requirement; ``(II) to meet a critical materiel readiness objective for a major weapon system (as established in accordance with section 118 of this title); or ``(III) to address a shortfall in a critical readiness item of supply (as defined in section 4324 of this title) or recurring insufficiency of supply that the responsible contractor has failed to remedy in response to a corrective action plan developed in accordance with section 4323 of this title; and ``(ii) the requirement for such covered data was reviewed under section 805 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 (10 U.S.C.”
“``(3) To the extent the parties do not reach a full resolution-- ``(A) either party may pursue any remedy otherwise available under chapter 71 of title 41 or other applicable law; and ``(B) the mediation shall not be deemed to have resolved the dispute for purposes of chapter 71 of title 41.”
“``(h) Effect of Mediation Settlement or Panel Recommendations.--(1) Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (4), the results of the mediation shall be advisory only and shall not be binding on either party. ``(2) To the extent the parties reach a resolution, the parties shall memorialize the resolution in a settlement agreement, which shall be binding upon the parties. Any such agreement shall-- ``(A) be executed by the contracting officer and an authorized representative of the covered contractor; ``(B) specifically reference the mediation; and ``(C) be incorporated into any applicable contract by modification.”
“``(6) An individual may not serve as a member of the panel if that individual has a financial interest in the outcome or any other conflict of interest that would undermine impartiality. ``(7) In a case in which there is a vacancy in the membership of the panel, a new member of the panel shall be selected as soon as practicable to fill the vacancy in accordance with paragraph (4). ``(g) Mediation Period.--The panel shall be established as soon as practicable and shall commence the mediation not later than 30 days after the date on which the panel is established, except to the extent the parties agree to a later date. The mediation shall end not later than 90 [[Page H4828]] days after the date on which the mediation commenced, except to the extent the parties agree to a later date.”
“``(4) Of the three members-- ``(A) one shall be selected by the covered contractor and shall have significant experience in intellectual property or data rights matters; ``(B) one shall be selected by the Department and shall have significant experience in intellectual property or data rights matters in government contracts, such as through service as a contracting officer, agency counsel, board of contract appeals judge, or Court of Federal Claims judge; and ``(C) one shall be selected by the other two members and shall serve as the panel chair. ``(5) If the question or dispute involves the valuation of intellectual property, the member selected under paragraph (4)(C) shall have significant experience with standard industry valuation techniques, including cost, market, and income.”
“``(f) Establishment of Panel.--(1) Mediation under the process established under subsection (a) shall be conducted by a panel established under this subsection. ``(2) The Secretary may use existing authorities, including those in paragraphs (2), (3), (4), and (6) of section 1707(d) of this title, to establish the panel. ``(3) The panel shall be composed of three members, each of whom shall be an individual with-- ``(A) at least 5 years of experience in alternative dispute resolution; and ``(B) demonstrated expertise in at least two of the following areas: intellectual property law, patent licensing, government contracts data rights, technical data classification, and software licensing.”
“``(d) Participation Is Voluntary.--Participation in the process established under subsection (a) shall be strictly voluntary, both on the part of the contracting officer and on the part of the covered contractor, except as provided in subsection (h). ``(e) Initiation and Participation.--(1) Within 10 days after receiving a request under this subsection, a party shall submit to the other party a written response either accepting or declining the request. ``(2) A party submitting a written request to initiate, or any written response accepting such a request, shall include facts supporting the position of the party that the requirements of paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (a) are met. ``(3) If the request to initiate is accepted, a panel shall be established under subsection (f) and mediation shall commence under subsection (g).”
“``(4) To the extent the intellectual property involves more than one covered contractor, any matters necessary to address the respective rights of the Government and each such contractor. ``(c) Availability and Effect.--The process established under subsection (a) shall be available whenever a question or dispute covered by subsection (a) has arisen, including before, during, or after a procurement and before, during, or after the administration of a contract. It shall be available without regard to, and without effect on, any other dispute resolution processes that may be available, and without tolling any periods or deadlines under any other dispute resolution processes or under any applicable statute of limitations.”
“``(b) Matters Addressed.--The process established under subsection (a) may be used to address any intellectual property matters relevant to the resolution of the question or dispute, including matters such as the following: ``(1) The scope, terms, or interpretation of any relevant agreement with respect to the intellectual property. ``(2) The scope of the rights acquired or licensed (or proposed to be acquired or licensed) by the Government in the intellectual property. ``(3) To the extent the Government's rights in intellectual property are insufficient, or perceived as insufficient, to meet the Department's identified requirement, any matters necessary to address the insufficiency.”
“``(k) Definitions.--In this section-- ``(1) the term `covered contractor' includes a contractor or subcontractor (or prospective contractor or subcontractor); and ``(2) the term `subcontractor' includes a subcontractor at any tier. ``Sec. 3792a. Rights in covered data: voluntary expert mediation ``(a) Establishment and Availability of Process.--The Secretary of Defense shall establish an expert mediation process under this section and shall make that process available to covered contractors and contracting officers to facilitate the resolution of questions or disputes related to covered data.”
“The statistical information shall be presented in an aggregated or anonymized format and shall include information on the number of requests, the nature of requests, the nature of the contractors (such as small business concerns), the disposition of the requests, and the number of days from receipt of request to final disposition of the request. ``(j) Reports to Congress.--On an annual basis, the Ombudsman shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report on the activities performed during the annual period covered by the report, including any recommendations for changes in law, regulation, policy, procedure, or practice that the Ombudsman considers appropriate.”
“``(h) Consultation.--The Assistant Secretary shall establish a mechanism for regular consultation with the defense industry, portfolio acquisition executives, program managers, product support managers, and other officials of the Department responsible for sustainment of defense systems regarding the utility and effectiveness of the Ombudsman function and emerging intellectual property issues. ``(i) Public Reporting of Statistics.--On an annual basis, the Ombudsman shall make publicly available a report providing statistical information on the assistance specified in subsection (e) that was provided to covered contractors during the annual period covered by the report.”
“``(3) A requirement to publish a copy of, or any other information with respect to, communications between a covered contractor and the Ombudsman shall not apply to the extent such copy (or portion thereof) or information would be subject to withholding from public disclosure under section 552 of title 5. ``(g) Inferences.--The decision of a covered contractor to request, or decline to request, assistance from the Ombudsman shall not give rise to any inference regarding the validity of the covered contractor's assertions related to intellectual property and shall not be disclosed or referenced in any validation challenge, litigation, or other legal proceeding.”
“``(f) Communications Between Contractor and Ombudsman; Confidentiality; Restrictions on Government.--(1) Any communication between a covered contractor and the Ombudsman, including the fact that such a communication occurred, shall be treated as confidential and shall not be disclosed to any person or entity that is not a party to the question or dispute or does not have an interest in the specific question or dispute without the consent of the covered contractor. ``(2) The Government shall not require a covered contractor to disclose any such communication and shall not use any such communication as a basis for evaluating a proposal, making an award, or challenging a restriction.”
“``(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the authority of the Ombudsman shall extend only to questions and disputes between covered contractors and the Department, and shall not extend to questions or disputes between or among covered contractors. ``(e) Nature of Guidance.--Guidance provided by the Ombudsman under this section-- ``(1) may include analyses, opinions, and recommendations; ``(2) shall be independent and neutral with respect to the covered contractor, the contracting officer, and the Government, and ``(3) shall be advisory only and not binding on the covered contractor, the contracting officer, or the Government.”