S.Amdt. 2097

SA 2097. Ms. ERNST submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by
her to the bill S. 4638, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year
2025 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy,
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

At the end of subtitle H of title X, add the following:

SEC. 10__. LIMITATION ON FEDERAL AGENCY CREDIT FOR MEETING
CONTRACTING GOALS.

Section 15(g) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 644(g))
is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(4) Limitation on credit for meeting contracting goals.--
``(A) Definitions.--In this paragraph--
``(i) the term `covered category of small business concern'
means--

``(I) a small business concern owned and controlled by
service-disabled veterans;
``(II) a qualified HUBZone small business concern;
``(III) a small business concern owned and controlled by
socially and economically disadvantaged individuals; or
``(IV) a small business concern owned and controlled by
women; and

``(ii) the term `credit' means the value of a prime
contract.
``(B) General rule.--A Federal agency may allocate credit
for a single prime contract awarded to a small business
concern not more than 2 times for purposes of demonstrating
compliance with the goals of the Federal agency established
under paragraph (2)(A).
``(C) Allocation of credit.--
``(i) First allocation.--The first allocation of credit
described in subparagraph (B) shall be applied towards the
goal of the Federal agency established under paragraph (2)(A)
for participation by small business concerns.
``(ii) Second allocation.--A second allocation of credit
described in subparagraph (B) shall be applied as follows:

``(I) If the prime contract was awarded as a sole-source
contract or through competition restricted to a covered
category of small business concern, the credit shall be
applied towards the goal of the Federal agency established
under paragraph (2)(A) for participation by the applicable
covered category of small business concern.
``(II) If the prime contract was not awarded as a sole-
source contract or through competition restricted to a
covered category of small business concern, the credit may
only be applied towards a single goal of the Federal agency
established under paragraph (2)(A), determined at the
election of the contracting officer, for participation by a
covered category of small business concern that is applicable
to the recipient of the prime contract, without regard to
whether the recipient of the prime contract qualifies as

[[Page S4299]]

more than 1 covered category of small business concern.

``(D) Rulemaking.--Not later than 180 days after the date
of enactment of this paragraph, the Administrator shall
promulgate regulations to carry out this paragraph.
``(E) Phase-in.--
``(i) In general.--This paragraph shall apply with respect
to the fourth fiscal year beginning after the date of
enactment of this paragraph, and each fiscal year thereafter.
``(ii) Interim scoring.--For the first, second, and third
full fiscal years beginning after the date of enactment of
this paragraph, the Administrator shall submit to each
Federal agency and to the Committee on Small Business and
Entrepreneurship of the Senate and the Committee on Small
Business of the House of Representatives an assessment of the
agency, providing--

``(I) an evaluation of whether the Federal agency met the
contracting goals under this subsection for the fiscal year;
and
``(II) an evaluation of whether the Federal agency would
have met the contracting goals under this subsection for the
fiscal year, if this paragraph had been in effect.

``(iii) Consultations.--The Administrator may consult with,
and make recommendations to, a Federal agency if the
evaluation under clause (ii)(II) identifies that the agency
would not have met the contracting goals under this
subsection, if this paragraph had been in effect.
``(iv) Public notice.--For the third full fiscal year
beginning after the date of enactment of this paragraph, the
Administrator shall also make the information in subclauses
(I) and (II) of clause (ii) available to the public.''.
______