S.Amdt. 937

SA 937. Mr. LANKFORD submitted an amendment intended to be proposed
by him to the bill S. 2226, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year
2024 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 D of title VIII, add the following:

SEC. 849. COMPETITION OF SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS FOR
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE CONTRACTS.

(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall
issue guidance ensuring that covered small businesses are
better able to compete for Department of Defense contracts.
(b) Exemptions From Capability Requirements.--
(1) Waiver authority.--The guidance issued under subsection
(a) shall provide that the Department of Defense may waive
capability requirements, including those described in
paragraph (2), to allow a covered small business that does
not otherwise meet such requirements to bid on a contract,
provided that it makes the certification described under
paragraph (3).
(2) Types of waivers.--The waivers referred to in paragraph
(1) are as follows:
(A) Evaluation of past performance.--A waiver to ensure
that the lack of prior performance history of a covered small
business does not adversely affect its opportunity to receive
a contract award.
(B) Training requirements.--A waiver allowing a covered
small business to meet employee training requirements after
the award of a Department of Defense contract.
(C) Facility security assessments.--A waiver allowing a
covered small business to meet facility security requirements
after the award of a Department of Defense contract.
(D) Other.--Any other waiver determined appropriate by the
Secretary of Defense and provided for in the guidance issued
under subsection (a).
(3) Certification requirement.--In order to qualify for a
waiver under paragraph (1), a covered small business shall
certify that it will be able to meet the exempted capability
requirements within 180 days after the contract award date.
The certification shall include a detailed project and
financial plan outlining the tasks to be completed,
milestones to be achieved, and resources required.
(4) Monitoring and compliance.--
(A) In general.--The contracting officer for a contract
awarded pursuant to a waiver under paragraph (1) shall
closely monitor the

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contract performance of the covered small business to ensure
that sufficient progress is being made and that any issues
that arise are promptly addressed.
(B) Failure to meet capability requirements.--If a covered
small business awarded a contract pursuant to a waiver under
paragraph (1) fails to meet the requirements promised in the
certification required under paragraph (3) within 180 days,
the covered small business shall be subject to
disqualification from consideration for future contracts of
similar scope pursuant to ``Termination for Default''
provisions under subpart 49.4 of the Federal Acquisition
Regulation.
(c) Covered Small Business Defined.--In this section, the
term ``covered small business'' means--
(1) a nontraditional defense contractor, as that term is
defined in section 3014 of title 10, United States Code;
(2) a small business concern, as that term is defined in
section 3(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632(a));
and
(3) any other contractor that has not been awarded a
Department of Defense contract in the five-year period
preceding the solicitation of sources by the Department of
Defense.
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