[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3695 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3695

   To establish a pilot and demonstration program in New Jersey and 
elsewhere to improve security on military installations and to improve 
         the quality of defense contractors and subcontractors.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            December 8, 2003

  Mr. Smith of New Jersey (for himself, Mr. Saxton, and Mr. LoBiondo) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                             Armed Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To establish a pilot and demonstration program in New Jersey and 
elsewhere to improve security on military installations and to improve 
         the quality of defense contractors and subcontractors.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Military Base Security Act''.

SEC. 2. PILOT AND DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM FOR MILITARY INSTALLATIONS IN 
              NEW JERSEY.

    (a) Pilot and Demonstration Program.--The Secretary of Defense, 
acting through the Office of the Secretary of Defense, shall develop a 
pilot and demonstration program in the State of New Jersey, and in one 
or more additional States or regions selected by the Secretary, to 
develop and explore policies, procedures, and practices that improve 
the level of security, reliability, quality, and economic efficiency of 
defense contractors and subcontractors used for construction, 
renovation, maintenance, and repair services on military installations.
    (b) Program Goals and Requirements.--The goals and requirements of 
the pilot and demonstration program developed under subsection (a) 
shall be to identify, develop, and implement strategies that--
            (1) minimize risks to national security caused by the 
        employment of illegal or improperly documented contract workers 
        on military installations;
            (2) ensure that all necessary and reasonable precautions 
        are taken by the Department of Defense and its contractors and 
        subcontractors to conduct effective background checks and other 
        appropriate security clearance procedures of contract 
        employees, including management employees, professionals, craft 
        labor personnel, and administrative personnel, to avoid the 
        employment of persons who may pose a risk to military 
        installations or otherwise present a threat to national 
        security; and
            (3) promote greater contracting opportunities for 
        contractors and subcontractors offering effective, reliable 
        staffing plans to perform defense contracts that ensure all 
        contract personnel employed for such projects, including 
        management employees, professional employees, craft labor 
        personnel, and administrative personnel, are lawful residents 
        or persons properly authorized to be employed in the United 
        States and properly qualified to perform services required 
        under the contract.
    (c) Requirements for Security Procedures.--In developing the pilot 
and demonstration program under subsection (a), the Secretary of 
Defense shall review existing policies, procedures, and practices 
pertaining to security clearances required for access to military 
installations, including national agency checks, background 
investigations and other security clearance procedures. The Secretary 
also shall--
            (1) identify potential weaknesses and areas for improvement 
        in existing security policies, procedures, and practices;
            (2) develop and implement reforms to strengthen, upgrade, 
        and improve security clearance policies, procedures, and 
        practices of the Department of Defense and its contractors and 
        subcontractors;
            (3) utilize the social security number verification 
        service, maintained and operated by the Social Security 
        Administration, to review social security numbers of employees 
        of contractors and subcontractors employed on military 
        installations and detect the use of false or fraudulent 
        identification documents used by contract employees;
            (4) cooperate with appropriate Federal, State and local 
        agencies and authorities, including the Secretary of Homeland 
        Security, the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, the New Jersey 
        Motor Vehicles Commission, and the New Jersey State Police, as 
        well as local communities, to detect and prosecute the use of 
        false or fraudulent identification documents by contract 
        employees on military installations;
            (5) impose maximum sanctions, including criminal 
        prosecution, civil penalties, and debarment against any 
        employer which willfully or recklessly violates immigration 
        laws in connection with persons employed for defense contracts; 
        and
            (6) review and analyze reforms developed pursuant to this 
        subsection to identify for purposes of national implementation 
        those which are most efficient and effective.
    (d) Requirements for Contracting and Procurement Procedures.--In 
developing the pilot and demonstration program, the Secretary of 
Defense shall review existing policies, procedures, and practices 
pertaining to manner in which it procures and contracts for 
construction, renovation, maintenance, and repair services for military 
installations. The Secretary also shall--
            (1) expand, to the greatest extent practicable, the use by 
        the Department of Defense of contracting by competitive 
        proposals, regulated under Part 15 of the Federal Acquisition 
        Regulation, for construction, renovation, maintenance, and 
        repair services for military installations;
            (2) identify, develop, and implement reforms in the 
        competitive proposal contracting process of the Department of 
        Defense to improve the level of security, reliability, and 
        economic efficiency of contractors and subcontractors used for 
        construction, renovation, maintenance, and repair services on 
        military installations, including--
                    (A) provision in contract solicitations and request 
                for proposal documents to require significant weight or 
                credit be allocated to reliable, effective workforce 
                security programs offered by prospective contractors 
                and subcontractors, which provide security clearance 
                procedures, background checks, and other measures for 
                contract employees, beyond the minimum security 
                requirements imposed by the Secretary of Defense, which 
                serve to promote security on military installations; 
                and
                    (B) provision in contract solicitations and request 
                for proposal documents to require significant weight or 
                credit be allocated reliable, effective project 
                staffing plans offered by prospective contractors and 
                subcontractors, which specify for all contract 
                employees, including management employees, 
                professionals, and craft labor personnel, the skills, 
                training, and qualifications of such persons and the 
                labor supply sources and hiring plans or procedures 
                used for employing such persons; and
            (3) review and analyze reforms developed pursuant to this 
        subsection to identify for purposes of national implementation 
        those which are most efficient and effective.
    (e) Implementation.--The Secretary of Defense shall begin operation 
of the pilot and demonstration program required under this Act not 
later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (f) Reporting Requirements.--For purposes of monitoring and 
evaluating the progress of the pilot and demonstration program required 
under this section, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the 
Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and House of 
Representatives--
            (1) an initial report, not later than 90 days after 
        operation of the pilot and demonstration program begins, 
        setting forth the reforms instituted and other progress made in 
        the implementation of the pilot and demonstration program 
        required under this section;
            (2) biannual reports, setting forth in detail the reforms 
        instituted and other progress made in the implementation of the 
        program; and
            (3) a final report, not later than 2 years after operation 
        of the pilot and demonstration program begins, setting forth a 
        review of the pilot and demonstration program and 
        recommendations on possible nationwide implementation of the 
        program.
    (g) Definition.--In this section, the term ``military 
installation'' means a base, camp, post, station, yard, center, 
homeport facility for any ship, or other activity under the 
jurisdiction of the Department of Defense, including any leased 
facility, which is located within any of the several States, the 
District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, American Samoa, 
the Virgin Islands, or Guam. Such term does not include any facility 
used primarily for civil works, rivers and harbors projects, or flood 
control projects.
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