Short title

This Act may be cited as the

National Security Professionals Act of 2008

Findings

Congress finds the following: (1)In order to enhance the national security of the United States, including preventing, protecting against, responding to, and recovering from natural and manmade disasters, such as acts of terrorism, as well as to achieve greater agency integration for the projection of American power, it is the policy of the United States to promote the education, training, and interagency experience of current and future professionals in national security positions in Federal agencies. (2)Improvised interagency responses in the face of imminent threats or during a response to a national emergency result in mistakes, mismanagement, and waste. (3)Effective national security interagency operations require a transformation of national security education, training, and interagency experience in order to produce an interagency cadre of able national security professionals with specific education, training, and interagency experience. (4)Professional requirements and staffing needs relating to national security differ for every level of government, as well as among Federal agencies; therefore, the career development of national security professionals will vary between and within departments and agencies. (5)Today, there is no formal coordinated system for developing the skills and experience needed to fulfill this need.

Definitions

For purposes of this Act— (1)the term employee has the meaning given such term by section 2105 of title 5, United States Code; (2)the term national security professional means an employee holding a national security position; (3)the term national security position means a position, the duties and responsibilities of which include planning, coordinating, and executing missions in support of national security objectives, such as positions across multiple departments and agencies in— (A)the National Counterterrorism Center; or (B)a provincial reconstruction team; and (4)the term National Security Career Development Program or Program refers to the program developed and implemented under this Act.

National Security Career Development Program

(a)

Establishment

(1)

In general

The President shall establish a program for the development of national security professionals, which shall be known as the National Security Career Development Program. The Program shall set forth a framework that shall provide national security professionals access to integrated education, training, and professional experience interagency opportunities for the purpose of enhancing their mission-related knowledge, skills, and experience, and thereby improve their capability to safeguard the security of the Nation. Such interagency career development opportunities shall be provided across Federal agencies, levels of Government, and national security functions, as appropriate. (2)

Participating departments and agencies

The departments and agencies participating in the Program shall include the Department of State, the Department of the Treasury, the Department of Defense, the Department of Justice, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Labor, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Energy, the Department of Education, the Department of Homeland Security, the Office of Management and Budget, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the United States Agency for International Development, and all intelligence agencies. (b)

Appointment and advancement

(1)

Experienced personnel

Departments and agencies participating in the Program shall encourage the appointment of personnel with a variety of national security experiences from within and outside the Federal Government for national security positions. (2)

Qualifications

Departments and agencies participating in the Program shall identify national security qualifications for appointment and advancement opportunities. Agency job announcements for national security positions shall solicit applications from the widest population authorized by law and regulation on the date of the solicitation. (c)

Certification

The Program shall establish policies to identify a threshold of interagency experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities required to obtain a national security interagency certification as a national security professional. The certification shall be a consideration for promotion of national security professionals holding career appointments. (d)

Funding

Implementation of the Program shall be subject to the availability of appropriations. The President’s budget request shall include funding requirements to establish and maintain a National Security Career Development Program to include an end strength float enabling agencies to continue day-to-day functions while enabling selected agency national security professionals to participate in career development activities which require temporary absences from their duty positions.

Program components

(a)

In general

The National Security Career Development Program shall include— (1)a rigorous and effective set of educational opportunities for national security professionals; (2)training that refreshes or enhances a national security professional’s expertise in planning, coordinating, and executing national security missions through instruction, drills, and exercises that take into account the full spectrum of threats and hazards that comprise America’s 21st century risk environment; and (3)opportunities for professional interagency experience, as described in subsection (b). (b)

Professional interagency experience

In order to carry out subsection (a)(3), the Program shall include opportunities for inter-governmental, interagency, and inter-office assignments, fellowships, and exchanges (including with non-governmental organizations, to the extent appropriate), in order to achieve the following: (1)Enable national security professionals to understand the roles, responsibilities, and cultures of other organizations and disciplines involved in national security. (2)Promote the exchange of ideas and practices among national security professionals. (3)Build trust and familiarity among national security professionals with differing perspectives. (4)Minimize obstacles to coordination in the face of a national security threat or emergency. (c)

Incentives

The Program shall link career advancement or other incentives for national security professionals to participation in rotational or temporary detail interagency assignments to include: (1)Linkage of interagency assignments in national security positions to accelerated promotion consideration for national security professionals to grades GS–14 and GS–15 of the General Schedule (or their equivalent). (2)Eligibility of national security professionals holding a position in grade GS–13 or GS–14 of the General Schedule (or the equivalent) who complete an interagency assignment for immediate step increases or other incentives. (d)

Waivers; grandfathering; political appointees

(1)

Waivers

The Program may, with respect to any incentive under subsection (c) that requires prior Government service or experience, waive such requirement, in the case of individuals who are able to demonstrate that they possess similar or equivalent service or experience from work in the private sector or other employment outside the Federal Government. (2)

Grandfathering

For the purpose of promotion to Senior Executive Service (or equivalent) positions, Federal agencies may grandfather personnel who, as of the date of the enactment of this Act, have a career appointment in grade GS–14 or GS–15 of the General Schedule (or the equivalent), and who, as determined by the head of the Federal agency involved, have acquired the necessary knowledge, skills, and aptitudes required for promotion to the Senior Executive Service (or equivalent). (3)

Political appointees

The Program shall establish appropriate career development programs for political appointees in national security positions.

Reporting requirements

(a)

Initial report

Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to each House of the Congress a written report describing, and setting forth the details of an implementation plan for, the National Security Career Development Program. (b)

Annual reports

The President shall submit to Congress each year, at the time that the President's budget is submitted to Congress that year under section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, a report detailing the status of the implementation plan described in subsection (a).