[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2867 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2867

  To improve the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps programs, to 
  authorize an expansion of their presence in low-income, rural, and 
    underserved areas of the United States, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 16, 2018

  Mr. Wicker introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
              referred to the Committee on Armed Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To improve the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps programs, to 
  authorize an expansion of their presence in low-income, rural, and 
    underserved areas of the United States, and for other purposes.

    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 ``JROTC Opportunities for 
Transformational Change Act'' or ``JROTC Act''.

SEC. 2. ENHANCEMENT OF AUTHORITIES IN CONNECTION WITH JUNIOR RESERVE 
              OFFICERS' TRAINING CORPS PROGRAMS.

    (a) Authority To Convert Otherwise Closing Units to National 
Defense Cadet Corps Program Units.--If the Secretary of a military 
department is notified by a local educational agency of the intent of 
the agency to close its Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) 
unit, the Secretary shall offer the agency the option of converting the 
program to a National Defense Cadet Corps (NDCC) program unit in lieu 
of closing the unit.
    (b) Flexibility in Administration of Instructors.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretaries of the military 
        departments shall undertake initiatives designed to promote 
        flexibility in the hiring and compensation of instructors for 
        the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under the 
        jurisdiction of such Secretaries.
            (2) Elements.--The initiatives undertaken pursuant to this 
        subsection may provide for one or more of the following:
                    (A) Termination of the requirement for a waiver as 
                a condition of the hiring of well-qualified non-
                commissioned officers with a bachelor's degree for 
                senior instructor positions within the Junior Reserve 
                Officers' Training Corps.
                    (B) Specification of a single instructor as the 
                minimum number of instructors required to found and 
                operate a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps unit.
                    (C) Authority for Junior Reserve Officers' Training 
                Corps instructors to undertake school duties, in 
                addition to Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps 
                duties, at small schools.
                    (D) Authority for the payment of instructor 
                compensation for a limited number of Junior Reserve 
                Officers' Training Corps instructors on a 10-month per 
                year basis rather than a 12-month per year basis.
                    (E) Such other actions as the Secretaries of the 
                military departments consider appropriate.
    (c) Flexibility in Allocation and Use of Travel Funding.--The 
Secretaries of the military departments shall take appropriate actions 
to provide so-called regional directors of the Junior Reserve Officers' 
Training Corps programs located at remote rural schools enhanced 
discretion in the allocation and use of funds for travel in connection 
with Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps activities.
    (d) Standardization of Program Data.--The Secretary of Defense 
shall take appropriate actions to standardize the data collected and 
maintained on the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps programs in 
order to facilitate and enhance the collection and analysis of such 
data. Such actions shall include a requirement for the use of the 
National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) identification code for 
each school with a unit under a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps 
program in order to facilitate identification of such schools and their 
units under the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps programs.
    (e) Authority for Additional Units.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretaries of the military 
        departments may, using amounts authorized to be appropriated by 
        paragraph (2), establish an aggregate of not more than 100 
        units under the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps 
        programs in low-income and rural areas of the United States and 
        areas of the United States currently underserved by the Junior 
        Reserve Officers' Training Corps programs.
            (2) Funding.--There is hereby authorized to be appropriated 
        for fiscal year 2019 for the Department of Defense amounts as 
        follows:
                    (A) For Operation and Maintenance, Army, 
                $3,140,000, with the amount available for the Junior 
                Reserve Officers' Training Corps program of the Army.
                    (B) For Operation and Maintenance, Navy, $950,000, 
                with the amount available for the Junior Reserve 
                Officers' Training Corps program of the Navy.
                    (C) For Operation and Maintenance, Air Force, 
                $1,000,000, with the amount available for the Junior 
                Reserve Officers' Training Corps program of the Air 
                Force.
                    (D) For Operation and Maintenance, Marine Corps, 
                $390,000, with the amount available for the Junior 
                Reserve Officers' Training Corps program of the Marine 
                Corps.
                    (E) For Military Personnel, $1,220,000, of which--
                            (i) $500,000 is for the Army for the Junior 
                        Reserve Officers' Training Corps program of the 
                        Army;
                            (ii) $270,000 is for the Navy for the 
                        Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program 
                        of the Navy;
                            (iii) $380,000 is for the Air Force for the 
                        Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program 
                        of the Air Force; and
                            (iv) $70,000 is for the Marine Corps for 
                        the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps 
                        program of the Marine Corps.
            (3) Supplement not supplant.--The amounts authorized to be 
        appropriated for fiscal year 2019 for the Department of Defense 
        by this subsection are in addition to any other amounts 
        authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2019 for the 
        Department under any other provision of law.
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