[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5379 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 5379
To provide the Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security
with authority to attract highly qualified experts.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
August 7, 2026
Mr. Husted (for himself and Mr. Warner) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing,
and Urban Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide the Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security
with authority to attract highly qualified experts.
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 ``BIS Strategic Talent Recruitment to
Enhance National Guardrails for Technological Handling Act'' or the
``BIS STRENGTH Act''.
SEC. 2. APPOINTMENT OF HIGHLY QUALIFIED EXPERTS TO BUREAU OF INDUSTRY
AND SECURITY.
(a) In General.--The Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and
Security, in order to attract to the Bureau of Industry and Security
highly qualified experts in needed occupations (as determined by the
Under Secretary), may--
(1) conduct an annual study to identify specific gaps in
uncommon, special knowledge, skills, and expertise at the
Bureau that have been difficult to fill through the civil
service and constrain the Bureau's ability to effectively
fulfil the Bureau's mandate;
(2) notwithstanding any provision of section 3304 or
sections 3309 through 3318 of title 5, United States Code,
appoint personnel from outside the civil service (as defined in
section 2101 of title 5, United States Code) that have the
expertise identified pursuant to paragraph (1) to positions in
the Bureau; and
(3) prescribe the rates of basic pay for positions to which
employees are appointed under paragraph (2) at rates not in
excess of the maximum rate of basic pay authorized for senior-
level positions under section 5376 of title 5, United States
Code, as increased by locality-based comparability payments
under section 5304 of that title, notwithstanding any provision
of that title governing the rates of pay or classification of
employees in the executive branch.
(b) Limitation on Term of Appointment.--The service of an employee
under an appointment made pursuant to subsection (a) may not exceed 5
years.
(c) Limitation on Total Annual Compensation.--Notwithstanding any
other provision of this section or of section 5307 of title 5, United
States Code, no additional payments may be paid to an employee
appointed under subsection (a) in any calendar year if, or to the
extent that, the total annual compensation of the employee will exceed
the maximum amount of total annual compensation payable to the Vice
President under section 104 of title 3, United States Code.
(d) Limitation on Number of Employees.--The number of employees
appointed and retained by the Under Secretary under subsection (a)
shall not exceed 25 at any time.
(e) Report Required.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Under
Secretary shall submit to the committees specified in paragraph
(2) a report that includes--
(A) a list of areas in which the Under Secretary
has identified specific gaps in expertise pursuant to
subsection (a)(1);
(B) a description of the steps taken by the Under
Secretary to appoint personnel with expertise in such
areas from within the civil service during the period
specified in paragraph (3);
(C) the number of individuals appointed to the
Bureau of Industry and Security under the authority
provided by this section during the period specified in
paragraph (3);
(D) a description of the qualifications of such
individuals and their responsibilities during that
period;
(E) a description of the impact of such individuals
on carrying out the mission of the Bureau of Industry
and Security; and
(F) an assessment of the long-term staffing needs
of the Bureau of Industry and Security pertaining to
export controls, including those needs identified in
the course of carrying out this section.
(2) Committees specified.--The committees specified in this
paragraph are--
(A) the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban
Affairs and the Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and
(B) the Committee on Oversight and Government
Reform and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the
House of Representatives.
(3) Period specified.--The period specified in this
paragraph is--
(A) in the case of the first report required by
paragraph (1), the 180-day period preceding submission
of the report; and
(B) in the case of any subsequent report required
by paragraph (1), the 1-year period preceding
submission of the report.
(f) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be
construed to waive any requirement regarding--
(1) background investigations or qualifications of
applicants to positions with the Bureau of Industry and
Security; or
(2) compliance with applicable Federal ethics and conflict-
of-interest statutes and regulations.
(g) Termination.--
(1) In general.--The authority provided by this section
shall cease to be effective on the date that is 5 years after
the date of the enactment of this section.
(2) Savings provisions.--In the case of an employee who, on
the day before the termination date under paragraph (1), is
serving in a position pursuant to an appointment under
subsection (a)--
(A) the termination of the authority does not
terminate the employee's employment in that position
before the expiration of the lesser of--
(i) the period for which the employee was
appointed; or
(ii) the period to which the employee's
service is limited under subsection (b),
including any extension made under paragraph
(2) of that subsection before the termination
of the authority; and
(B) the rate of basic pay prescribed for the
position may not be reduced as long as the employee
continues to serve in the position without a break in
service.
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