[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 81 (Monday, June 14, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H3900-H3902]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   PROVIDING RAPID ACQUISITION AUTHORITY TO SECRETARY OF DEFENSE TO 
                     RESPOND TO COMBAT EMERGENCIES

  Mr. HUNTER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 4323) to amend title 10, United States Code, to provide 
rapid acquisition authority to the Secretary of Defense to respond to 
combat emergencies.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 4323

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

     SECTION 1. RAPID ACQUISITION AUTHORITY TO RESPOND TO COMBAT 
                   EMERGENCIES.

       (a) In General.--Chapter 141 of title 10, United States 
     Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new 
     section:

     ``Sec. 2410p. Rapid acquisition authority to respond to 
       combat emergencies

       ``(a) Rapid Acquisition Authority.--The Secretary of 
     Defense may rapidly acquire, in accordance with this section, 
     equipment needed by a combatant commander to eliminate a 
     combat capability deficiency that has resulted in combat 
     fatalities.
       ``(b) Process for Rapid Acquisition.--Not later than 30 
     days after the date of the enactment of this section, the 
     Secretary of Defense shall develop a process for the rapid 
     acquisition authority provided by subsection (a) and submit 
     to Congress a detailed explanation of the process, including 
     procedures to be followed in carrying out the process. The 
     process shall provide for the following:
       ``(1) A requirement that the process may be used only to 
     acquire the minimum amount of equipment needed until the 
     needs of the combatant commander can be fulfilled under 
     existing acquisition statutes, policies, directives, and 
     regulations.
       ``(2) A goal of awarding a contract for the equipment 
     within 15 days after receipt of a request from a commander.
       ``(3) In a case in which the equipment cannot be acquired 
     without an extensive delay, a requirement for an interim 
     solution to minimize the combat capability deficiency and 
     combat fatalities until the equipment can be acquired.
       ``(4) Waiver of the applicability of all policies, 
     directives, and regulations related to--
       ``(A) the establishment of the requirement for the 
     equipment;
       ``(B) the research, development, test, and evaluation of 
     the equipment; and
       ``(C) the solicitation and selection of sources, and the 
     award of the contract, for procurement of the equipment.
       ``(5) Such other procedures or requirements as the 
     Secretary considers appropriate.
       ``(c) Waiver of Certain Statutes.--For purposes of 
     exercising the authority provided by subsection (a) with 
     respect to equipment, laws relating to the following shall 
     not apply:
       ``(A) The establishment of the requirement for the 
     equipment.
       ``(B) The research, development, test, and evaluation of 
     the equipment.
       ``(C) The solicitation and selection of sources, and the 
     award of the contract, for procurement of the equipment.
       ``(d) Limitations.--The rapid acquisition authority 
     provided by subsection (a) may be used only--
       ``(1) after the Secretary of Defense, without delegation, 
     determines in writing that there exists a combat capability 
     deficiency that has resulted in combat fatalities; and
       ``(2) to acquire equipment in an amount aggregating not 
     more than $100,000,000 during a fiscal year.
       ``(e) Source of Funds.--For acquisitions under this section 
     to be made during any fiscal year, the Secretary may use any 
     funds made available to the Department of Defense for that 
     fiscal year.
       ``(f) Notification to Congress After Each Use of 
     Authority.--The Secretary of Defense shall notify the 
     congressional defense committees within 15 days after each 
     use of the authority provided by subsection (a). Each such 
     notice shall identify the equipment to be acquired, the 
     amount to be expended for such acquisition, and the source of 
     funds for such acquisition.
       ``(g) Combatant Commander.--In this section, the term 
     `combatant commander' means the commander of a unified 
     combatant command with authority for the conduct of 
     operations in a specific area of responsibility or who 
     otherwise has authority to conduct operations at the 
     direction of the President or Secretary of Defense.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of such chapter is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new item:

``2410p. Rapid acquisition authority to respond to combat 
              emergencies.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Hunter) and the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Larsen) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California (Mr. Hunter).


                             General Leave

  Mr. HUNTER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks 
on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. HUNTER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, on April 21, 2004, the Committee on Armed Services held 
an open hearing on the performance of the DOD acquisition process in 
support of force protection for combat forces, an area which is of 
extreme importance to all Americans, and especially to our 138,000-plus 
troops serving in Iraq and the troops who are serving in Afghanistan, 
and obviously other places around the world where our forces are 
exposed to terrorist operations and the dangers thereof.
  Mr. Speaker, as a result of the testimony that we received in this 
hearing, it became very clear that under the special circumstances, a 
change in the acquisition process is required. When a combat commander 
submits an urgent requirement for equipment that directly relates to 
preventing combat fatalities, it should not take 6 months to process 
the commander's request. Because of the oversight role that Congress 
plays and of course the interest that any administration, the executive 
branch, has in the acquisition process and the many billions of dollars 
which flow through the military acquisition process, it is 
understandable that our acquisition process is rather slow moving.
  There are combatant requirements that are set up by the field 
commanders. Those are scrubbed by a number of requirements, bodies, 
including the joint chiefs, and the service that attends that 
particular area. There is a competitive bidding process which carries 
with it its own appeals process. And as a result of that, when we have 
a requirement that emanates from field conditions, from a threat that 
is posed by the enemy on the battlefield, it can take months and months 
and months before America can respond to that particular challenge.
  Right now we are seeing some of that, and we are seeing rapid 
tactical changes by our adversaries in the field in Afghanistan and 
Iraq and other places. Very simply, Mr. Speaker, we have to be able to 
react quickly. We need to be able to come up with not necessarily the 
100 percent solution, but maybe the 80 percent solution while we are 
researching and developing and putting out contracts in this very 
measured pace that the present acquisition system takes.

[[Page H3901]]

  So the trust that is given to the people of the United States 
Congress by the soldiers and families is that we provide them with the 
necessary systems and equipment to accomplish their mission at any 
time, anywhere in the world. In keeping this trust, we must be honest 
in our assessment of whether we are doing everything in our power to 
not only give them everything that they need to accomplish their 
mission but we give it to them when they need it, in other words, to be 
able to act quickly to tactical changes by our adversaries.
  H.R. 4323 does that. It says that a combatant commander makes a 
request from the field and that request emanates from combat 
fatalities, that the contract award should not take more than 15 days 
from the time that urgent request is made from the field. This is not 
intended to knock out the normal acquisition process. It is intended as 
a quick-start bridge to the normal acquisition process that gets 
something in the field quickly, whether it is armor for our troops, new 
types of munitions, new types of surveillance, but gets something in 
the field quickly that will have an immediate salutary effect on the 
casualty rate.
  As I said before, we do not need to have the 100 percent solution. In 
many cases, the 80 percent solution would draw down that casualty rate 
very substantially. This is a very narrow, but important, piece of 
legislation. It is the right thing to do for our troops.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LARSEN of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today in favor of H.R. 4323, a bill 
to provide rapid acquisition authority to the Secretary of Defense to 
respond to combat emergencies. This is a bill that passed the Committee 
on Armed Services under the leadership of the gentleman from California 
(Mr. Hunter) last month on a voice vote, and I urge its support here.
  I might also note that this is just one other example of the laser-
like focus of the gentleman from California (Mr. Hunter) on getting the 
kinds of tools and resources our troops in the field need. This is one 
example of that. We have seen it in other subcommittee hearings, the 
gentleman coming to encourage the Department of Defense to do all it 
can as quickly as possible to get our troops what they need as quickly 
as possible.
  We all know the importance of body armor and armored vehicles for our 
soldiers in Iraq. These capabilities save lives, but the Department's 
acquisition system often is not agile enough to get these capabilities 
in the field when we need them. In fact, a recent hearing in the 
Committee on Armed Services showed the acquisition system is in many 
ways badly broken when it comes to getting our troops what they need 
when they need it.
  This bill will go a long way to meeting the deficiencies in the 
current system. It requires the Secretary of Defense to develop a 
process within 30 days of enactment for the rapid acquisition of 
equipment needed by a combatant commander to eliminate a deficiency 
that has resulted in combat fatalities.

                              {time}  1600

  The goal is to award the contract within 15 days or to provide an 
interim solution if there will be a substantial delay.
  To get these capabilities to our troops in the field fast, we allow 
the department to waive acquisition laws relating to competition. This 
is something we should take seriously given the problems in Iraq and 
elsewhere with the lack of competition for contracts. But the authority 
in this bill is narrowly drawn and is used to prevent the deaths of our 
soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines. There is congressional 
notification so that we can watch how the authority is used.
  All of us in Congress appreciate the tremendous sacrifice of our 
servicemen and women. We are providing enormous amounts of money to 
ensure that they have the best training and equipment they need to 
complete their missions in Iraq, Afghanistan and around the world. This 
authority will ensure that the department can get that equipment to 
them as quickly as we should and fix the deficiencies in the 
acquisition system. We owe that to our troops. I urge support for this 
bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. HUNTER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Once again I want to thank the distinguished gentleman from 
Washington for his leadership on this bill, also, and all the Members, 
Republican and Democrat, who worked on this. This is truly a bipartisan 
product.
  Mr. Speaker, I include for printing in the Congressional Record two 
letters: One is a letter from the Committee on Government Reform 
waiving jurisdiction over H.R. 4323 and the second letter is my 
response dated today.

                                         House of Representatives,


                               Committee on Government Reform,

                                     Washington, DC, May 23, 2004.
     Hon. Duncan Hunter,
     Chairman, Committee on Armed Services, 2120 Rayburn House 
         Office Building, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman: On May 11, 2004, we introduced H.R. 4323, a 
     bill to provide rapid acquisition authority to the Secretary 
     of Defense to respond to combat emergencies. The Committee on 
     Armed Services ordered this bill reported on May 12. As you 
     know, H.R. 4323 contains provisions within the jurisdiction 
     of the Committee on Government Reform under Rule X of the 
     Rules of the House of Representatives--specifically, the 
     subsection entitled ``Waiver of Certain Statutes.''
       Because of our desire to move this legislation 
     expeditiously, I will waive consideration of the bill by the 
     Committee on Government Reform. By agreeing to waive this 
     consideration of the bill, the Committee does not waive its 
     jurisdiction over H.R. 4323. In addition, the Committee 
     reserves its authority to seek conferees on any provisions of 
     the bill that are within its jurisdiction during any House-
     Senate conference that may be convened on this legislation. I 
     ask your commitment to support any request for conferees by 
     the Committee on H.R. 4323 or similar legislation.
       I request that you include this letter in the Congressional 
     Record during consideration of the legislation on the House 
     floor. Thank you for your attention to these matters.
           Sincerely,
                                                        Tom Davis,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

                                         House of Representatives,


                                  Committee on Armed Services,

                                    Washington, DC, June 14, 2004.
     Hon. Thomas Davis,
     Chairman, Committee on Government Reform, United States House 
         of Representatives, Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. Chairman: Thank you for your letter regarding H.R. 
     4323, a bill to provide rapid acquisition authority to the 
     Secretary of Defense to respond to combat emergencies.
       I agree that the Committee on Government Reform has valid 
     jurisdictional claims to certain provisions in this important 
     legislation, and I am most appreciative of your decision not 
     to request such a referral in the interest of expediting 
     consideration of the bill. I agree that by foregoing a 
     sequential referral, the Committee on Government Reform is 
     not waiving its jurisdiction. Further, this exchange of 
     letters will be included in the Congressional Record during 
     consideration of the legislation on the House floor.
           With best wishes.
           Sincerely,
                                                    Duncan Hunter,
                                                         Chairman.

  Mr. Speaker, I also want to thank our staff who worked on this bill 
and who came back from their trips, and almost every member of our 
committee has been to Iraq, a number of them to Afghanistan. The need 
to get equipment to the field quickly is a concern that we all have. I 
want to thank the staff folks also who took these trips and attended 
many long and weary hours moving around in various forms of 
transportation in Iraq and Afghanistan, talking with the troops about 
equipment, about what we do; that is, supplying the tools to get the 
job done and helping to work up this legislation. Again I thank the 
gentleman from Washington and our great staff on the Committee on Armed 
Services.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Petri). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from California (Mr. Hunter) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4323.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of 
those present have voted in the affirmative.
  Mr. HUNTER. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

[[Page H3902]]



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