[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 82 (Tuesday, May 24, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3110-S3111]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 4100. Mrs. ERNST submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by 
her to the bill S. 2943, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 
2017 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military 
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, 
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for 
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

       Strike section 549 and insert the following:

     SEC. 549. CAREER MILITARY JUSTICE LITIGATION TRACK FOR JUDGE 
                   ADVOCATES.

       (a) Career Litigation Track Required.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary of each military department 
     shall establish a career military justice litigation track 
     for judge advocates in the Armed Forces under the 
     jurisdiction of the Secretary.
       (2) Consultation.--The Secretary of the Army and the 
     Secretary of the Air Force shall establish the litigation 
     track required by this section in consultation with the Judge 
     Advocate General of the Army and the Judge Advocate General 
     of the Air Force, respectively. The Secretary of the Navy 
     shall establish the litigation track in consultation with the 
     Judge Advocate General of the Navy and the Staff Judge 
     Advocate to the Commandant of the Marine Corps.
       (b) Elements.--Each career litigation track under this 
     section shall provide for the following:
       (1) Assignment and advancement of qualified judge advocates 
     in and through assignments and billets relating to the 
     practice of military justice under chapter 47 of title 10, 
     United States Code (the Uniform Code of Military Justice).

[[Page S3111]]

       (2) Establishing for each Armed Force the assignments and 
     billets covered by paragraph (1), which shall include trial 
     counsel, defense counsel, military trial judge, military 
     appellate judge, academic instructor, all positions within 
     criminal law offices or divisions of such Armed Force, 
     Special Victims Prosecutor, Victims' Legal Counsel, Special 
     Victims' Counsel, and such other positions as the Secretary 
     of the military department concerned shall specify.
       (3) For judge advocates participating in such litigation 
     track, mechanisms as follows:
       (A) To prohibit a judge advocate from more than a total of 
     four years of duty or assignments outside such litigation 
     track
       (B) To prohibit any adverse assessment of a judge advocate 
     so participating by reason of such participation in the 
     promotion of officers through grade O-6 (or such higher grade 
     as the Secretary of the military department concerned shall 
     specify for purposes of such litigation track).
       (4) Such additional requirements and qualifications for the 
     litigation track as the Secretary of the military department 
     concerned considers appropriate, including requirements and 
     qualifications that take into account the unique personnel 
     needs and requirement of an Armed Force.
       (c) Implementation Deadline.--Each Secretary of a military 
     department shall implement the career litigation track 
     required by this section for the Armed Forces under the 
     jurisdiction of such Secretary by not later than 18 months 
     after the date of the enactment of this Act.
       (d) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, each Secretary of a military 
     department shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services 
     of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report on 
     the progress of such Secretary in implementing the career 
     litigation track required under this section for the Armed 
     Forces under the jurisdiction of such Secretary.
                                 ______