[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 133 (Thursday, July 29, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5190-S5192]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    PROMOTING RIGOROUS AND INNOVATIVE COST EFFICIENCIES FOR FEDERAL 
                PROCUREMENT AND ACQUISITIONS ACT OF 2021

  Mr. HEINRICH. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 80, S. 583.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 583) to promote innovative acquisition 
     techniques and procurement strategies, and for other 
     purposes.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill, 
which had been reported from the Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs, with amendments, as follows:
  (The parts of the bill intended to be stricken are shown in boldface 
brackets and the parts of the bill intended to be inserted are shown in 
italics.

                                 S. 583

       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 ``Promoting Rigorous and 
     Innovative Cost Efficiencies for Federal Procurement and 
     Acquisitions Act of 2021'' or the ``PRICE Act of 2021''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds that--
       (1) small business participation in the Federal marketplace 
     is key to ensuring a strong industrial base;
       (2) the Business Opportunity Development Reform Act of 1988 
     (Public Law 100-656) sets forth the requirement for the 
     President to establish Government-wide goals for procurement 
     contracts awarded to small businesses;
       (3) each year, the Small Business Administration works with 
     each Federal agency to set their respective contracting goals 
     and publishes a scorecard to ensure that the total of all 
     Federal agency goals meets the required targets for the 
     Federal Government;
       (4) the Department has received among the highest scorecard 
     letter grades 10 years in a row and is the largest Federal 
     agency to have such a track record;
       (5) in virtually every segment of the economy of the United 
     States, including the homeland security community, there are 
     small businesses working to support the mission and playing a 
     critical role in delivering efficient and innovative 
     solutions to the acquisition needs of the Federal Government;
       (6) the Procurement Innovation Lab of the Department--
       (A) is aimed at experimenting with innovative acquisition 
     techniques across the Homeland Security [enterprise] 
     Enterprise;
       (B) provides a forum to test new ideas, share lessons 
     learned, and promote best practices;
       (C) fosters cultural changes that promote innovation and 
     managed risk taking through a continuous cycle of testing, 
     obtaining feedback, sharing information, and retesting where 
     appropriate; and
       (D) aims to make the acquisition process more smooth and 
     innovative within the construct of the Federal Acquisition 
     Regulation for both the Federal Government and contractors; 
     and
       (7) despite progress in the adoption of new and better 
     business practices by many Federal agencies, the overall 
     adoption of modernized business practices and advanced

[[Page S5191]]

     technologies across the Federal Government remains slow and 
     uneven.

     SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
     Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy.
       (2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
     ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
       (A) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
     Affairs and the Committee on Small Business and 
     Entrepreneurship of the Senate; and
       (B) the Committee on Homeland Security, the Committee on 
     Oversight and Reform, and the Committee on Small Business of 
     the House of Representatives.
       (3) Council.--The term ``Council'' means the Chief 
     Acquisition Officers Council established under section 1311 
     of title 41, United States Code.
       (4) Department.--The term ``Department'' means the 
     Department of Homeland Security.
       (5) Homeland security enterprise enterprise.--The term 
     ``Homeland Security [enterprise] Enterprise'' has the meaning 
     given the term in section 2211(h) of the Homeland Security 
     Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 661(h)).
       (6) Scorecard.--The term ``scorecard'' means the scorecard 
     described in section 868(b) of the National Defense 
     Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 (15 U.S.C. 644 note).
       (7) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of Homeland Security.
       (8) Small business.--The term ``small business'' means--
       (A) a qualified HUBZone small business concern, a small 
     business concern, a small business concern owned and 
     controlled by service-disabled veterans, or a small business 
     concern owned and controlled by women, as those terms are 
     defined in section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
     632);
       (B) a small business concern owned and controlled by 
     socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, as 
     defined in section 8(d)(3)(C) of the Small Business Act (15 
     U.S.C. 637(d)(3)(C)); or
       (C) a small business concern unconditionally owned by an 
     economically disadvantaged Indian tribe or an economically 
     disadvantaged Native Hawaiian organization that qualifies as 
     a socially and economically disadvantaged small business 
     concern, as defined in section 8(a)(4) of the Small Business 
     Act (15 U.S.C. 637(a)(4)).
       (9) Under secretary.--The term ``Under Secretary'' means 
     the Under Secretary for Management of the Department.

     SEC. 4. PROCUREMENT INNOVATION LAB REPORT.

       (a) Report.--The Under Secretary shall publish an annual 
     report on a website of the Department on Procurement 
     Innovation Lab projects that have used innovative techniques 
     within the Department to accomplish--
       (1) improving or encouraging better competition;
       (2) reducing time to award;
       (3) cost savings;
       (4) better mission outcomes; or
       (5) meeting the goals for contracts awarded to small 
     business concerns under section 15(g) of the Small Business 
     Act (15 U.S.C. 644(g)).
       (b) Education.--The Under Secretary shall develop and 
     disseminate guidance and offer training for contracting 
     officers, contracting specialists, program managers, and 
     other personnel of the Department, as determined appropriate 
     by the Under Secretary, concerning when and how to use the 
     innovative procurement techniques of the Department.
       (c) Best Practices.--The Under Secretary shall share best 
     practices across the Department and make available to other 
     Federal agencies information to improve procurement methods 
     and training, as determined appropriate by the Under 
     Secretary.
       (d) Sunset.--This section shall cease to be effective on 
     the date that is 3 years after the date of enactment of this 
     Act.

     SEC. 5. COUNCIL.

       (a) Establishment.--Not later than 45 days after the date 
     of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall convene the 
     Council to examine best practices for acquisition innovation 
     in contracting in the Federal Government, including small 
     business contracting in accordance with the goals established 
     under section 15(g) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
     644(g)).
       (b) Working Group.--The Council may form a working group to 
     address the requirements of this section, which, if formed, 
     shall--
       (1) be chaired by the Administrator or a designee of the 
     Administrator; and
       (2) be composed of--
       (A) the Chief Procurement Officer of the Department;
       (B) Council members from--
       (i) the General Services Administration;
       (ii) the Department of Defense;
       (iii) the Department of the Treasury;
       (iv) the Department of Veterans Affairs;
       (v) the Department of Health and Human Services;
       (vi) the Small Business Administration; and
       (vii) such other Federal agencies as determined by the 
     chair of the Council from among Federal agencies that have 
     demonstrated significant, sustained progress using innovative 
     acquisition practices and technologies, including for small 
     business contracting, during each of the 3 years preceding 
     the date of enactment of this Act; and
       (C) other employees, as determined appropriate by the chair 
     of the Council, of Federal agencies with the requisite senior 
     experience to make recommendations to improve Federal agency 
     efficiency, effectiveness, and economy, including in 
     promoting small business contracting.
       (c) Duties of the Council.--The Council, or a working group 
     formed under subsection (b), shall--
       (1) convene not later than 90 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act and thereafter on a quarterly basis 
     until the Council submits the report required under 
     subsection (d)(1); and
       (2) conduct outreach with the workforce and the public in 
     meeting the requirements under subsection (d)(1).
       (d) Report.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Council shall submit to the 
     appropriate congressional committees a report that 
     describes--
       (A) innovative acquisition practices and applications of 
     technologies that have worked well in achieving better 
     procurement outcomes, including increased efficiency, 
     improved program outcomes, better customer experience, and 
     meeting or exceeding the goals under section 15(g) of the 
     Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 644(g)), and the reasons why 
     those practices have succeeded;
       (B) steps to identify and adopt transformational commercial 
     business practices, modernized data analytics, and advanced 
     technologies that allow decision making to occur in a more 
     friction-free buying environment and improve customer 
     experience; and
       (C) any recommendations for statutory changes to accelerate 
     the adoption of innovative acquisition practices.
       (2) Briefing.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall brief the 
     appropriate congressional committees on the means by which 
     the findings and recommendations of the report have been 
     disseminated under paragraph (3).
       (3) Publication and dissemination of report findings.--To 
     promote more rapid adoption of acquisition best practices, 
     the Administrator shall--
       (A) publish the report required under paragraph (1) on the 
     website of the Office of Management and Budget and on the 
     Innovation Hub on the Acquisition Gateway or any successor 
     Government-wide site available for increasing awareness of 
     resources dedicated to procurement innovation; and
       (B) encourage the head of each Federal agency to maintain a 
     site on the website of the Federal agency for acquisition and 
     contracting professionals, program managers, members of the 
     public, and others as appropriate that is--
       (i) dedicated to acquisition innovation; and
       (ii) identifies--

       (I) resources, including the acquisition innovation 
     advocate and industry liaison of the Federal agency;
       (II) learning assets for the workforce, including the 
     findings and recommendations made in the report required 
     under paragraph (1);
       (III) events to build awareness and understanding of 
     innovation activities;
       (IV) award recognition programs and recent recipients; and
       (V) upcoming plans to leverage innovative practices and 
     technologies.

       (e) Experts.--In carrying out the duties of the Council 
     under this section, the Council is [encourage] encouraged to 
     consult with governmental and nongovernmental experts.
       (f) Termination.--The duties of the Council as set forth in 
     this section shall terminate 30 days after the date on which 
     the Council conducts the briefing required under subsection 
     (d)(2).

  Mr. HEINRICH. I further ask unanimous consent that the committee-
reported amendments be considered and agreed to; that the bill, as 
amended, be considered read a third time and passed; and that the 
motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no 
intervening action or debate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The committee-reported amendments were agreed to.
  The bill (S. 583), as amended, was order to be engrossed for a third 
reading, was read the third time, and passed, as follows

                                 S. 583

       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 ``Promoting Rigorous and 
     Innovative Cost Efficiencies for Federal Procurement and 
     Acquisitions Act of 2021'' or the ``PRICE Act of 2021''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds that--
       (1) small business participation in the Federal marketplace 
     is key to ensuring a strong industrial base;
       (2) the Business Opportunity Development Reform Act of 1988 
     (Public Law 100-656) sets forth the requirement for the 
     President to establish Government-wide goals for procurement 
     contracts awarded to small businesses;
       (3) each year, the Small Business Administration works with 
     each Federal agency to

[[Page S5192]]

     set their respective contracting goals and publishes a 
     scorecard to ensure that the total of all Federal agency 
     goals meets the required targets for the Federal Government;
       (4) the Department has received among the highest scorecard 
     letter grades 10 years in a row and is the largest Federal 
     agency to have such a track record;
       (5) in virtually every segment of the economy of the United 
     States, including the homeland security community, there are 
     small businesses working to support the mission and playing a 
     critical role in delivering efficient and innovative 
     solutions to the acquisition needs of the Federal Government;
       (6) the Procurement Innovation Lab of the Department--
       (A) is aimed at experimenting with innovative acquisition 
     techniques across the Homeland Security Enterprise;
       (B) provides a forum to test new ideas, share lessons 
     learned, and promote best practices;
       (C) fosters cultural changes that promote innovation and 
     managed risk taking through a continuous cycle of testing, 
     obtaining feedback, sharing information, and retesting where 
     appropriate; and
       (D) aims to make the acquisition process more smooth and 
     innovative within the construct of the Federal Acquisition 
     Regulation for both the Federal Government and contractors; 
     and
       (7) despite progress in the adoption of new and better 
     business practices by many Federal agencies, the overall 
     adoption of modernized business practices and advanced 
     technologies across the Federal Government remains slow and 
     uneven.

     SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
     Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy.
       (2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
     ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
       (A) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
     Affairs and the Committee on Small Business and 
     Entrepreneurship of the Senate; and
       (B) the Committee on Homeland Security, the Committee on 
     Oversight and Reform, and the Committee on Small Business of 
     the House of Representatives.
       (3) Council.--The term ``Council'' means the Chief 
     Acquisition Officers Council established under section 1311 
     of title 41, United States Code.
       (4) Department.--The term ``Department'' means the 
     Department of Homeland Security.
       (5) Homeland security enterprise.--The term ``Homeland 
     Security Enterprise'' has the meaning given the term in 
     section 2211(h) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 
     U.S.C. 661(h)).
       (6) Scorecard.--The term ``scorecard'' means the scorecard 
     described in section 868(b) of the National Defense 
     Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 (15 U.S.C. 644 note).
       (7) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of Homeland Security.
       (8) Small business.--The term ``small business'' means--
       (A) a qualified HUBZone small business concern, a small 
     business concern, a small business concern owned and 
     controlled by service-disabled veterans, or a small business 
     concern owned and controlled by women, as those terms are 
     defined in section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
     632);
       (B) a small business concern owned and controlled by 
     socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, as 
     defined in section 8(d)(3)(C) of the Small Business Act (15 
     U.S.C. 637(d)(3)(C)); or
       (C) a small business concern unconditionally owned by an 
     economically disadvantaged Indian tribe or an economically 
     disadvantaged Native Hawaiian organization that qualifies as 
     a socially and economically disadvantaged small business 
     concern, as defined in section 8(a)(4) of the Small Business 
     Act (15 U.S.C. 637(a)(4)).
       (9) Under secretary.--The term ``Under Secretary'' means 
     the Under Secretary for Management of the Department.

     SEC. 4. PROCUREMENT INNOVATION LAB REPORT.

       (a) Report.--The Under Secretary shall publish an annual 
     report on a website of the Department on Procurement 
     Innovation Lab projects that have used innovative techniques 
     within the Department to accomplish--
       (1) improving or encouraging better competition;
       (2) reducing time to award;
       (3) cost savings;
       (4) better mission outcomes; or
       (5) meeting the goals for contracts awarded to small 
     business concerns under section 15(g) of the Small Business 
     Act (15 U.S.C. 644(g)).
       (b) Education.--The Under Secretary shall develop and 
     disseminate guidance and offer training for contracting 
     officers, contracting specialists, program managers, and 
     other personnel of the Department, as determined appropriate 
     by the Under Secretary, concerning when and how to use the 
     innovative procurement techniques of the Department.
       (c) Best Practices.--The Under Secretary shall share best 
     practices across the Department and make available to other 
     Federal agencies information to improve procurement methods 
     and training, as determined appropriate by the Under 
     Secretary.
       (d) Sunset.--This section shall cease to be effective on 
     the date that is 3 years after the date of enactment of this 
     Act.

     SEC. 5. COUNCIL.

       (a) Establishment.--Not later than 45 days after the date 
     of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall convene the 
     Council to examine best practices for acquisition innovation 
     in contracting in the Federal Government, including small 
     business contracting in accordance with the goals established 
     under section 15(g) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
     644(g)).
       (b) Working Group.--The Council may form a working group to 
     address the requirements of this section, which, if formed, 
     shall--
       (1) be chaired by the Administrator or a designee of the 
     Administrator; and
       (2) be composed of--
       (A) the Chief Procurement Officer of the Department;
       (B) Council members from--
       (i) the General Services Administration;
       (ii) the Department of Defense;
       (iii) the Department of the Treasury;
       (iv) the Department of Veterans Affairs;
       (v) the Department of Health and Human Services;
       (vi) the Small Business Administration; and
       (vii) such other Federal agencies as determined by the 
     chair of the Council from among Federal agencies that have 
     demonstrated significant, sustained progress using innovative 
     acquisition practices and technologies, including for small 
     business contracting, during each of the 3 years preceding 
     the date of enactment of this Act; and
       (C) other employees, as determined appropriate by the chair 
     of the Council, of Federal agencies with the requisite senior 
     experience to make recommendations to improve Federal agency 
     efficiency, effectiveness, and economy, including in 
     promoting small business contracting.
       (c) Duties of the Council.--The Council, or a working group 
     formed under subsection (b), shall--
       (1) convene not later than 90 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act and thereafter on a quarterly basis 
     until the Council submits the report required under 
     subsection (d)(1); and
       (2) conduct outreach with the workforce and the public in 
     meeting the requirements under subsection (d)(1).
       (d) Report.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Council shall submit to the 
     appropriate congressional committees a report that 
     describes--
       (A) innovative acquisition practices and applications of 
     technologies that have worked well in achieving better 
     procurement outcomes, including increased efficiency, 
     improved program outcomes, better customer experience, and 
     meeting or exceeding the goals under section 15(g) of the 
     Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 644(g)), and the reasons why 
     those practices have succeeded;
       (B) steps to identify and adopt transformational commercial 
     business practices, modernized data analytics, and advanced 
     technologies that allow decision making to occur in a more 
     friction-free buying environment and improve customer 
     experience; and
       (C) any recommendations for statutory changes to accelerate 
     the adoption of innovative acquisition practices.
       (2) Briefing.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall brief the 
     appropriate congressional committees on the means by which 
     the findings and recommendations of the report have been 
     disseminated under paragraph (3).
       (3) Publication and dissemination of report findings.--To 
     promote more rapid adoption of acquisition best practices, 
     the Administrator shall--
       (A) publish the report required under paragraph (1) on the 
     website of the Office of Management and Budget and on the 
     Innovation Hub on the Acquisition Gateway or any successor 
     Government-wide site available for increasing awareness of 
     resources dedicated to procurement innovation; and
       (B) encourage the head of each Federal agency to maintain a 
     site on the website of the Federal agency for acquisition and 
     contracting professionals, program managers, members of the 
     public, and others as appropriate that is--
       (i) dedicated to acquisition innovation; and
       (ii) identifies--

       (I) resources, including the acquisition innovation 
     advocate and industry liaison of the Federal agency;
       (II) learning assets for the workforce, including the 
     findings and recommendations made in the report required 
     under paragraph (1);
       (III) events to build awareness and understanding of 
     innovation activities;
       (IV) award recognition programs and recent recipients; and
       (V) upcoming plans to leverage innovative practices and 
     technologies.

       (e) Experts.--In carrying out the duties of the Council 
     under this section, the Council is encouraged to consult with 
     governmental and nongovernmental experts.
       (f) Termination.--The duties of the Council as set forth in 
     this section shall terminate 30 days after the date on which 
     the Council conducts the briefing required under subsection 
     (d)(2).

                          ____________________