[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 190 (Thursday, October 28, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S7469]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 3943. Mr. HEINRICH (for himself and Mr. Portman) submitted an 
amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill H.R. 4350, to 
authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2022 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:

       At the end of title IX, add the following:

     SEC. 906. CHIEF DIGITAL RECRUITING OFFICER.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 270 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall 
     designate a chief digital recruiting officer within the 
     office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and 
     Readiness to carry out the responsibilities set forth in 
     subsection (b).
       (b) Responsibilities.--The chief digital recruiting officer 
     shall be responsible for--
       (1) identifying Department of Defense needs for, and skills 
     gaps in, specific types of civilian digital talent;
       (2) recruiting individuals with the skills that meet the 
     needs and skills gaps identified under paragraph (1), in 
     partnership with the military departments and the components 
     of the Department of Defense, including by attending 
     conferences and career fairs and actively recruiting on 
     university campuses and from the private sector;
       (3) ensuring Federal scholarship for service programs are 
     incorporated into civilian recruiting strategies;
       (4) when appropriate and within authority granted under 
     other Federal law, offering recruitment and referral bonuses; 
     and
       (5) partnering with human resource teams in the military 
     departments and the components of the Department of Defense 
     to help train all Department of Defense human resources staff 
     on the available hiring flexibilities to accelerate the 
     hiring of individuals with the skills that fill the needs and 
     skills gaps identified under paragraph (1).
       (c) Resources.--The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that 
     the chief digital recruiting officer is provided with 
     personnel and resources sufficient to carry out the duties 
     set forth in subsection (b).
       (d) Role of Chief Human Capital Officer.--
       (1) In general.--The chief digital recruiting officer shall 
     report directly to the Chief Human Capital Officer of the 
     Department of Defense.
       (2) Incorporation.--The Chief Human Capital Officer shall 
     ensure that the chief digital recruiting officer is 
     incorporated into the human capital operating plan and 
     recruitment strategy of the Department of Defense. In 
     carrying out this paragraph, the Chief Human Capital Officer 
     shall ensure that the chief digital recruiting officer's 
     responsibilities are deconflicted with any other recruitment 
     initiatives and programs.
       (e) Digital Talent Defined.--In this section, the term 
     ``digital talent'' includes positions and capabilities in, or 
     related to--
       (1) software development, engineering, and product 
     management;
       (2) data science;
       (3) artificial intelligence;
       (4) distributed ledger technologies;
       (5) autonomy;
       (6) data management;
       (7) product and user experience design; and
       (8) cybersecurity.
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