[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 115 (Thursday, July 11, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4771-S4772]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 2454. Mrs. SHAHEEN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed 
by her to the bill S. 4638, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 
2025 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 subtitle D of title VIII, add the following:

     SEC. 865. SMALL BUSINESS SUBCONTRACTING IMPROVEMENTS.

       (a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the ``Small 
     Business Subcontractor Utilization Act of 2024''.
       (b) Requirements to Ensure Subcontractors Are Utilized in 
     Accordance With the Subcontracting Plan.--
       (1) In general.--Section 8(d) of the Small Business Act (15 
     U.S.C. 637(d)) is amended--
       (A) in paragraph (3)--
       (i) by redesignating subparagraphs (C) through (H) as 
     subparagraphs (D) through (I), respectively;
       (ii) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following:
       ``(C) If a subcontracting plan is required with respect to 
     this contract under paragraph (4) or (5) of section 8(d) of 
     the Small Business Act--
       ``(i) at the same time as the contractor submits the 
     subcontracting report with respect to this contract, the 
     contractor shall provide to the contracting officer a 
     utilization report that identifies, for each covered

[[Page S4772]]

     small business subcontractor for this contract--
       ``(I) the service or product that the covered small 
     business subcontractor is required to provide to the prime 
     contractor;
       ``(II) the total contract dollars that are to be paid to 
     the covered small business subcontractor;
       ``(III) the total contract dollars that have been paid to 
     the covered small business subcontractor, to date;
       ``(IV) the estimated date range for the performance of the 
     covered small business subcontractor on the contract; and
       ``(V) any change to the contract, including changes to the 
     services and products required or total contract dollars, 
     that impacts the ability of the prime contractor to utilize 
     the covered small business subcontractor as anticipated 
     during the bid and proposal process; and
       ``(ii) not later than 30 days after the deadline to submit 
     to the contracting officer the subcontracting report with 
     respect to this contract, the contractor shall provide to 
     each covered small business subcontractor for this contract a 
     utilization report that identifies, for that covered small 
     business subcontractor--
       ``(I) the service or product that the covered small 
     business subcontractor is required to provide to the prime 
     contractor;
       ``(II) the total contract dollars that are to be paid to 
     the covered small business subcontractor;
       ``(III) the total contract dollars that have been paid to 
     the covered small business subcontractor, to date;
       ``(IV) the estimated date range for the performance of the 
     covered small business subcontractor on the contract; and
       ``(V) any change to the contract, including changes to the 
     services and products required or total contract dollars, 
     that impacts the ability of the prime contractor to utilize 
     the covered small business subcontractor as anticipated 
     during the bid and proposal process.''; and
       (iii) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(J) In this contract, the term `covered small business 
     subcontractor' means a first-tier subcontractor that--
       ``(i) is a small business concern; and
       ``(ii)(I) was used in preparing the bid or proposal of the 
     prime contractor; or
       ``(II) provides goods or services to the prime contractor 
     in performance of the contract.''; and
       (B) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(18) Noncompliance with subcontracting plan.--
       ``(A) Definitions.--In this paragraph--
       ``(i) the term `covered small business subcontractor' means 
     a first-tier subcontractor that--

       ``(I) is a small business concern; and
       ``(II)(aa) was used in preparing the bid or proposal of the 
     prime contractor; or
       ``(bb) provides goods or services to the prime contractor 
     in performance of the contract; and

       ``(ii) the term `subcontracting plan' means a 
     subcontracting plan required under paragraph (4) or (5).
       ``(B) Review.--A covered small business subcontractor is 
     authorized to confidentially report to the contracting 
     officer that the covered small business subcontractor is not 
     being utilized in accordance with the subcontracting plan of 
     the prime contractor. If reported, the contracting officer 
     shall, in consultation with the Office of Small and 
     Disadvantaged Business Utilization or the Office of Small 
     Business Programs, determine whether the prime contractor 
     made a good faith effort to utilize the covered small 
     business subcontractor in accordance with the subcontracting 
     plan.
       ``(C) Action.--After the review required under subparagraph 
     (B), if the contracting officer determines that the prime 
     contractor failed to make a good faith effort to utilize the 
     covered small business subcontractor in accordance with the 
     subcontracting plan, the contracting officer shall assess 
     liquidated damages in accordance with paragraph (4)(F).''.
       (2) Rulemaking.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Small 
     Business Administration shall promulgate regulations pursuant 
     to this Act.
       (c) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Small 
     Business Administration shall, in consultation with relevant 
     Federal agencies including the General Services 
     Administration, submit a report to the Committee on Small 
     Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate and the Committee 
     on Small Business of the House of Representatives on the 
     improvements that can be made to SAM.gov, the Electronic 
     Subcontracting Reporting System (eSRS), the Federal Subaward 
     Reporting System (FSRS), and any other successor database to 
     improve the ability of contracting officers to evaluate 
     whether prime contractors achieved their subcontracting goals 
     and to make evidence-based determinations regarding whether 
     small subcontractors are being utilized to the extent 
     outlined in subcontracting plans.
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