[House Report 113-436]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


113th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     113-436

======================================================================



 
           DHS ACQUISITION ACCOUNTABILITY AND EFFICIENCY ACT

                                _______
                                

  May 6, 2014.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Mr. McCaul, from the Committee on Homeland Security, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                             together with

                            ADDITIONAL VIEWS

                        [To accompany H.R. 4228]

    The Committee on Homeland Security, to whom was referred 
the bill (H.R. 4228) to require the Department of Homeland 
Security to improve discipline, accountability, and 
transparency in acquisition program management, having 
considered the same, reports favorably thereon with an 
amendment and recommends that the bill as amended do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
Purpose and Summary..............................................    16
Background and Need for Legislation..............................    16
Hearings.........................................................    18
Committee Consideration..........................................    19
Committee Votes..................................................    22
Committee Oversight Findings.....................................    22
New Budget Authority, Entitlement Authority, and Tax Expenditures    22
Congressional Budget Office Estimate.............................    22
Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives............    22
Duplicative Federal Programs.....................................    23
Congressional Earmarks, Limited Tax Benefits, and Limited Tariff 
  Benefits.......................................................    23
Federal Mandates Statement.......................................    23
Preemption Clarification.........................................    23
Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings..............................    23
Advisory Committee Statement.....................................    23
Applicability to Legislative Branch..............................    23
Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation...................    23
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............    36
Additional Views.................................................    55

    The amendment is as follows:
  Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

  This Act may be cited as the ``DHS Acquisition Accountability and 
Efficiency Act''.

SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS.

  The table of contents for this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title.
Sec. 2. Table of contents.
Sec. 3. Findings.
Sec. 4. Definitions.

                    TITLE I--ACQUISITION AUTHORITIES

Sec. 101. Acquisition authorities for Under Secretary for Management.
Sec. 102. Acquisition authorities for Chief Financial Officer.
Sec. 103. Acquisition authorities for Chief Information Officer.
Sec. 104. Chief Procurement Officer.
Sec. 105. Requirements to ensure greater accountability for acquisition 
programs.

          TITLE II--ACQUISITION PROGRAM MANAGEMENT DISCIPLINE

Sec. 201. Acquisition Review Board.
Sec. 202. Requirements to reduce duplication in acquisition programs.
Sec. 203. Government Accountability Office review of Board and of 
requirements to reduce duplication in acquisition programs.
Sec. 204. Excluded Party List System waivers.
Sec. 205. Inspector General oversight of suspension and debarment.

     TITLE III--ACQUISITION PROGRAM MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTABILITY AND 
                              TRANSPARENCY

Sec. 301. Congressional notification and other requirements for major 
acquisition program breach.
Sec. 302. Multiyear acquisition strategy.
Sec. 303. Acquisition reports.
Sec. 304. Government Accountability Office review of multiyear 
acquisition strategy.
Sec. 305. Office of Inspector General report.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS.

  Congress finds the following:
          (1) The Department of Homeland Security does not consistently 
        implement its policies and Government and private sector best 
        practices for acquisitions and procurement.
          (2) It is difficult to determine the cost of the Department's 
        major acquisition programs because the Department has not 
        provided consistent, comparable updates on an annual basis. As 
        of January 2014, the Department identified over 80 major 
        acquisition programs costing over $300,000,000, and, based on 
        2011, estimates it plans to spend about $170,000,000,000 in the 
        future on major acquisition programs.
          (3) Since 2005, the Government Accountability Office has 
        placed Department acquisition management activities on its 
        ``High-Risk List'', which identifies Government operations that 
        have greater susceptibility to fraud, waste, abuse, and 
        mismanagement or greater need for transformation to address 
        economy, efficiency, or effectiveness challenges.
          (4) While the Department has taken actions to address some 
        high-risk acquisition program management issues, many programs 
        continue to experience challenges with funding instability, 
        workforce shortfalls, reliable cost estimates, realistic 
        schedules, agreed-upon baseline objectives, and consistent and 
        reliable data needed to accurately measure program performance.
          (5) Of the 77 Department major acquisition programs in 2011, 
        the Government Accountability Office identified 42 programs 
        that experienced cost growth, schedule slips, or both. The 
        Department reported that the magnitude of the cost growth for 
        16 of the 42 programs, which increased from almost 
        $20,000,000,000 to over $50,000,000,000 in 2011, had an 
        aggregate increase of 166 percent.
          (6) In 2012, the Government Accountability Office found that 
        only 20 of 63 programs had Department-approved acquisition 
        program baselines. The Government Accountability Office also 
        reported that the Department planned to spend more than $105 
        billion on programs lacking acquisition program baselines.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

  (a) In General.--In this Act:
          (1) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of 
        Homeland Security.
          (2) Department.--The term ``Department'' means the Department 
        of Homeland Security.
          (3) Congressional homeland security committees.--The term 
        ``congressional homeland security committees'' means--
                  (A) the Committee on Homeland Security of the House 
                of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland 
                Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and
                  (B) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
                Representatives and of the Senate.
  (b) Additional Definitions.--In this Act:
          (1) Acquisition.--The term ``acquisition'' has the meaning 
        provided in section 131 of title 41, United States Code.
          (2) Best practices.--The term ``best practices'', with 
        respect to acquisition, means a knowledge-based approach to 
        capability development that includes identifying and validating 
        needs; assessing alternatives to select the most appropriate 
        solution; clearly establishing well-defined requirements; 
        developing realistic cost assessments and schedules; securing 
        stable funding that matches resources to requirements; 
        demonstrating technology, design, and manufacturing maturity; 
        using milestones and exit criteria or specific accomplishments 
        that demonstrate progress; adopting and executing standardized 
        processes with known success across programs; establishing an 
        adequate workforce that is qualified and sufficient to perform 
        necessary functions; and integrating these capabilities into 
        the Department's mission and business operations.
  (c) Amendments to Definitions in Homeland Security Act of 2002.--
Section 2 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 is amended--
          (1) by striking ``In this Act,'' and inserting ``(a) In 
        General.--In this Act,'';
          (2) in paragraph (2)--
                  (A) by inserting ``(A)'' after ``(2)''; and
                  (B) by adding at the end the following new 
                subparagraph:
          ``(B) The term `congressional homeland security committees' 
        means--
                  ``(i) the Committee on Homeland Security of the House 
                of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland 
                Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and
                  ``(ii) the Committee on Appropriations of the House 
                of Representatives and of the Senate, where 
                appropriate.''; and
          (3) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
  ``(b) Acquisition-Related Definitions.--In this Act, the following 
definitions apply:
          ``(1) Acquisition.--The term `acquisition' has the meaning 
        provided in section 131 of title 41, United States Code.
          ``(2) Acquisition decision authority.--The term `acquisition 
        decision authority' means the authority, held by the Secretary 
        acting through the Deputy Secretary or Under Secretary for 
        Management--
                  ``(A) to ensure compliance with Federal law, the 
                Federal Acquisition Regulation, and Department 
                acquisition management directives;
                  ``(B) to review (including approving, halting, 
                modifying, or cancelling) an acquisition program 
                through the life cycle of the program;
                  ``(C) to ensure that program managers have the 
                resources necessary to successfully execute an approved 
                acquisition program; and
                  ``(D) to ensure good program management of cost, 
                schedule, risk, and system performance of the 
                acquisition, including assessing acquisition program 
                baseline breaches and directing any corrective action 
                for such breaches.
          ``(3) Acquisition decision event.--The term `acquisition 
        decision event', with respect to an investment or acquisition 
        program, means a predetermined point within the acquisition 
        phases of the investment or acquisition program at which the 
        investment or acquisition program will undergo a review prior 
        to commencement of the next phase.
          ``(4) Acquisition decision memorandum.--The term `acquisition 
        decision memorandum', with respect to an acquisition, means the 
        official acquisition decision event record that includes a 
        documented record of decisions, exit criteria, and assigned 
        actions for the acquisition as determined by the person 
        exercising acquisition decision authority for the acquisition.
          ``(5) Acquisition program baseline.--The term `acquisition 
        program baseline', with respect to an acquisition program, 
        means a summary of the cost, schedule, and performance 
        parameters, expressed in standard, measurable, quantitative 
        terms, which must be met in order to accomplish the goals of 
        the program.
          ``(6) Capability development plan.--The term `capability 
        development plan', with respect to a proposed acquisition, 
        means the document that the Acquisition Review Board approves 
        for the first acquisition decision event related to validating 
        the need of a proposed acquisition.
          ``(7) Component acquisition executive.--The term `Component 
        Acquisition Executive' means the senior acquisition official 
        within a Component who is designated in writing by the Under 
        Secretary for Management, in consultation with the Component 
        head, with authority and responsibility for leading a process 
        and staff to provide acquisition and program management 
        oversight, policy, and guidance to ensure that statutory, 
        regulatory, and higher level policy requirements are fulfilled, 
        including compliance with Federal law, the Federal Acquisition 
        Regulation, and Department acquisition management directives 
        established by the Under Secretary for Management.
          ``(8) Life cycle cost.--The term `life cycle cost', with 
        respect to an acquisition program, means all costs associated 
        with research, development, procurement, operation, integrated 
        logistics support, and disposal under the program, including 
        supporting infrastructure that plans, manages, and executes the 
        program over its full life, and costs of common support items 
        incurred as a result of the program.
          ``(9) Major acquisition program.--The term `major acquisition 
        program' means a Department acquisition program that is 
        estimated by the Secretary to require an eventual total 
        expenditure of at least $300,000,000 (based on fiscal year 2014 
        constant dollars) over its life cycle cost.''.

                    TITLE I--ACQUISITION AUTHORITIES

SEC. 101. ACQUISITION AUTHORITIES FOR UNDER SECRETARY FOR MANAGEMENT.

  Section 701 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 341) is 
amended--
          (1) in subsection (a)(2), by striking ``Procurement'' and 
        inserting ``Acquisition and procurement''; and
          (2) by adding at the end the following:
  ``(d) Acquisition and Related Responsibilities.--
          ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding section 1702(b) of title 
        41, United States Code, the Under Secretary for Management is 
        the Chief Acquisition Officer of the Department. As Chief 
        Acquisition Officer, the Under Secretary shall have the 
        authority and perform the functions as specified in section 
        1702(b) of such title, and perform all other functions and 
        responsibilities delegated by the Secretary or described in 
        this subsection.
          ``(2) Duties and responsibilities.--In addition to the 
        authority and functions specified in section 1702(b) of title 
        41, United States Code, the duties and responsibilities of the 
        Under Secretary for Management related to acquisition include 
        the following:
                  ``(A) Advising the Secretary regarding acquisition 
                management activities, taking into account risks of 
                failure to achieve cost, schedule, or performance 
                parameters, to ensure that the Department achieves its 
                mission through the adoption of widely accepted program 
                management best practices and standards.
                  ``(B) Exercising the acquisition decision authority 
                to approve, halt, modify (including the rescission of 
                approvals of program milestones), or cancel major 
                acquisition programs, unless the Under Secretary 
                delegates the authority to a Component Acquisition 
                Executive pursuant to paragraph (3).
                  ``(C) Establishing policies for acquisition that 
                implement an approach that takes into account risks of 
                failure to achieve cost, schedule, or performance 
                parameters that all Components of the Department shall 
                comply with, including outlining relevant authorities 
                for program managers to effectively manage acquisition 
                programs.
                  ``(D) Ensuring that each major acquisition program 
                has a Department-approved acquisition program baseline.
                  ``(E) Ensuring that the heads of Components and 
                Component Acquisition Executives comply with Federal 
                law, the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and Department 
                acquisition management directives.
                  ``(F) Ensuring that grants and financial assistance 
                are provided only to individuals and organizations that 
                are not suspended or debarred.
                  ``(G) Distributing guidance throughout the Department 
                to ensure that contractors involved in acquisitions, 
                particularly companies that access the Department's 
                information systems and technologies, adhere to 
                internal cybersecurity policies established by the 
                Department of Homeland Security.
          ``(3) Delegation of acquisition decision authority.--
                  ``(A) Level 3 acquisitions.--The Under Secretary for 
                Management may delegate acquisition decision authority 
                in writing to the relevant Component Acquisition 
                Executive for an acquisition program that has a life 
                cycle cost estimate of less than $300,000,000.
                  ``(B) Level 2 acquisitions.--The Under Secretary for 
                Management may delegate acquisition decision authority 
                in writing to the relevant Component Acquisition 
                Executive for a major acquisition program that has a 
                life cycle cost estimate of at least $300,000,000 but 
                not more than $1,000,000,000 if all of the following 
                requirements are met:
                          ``(i) The Component concerned possesses 
                        working policies, processes, and procedures 
                        that are consistent with Department-level 
                        acquisition policy.
                          ``(ii) The Component Acquisition Executive 
                        has adequate, experienced, dedicated program 
                        management professional staff commensurate with 
                        the size of the delegated portfolio.
                          ``(iii) Each major acquisition program 
                        concerned has written documentation showing 
                        that it has a Department-approved acquisition 
                        program baseline and it is meeting agreed-upon 
                        cost, schedule, and performance thresholds.
          ``(4) Excluded parties list system consultation.--The Under 
        Secretary for Management shall require that all Department 
        contracting and procurement officials consult the Excluded 
        Parties List System (or successor system) as maintained by the 
        General Services Administration prior to awarding a contract or 
        grant or entering into other transactions to ascertain whether 
        the selected contractor is excluded from receiving Federal 
        contracts, certain subcontracts, and certain types of Federal 
        financial and non-financial assistance and benefits.
          ``(5) Relationship to under secretary for science and 
        technology.--Nothing in this subsection shall diminish the 
        authority granted to the Under Secretary for Science and 
        Technology under this Act. The Under Secretary for Management 
        and the Under Secretary for Science and Technology shall 
        cooperate in matters related to the coordination of 
        acquisitions across the Department so that investments of the 
        Directorate of Science and Technology can support current and 
        future requirements of the Components.''.

SEC. 102. ACQUISITION AUTHORITIES FOR CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER.

  Section 702 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 342) is 
amended by adding at the end of subsection (b)(2) the following new 
subparagraph:
                  ``(J) Notwithstanding section 902 of title 31, United 
                States Code, provide leadership over financial 
                management policy and programs for the Department as 
                they relate to the Department's acquisitions programs, 
                in consultation with the Under Secretary for 
                Management.''.

SEC. 103. ACQUISITION AUTHORITIES FOR CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER.

  Section 703 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 343) is 
amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
  ``(c) Acquisition Responsibilities.--Notwithstanding section 11315 of 
title 40, United States Code, the acquisition responsibilities of the 
Chief Information Officer, in consultation with the Under Secretary for 
Management, shall include the following:
          ``(1) Serve as the lead technical authority for information 
        technology programs and establish departmental information 
        technology priorities, policies, processes, standards, 
        guidelines, and procedures.
          ``(2) Oversee the management of the Homeland Security 
        Enterprise Architecture and ensure that, before each 
        acquisition decision event, approved information technology 
        acquisitions comply with departmental information technology 
        management processes, technical requirements, and the Homeland 
        Security Enterprise Architecture, and in any case in which 
        information technology acquisitions do not comply with 
        Departmental management directives, make recommendations to the 
        Acquisition Review Board regarding such noncompliance.
          ``(3) Be responsible for providing recommendations to the 
        Acquisition Review Board established in section 836 of this Act 
        on information technology programs, and be responsible for 
        developing information technology acquisition strategic 
        guidance.''.

SEC. 104. CHIEF PROCUREMENT OFFICER.

  (a) In General.--Title VII of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 
U.S.C. 341 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
section:

``SEC. 708. CHIEF PROCUREMENT OFFICER.

  ``(a) In General.--There is a Chief Procurement Officer of the 
Department, who shall report directly to the Under Secretary for 
Management. The Chief Procurement Officer is the senior procurement 
executive for purposes of section 1702(c) of title 41, United States 
Code, and shall perform procurement functions as specified in such 
section. The Chief Procurement Officer also shall perform other 
functions and responsibilities set forth in this section and as may be 
assigned by the Under Secretary for Management.
  ``(b) Responsibilities.--The Chief Procurement Officer shall--
          ``(1) exercise leadership and authority to the extent 
        delegated by the Under Secretary for Management over the 
        Department procurement function;
          ``(2) issue acquisition regulations and policies;
          ``(3) account for the integrity, performance, and oversight 
        of Department procurement and contracting functions and be 
        responsible for ensuring that a procurement's contracting 
        strategy and plans are consistent with the intent and direction 
        of the Acquisition Review Board established in section 836 of 
        this Act;
          ``(4) serve as the Department's business advisor and main 
        liaison to industry on procurement-related issues by providing 
        advice on industry engagement, acquisition policy, oversight of 
        the procurement function, and development of the acquisition 
        workforce;
          ``(5) oversee a centralized certification and training 
        program, in consultation with the Under Secretary for 
        Management, for the entire Department acquisition workforce 
        while using, to the greatest extent practicable, best practices 
        and acquisitions training opportunities already in existence 
        within the Federal Government, the private sector, or 
        universities and colleges, as appropriate, and including 
        training on how best to identify actions that warrant referrals 
        for suspension or debarment;
          ``(6) delegate or retain contracting authority, as 
        appropriate, except as provided in section 701(d)(3) of this 
        Act;
          ``(7) participate in the selection, and periodic performance 
        review, of the head of each contracting activity within the 
        Department;
          ``(8) collect baseline data and establish performance 
        measures on the impact of strategic sourcing initiatives on the 
        private sector, including, in particular, small businesses; and
          ``(9) ensure that a fair proportion (as defined pursuant to 
        the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.)) of Federal 
        contract and subcontract dollars are awarded to small 
        businesses, maximize opportunities for small business 
        participation, and ensure, to the extent practicable, small 
        businesses that achieve qualified vendor status for security-
        related technologies are provided an opportunity to compete for 
        contracts for such technology.''.
  (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents in section 1(b) of the 
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.) is amended by 
adding after the item relating to section 707 the following new item:

``Sec. 708. Chief Procurement Officer.''.

SEC. 105. REQUIREMENTS TO ENSURE GREATER ACCOUNTABILITY FOR ACQUISITION 
                    PROGRAMS.

  (a) In General.--Title VII of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 
U.S.C. 341 et seq.) is further amended by adding at the end the 
following new section:

``SEC. 709. REQUIREMENTS TO ENSURE GREATER ACCOUNTABILITY FOR 
                    ACQUISITION PROGRAMS.

  ``(a) Requirement To Establish Mechanism.--Within the Management 
Directorate, the Under Secretary for Management shall establish a 
mechanism to prioritize improving the accountability, standardization, 
and transparency of major acquisition programs of the Department in 
order to increase opportunities for effectiveness and efficiencies and 
to serve as the central oversight function of all Department 
acquisition programs.
  ``(b) Responsibilities of Executive Director.--The Under Secretary 
for Management shall designate an Executive Director to oversee the 
requirement under subsection (a). The Executive Director shall report 
directly to the Under Secretary and shall carry out the following 
responsibilities:
          ``(1) Monitor the performance of Department acquisition 
        programs regularly between acquisition decision events to 
        identify problems with cost, performance, or schedule that 
        Components may need to address to prevent cost overruns, 
        performance issues, or schedule delays.
          ``(2) Assist the Chief Acquisition Officer in managing the 
        Department's acquisition portfolio.
          ``(3) Conduct oversight of individual acquisition programs to 
        implement Department acquisition program policy, procedures, 
        and guidance with a priority on ensuring the data it collects 
        and maintains from its Components is accurate and reliable.
          ``(4) Serve as the focal point within the Department for 
        policy, process, and procedure regarding life cycle cost 
        estimating and analysis.
          ``(5) Serve as the focal point and coordinator for the 
        acquisition life cycle review process and as the executive 
        secretariat for the Acquisition Review Board established under 
        section 836 of this Act.
          ``(6) Advise the persons having acquisition decision 
        authority in making acquisition decisions consistent with all 
        applicable laws and in establishing clear lines of authority, 
        accountability, and responsibility for acquisition 
        decisionmaking within the Department.
          ``(7) Engage in the strategic planning and performance 
        evaluation process required under section 306 of title 5, 
        United States Code, and sections 1105(a)(28), 1115, 1116, and 
        9703 of title 31, United States Code, by supporting the Chief 
        Procurement Officer in developing strategies and specific plans 
        for hiring, training, and professional development in order to 
        rectify any deficiency within the Department's acquisition 
        workforce.
          ``(8) Oversee the Component Acquisition Executive structure 
        to ensure it has sufficient capabilities and complies with 
        Department policies.
          ``(9) Develop standardized certification standards in 
        consultation with the Component Acquisition Executives for all 
        acquisition program managers.
          ``(10) In the event that a program manager's certification or 
        actions need review for purposes of promotion or removal, 
        provide input, in consultation with the relevant Component 
        Acquisition Executive, into the relevant program manager's 
        performance evaluation, and report positive or negative 
        experiences to the relevant certifying authority.
          ``(11) Provide technical support and assistance to Department 
        acquisitions and acquisition personnel in conjunction with the 
        Chief Procurement Officer.
          ``(12) Prepare the Department's Comprehensive Acquisition 
        Status Report, as required by the Department of Homeland 
        Security Appropriations Act, 2013 (division D of Public Law 
        113-6; 127 Stat. 343) and section 840 of this Act, and make 
        such report available to congressional homeland security 
        committees.
          ``(13) Prepare the Department's Quarterly Program 
        Accountability Report as required by section 840 of this Act, 
        and make such report available to the congressional homeland 
        security committees.
  ``(c) Responsibilities of Components.--Each head of a Component shall 
comply with Federal law, the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and 
Department acquisition management directives established by the Under 
Secretary for Management. For each major acquisition program, each head 
of a Component shall--
          ``(1) establish a complete life cycle cost estimate with 
        supporting documentation, including an acquisition program 
        baseline;
          ``(2) verify each life cycle cost estimate against 
        independent cost estimates, and reconcile any differences;
          ``(3) complete a cost-benefit analysis with supporting 
        documentation;
          ``(4) develop and maintain a schedule that is consistent with 
        scheduling best practices as identified by the Comptroller 
        General of the United States, including, in appropriate cases, 
        an integrated master schedule; and
          ``(5) ensure that all acquisition program information 
        provided by the Component is complete, accurate, timely, and 
        valid.''.
  (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents in section 1(b) of the 
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.) is further amended 
by adding after the item relating to section 708 the following new 
item:

``Sec. 709. Requirements to ensure greater accountability for 
acquisition programs.''.

          TITLE II--ACQUISITION PROGRAM MANAGEMENT DISCIPLINE

SEC. 201. ACQUISITION REVIEW BOARD.

  (a) In General.--Subtitle D of title VIII of the Homeland Security 
Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 391 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
following new section:

``SEC. 836. ACQUISITION REVIEW BOARD.

  ``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall establish an Acquisition 
Review Board (in this section referred to as the `Board') to strengthen 
accountability and uniformity within the Department acquisition review 
process, review major acquisition programs, and review the use of best 
practices.
  ``(b) Composition.--The Deputy Secretary or Under Secretary for 
Management shall serve as chair of the Board. The Secretary shall also 
ensure participation by other relevant Department officials, including 
at least two Component heads or their designees, as permanent members 
of the Board.
  ``(c) Meetings.--The Board shall meet every time a major acquisition 
program needs authorization to proceed from acquisition decision events 
through the acquisition life cycle and to consider any major 
acquisition program in breach as necessary. The Board may also be 
convened for non-major acquisitions that are deemed high-risk by the 
Executive Director referred to in section 709(b) of this Act. The Board 
shall also meet regularly for purposes of ensuring all acquisitions 
processes proceed in a timely fashion to achieve mission readiness.
  ``(d) Responsibilities.--The responsibilities of the Board are as 
follows:
          ``(1) Determine whether a proposed acquisition has met the 
        requirements of key phases of the acquisition life cycle 
        framework and is able to proceed to the next phase and eventual 
        full production and deployment.
          ``(2) Oversee executable business strategy, resources, 
        management, accountability, and alignment to strategic 
        initiatives.
          ``(3) Support the person with acquisition decision authority 
        for an acquisition in determining the appropriate direction for 
        the acquisition at key acquisition decision events.
          ``(4) Conduct systematic reviews of acquisitions to ensure 
        that they are progressing in compliance with the approved 
        documents for their current acquisition phase.
          ``(5) Validate the acquisition documents of each major 
        acquisition program, including the acquisition program 
        baseline, to ensure the reliability of underlying data.
          ``(6) Ensure that practices are adopted and implemented to 
        require consideration of trade-offs among cost, schedule, and 
        performance objectives as part of the process for developing 
        requirements for major acquisition programs prior to the 
        initiation of the capability development plan, second 
        acquisition decision event, including, at a minimum, the 
        following practices:
                  ``(A) Department officials responsible for 
                acquisition, budget, and cost estimating functions are 
                provided with the appropriate opportunity to develop 
                estimates and raise cost and schedule matters before 
                performance objectives are established for capabilities 
                when feasible.
                  ``(B) Full consideration of possible trade-offs among 
                cost, schedule, and performance objectives for each 
                alternative is considered.
  ``(e) Acquisition Program Baseline Report Requirement.--If the person 
exercising acquisition decision authority over a major acquisition 
program approves the program to proceed beyond the acquisition decision 
event requiring a capability development plan before it has a 
Department-approved acquisition program baseline, then the Under 
Secretary for Management shall create and approve an acquisition 
program baseline report on the decision, and the Secretary shall--
          ``(1) within seven days after an acquisition decision 
        memorandum is signed, notify in writing the congressional 
        homeland security committees of such decision; and
          ``(2) within 60 days after the acquisition decision 
        memorandum is signed, submit a report to such committees 
        stating the rationale for the decision and a plan of action to 
        require an acquisition program baseline for the program.
  ``(f) Best Practices Defined.--In this section, the term `best 
practices' has the meaning provided in section 4(b) of the DHS 
Acquisition Accountability and Efficiency Act.''.
  (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents in section 1(b) of the 
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.) is further amended 
by adding after the item relating to section 835 the following new 
item:

``Sec. 836. Acquisition Review Board.''.

SEC. 202. REQUIREMENTS TO REDUCE DUPLICATION IN ACQUISITION PROGRAMS.

  (a) In General.--Subtitle D of title VIII of the Homeland Security 
Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 391 et seq.) is further amended by adding at the 
end the following new section:

``SEC. 837. REQUIREMENTS TO REDUCE DUPLICATION IN ACQUISITION PROGRAMS.

  ``(a) Requirement To Establish Policies.--In an effort to reduce 
duplication and inefficiency for all Department investments, including 
major acquisition programs, the Deputy Secretary, in consultation with 
the Under Secretary for Management, shall establish Department-wide 
policies to integrate all phases of the investment life cycle and help 
the Department identify, validate, and prioritize standards for common 
Component requirements for major acquisition program requirements in 
order to increase opportunities for effectiveness and efficiencies. The 
policies shall also include strategic alternatives for developing and 
facilitating a Department Component-driven requirements process that 
includes oversight of a development test and evaluation capability; 
identification of priority gaps and overlaps in Department capability 
needs; and provision of feasible technical alternatives, including 
innovative commercially available alternatives, to meet capability 
needs.
  ``(b) Mechanisms To Carry Out Requirement.--The Deputy Secretary, in 
consultation with the Under Secretary for Management, shall coordinate 
the actions necessary to carry out subsection (a), using such 
mechanisms as considered necessary by the Secretary to help the 
Department reduce duplication and inefficiency for all Department 
investments, including major acquisition programs.
  ``(c) Coordination.--In coordinating the actions necessary to carry 
out subsection (a), the Deputy Secretary shall consult with the Under 
Secretary for Management, Component Acquisition Executives, and any 
other Department officials, including the Under Secretary for Science 
and Technology or his designee, with specific knowledge of Department 
or Component acquisition capabilities to prevent unnecessary 
duplication of requirements.
  ``(d) Advisors.--The Deputy Secretary, in consultation with the Under 
Secretary for Management, shall seek and consider input within legal 
and ethical boundaries from members of Federal, State, local, and 
tribal governments, nonprofit organizations, and the private sector, as 
appropriate, on matters within their authority and expertise in 
carrying out the Department's mission.
  ``(e) Meetings.--The Deputy Secretary, in consultation with the Under 
Secretary for Management, shall meet at least quarterly and communicate 
with Components often to ensure that Components do not overlap or 
duplicate spending or priorities on major investments and acquisition 
programs within their areas of responsibility.
  ``(f) Responsibilities.--In carrying out this section, the 
responsibilities of the Deputy Secretary are as follows:
          ``(1) To review and validate the requirements documents of 
        major investments and acquisition programs prior to acquisition 
        decision events of the investments or programs.
          ``(2) To ensure the requirements and scope of a major 
        investment or acquisition program are stable, measurable, 
        achievable, at an acceptable risk level, and match the 
        resources planned to be available.
          ``(3) Before any entity of the Department issues a 
        solicitation for a new contract, coordinate with other 
        Department entities as appropriate to prevent duplication and 
        inefficiency and--
                  ``(A) to implement portfolio reviews to identify 
                common mission requirements and crosscutting 
                opportunities among Components to harmonize investments 
                and requirements and prevent overlap and duplication 
                among Components; and
                  ``(B) to the extent practicable, to standardize 
                equipment purchases, streamline the acquisition 
                process, improve efficiencies, and conduct best 
                practices for strategic sourcing.
          ``(4) To ensure program managers of major investments and 
        acquisition programs conduct analyses, giving particular 
        attention to factors such as cost, schedule, risk, performance, 
        and operational efficiency in order to determine that programs 
        work as intended within cost and budget expectations.
          ``(5) To propose schedules for delivery of the operational 
        capability needed to meet each Department investment and major 
        acquisition program.
  ``(g) Best Practices Defined.--In this section, the term `best 
practices' has the meaning provided in section 4(b) of the DHS 
Acquisition Accountability and Efficiency Act.''.
  (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents in section 1(b) of the 
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.) is further amended 
by adding after the item relating to section 836 the following new 
item:

``Sec. 837. Requirements to reduce duplication in acquisition 
programs.''.

SEC. 203. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE REVIEW OF BOARD AND OF 
                    REQUIREMENTS TO REDUCE DUPLICATION IN ACQUISITION 
                    PROGRAMS.

  (a) Review Required.--The Comptroller General of the United States 
shall conduct a review of the effectiveness of the Acquisition Review 
Board established under section 836 of the Homeland Security Act of 
2002 (as added by section 201) and the requirements to reduce 
duplication in acquisition programs established under section 837 of 
such Act (as added by section 202) in improving the Department's 
acquisition management process.
  (b) Scope of Report.--The review shall include the following:
          (1) An assessment of the effectiveness of the Department in 
        increasing program management oversight, best practices and 
        standards, and discipline among the Components of the 
        Department, including in working together and in preventing 
        overlap and duplication.
          (2) An assessment of the effectiveness of the Department in 
        instilling program management discipline.
          (3) A statement of how regularly each major acquisition 
        program is reviewed by the Board, how often the Board stops 
        major acquisition programs from moving forward in the phases of 
        the acquisition life cycle process, and the number of major 
        acquisition programs that have been halted because of problems 
        with operational effectiveness, schedule delays, or cost 
        overruns.
  (c) Report Required.--The Comptroller General shall submit to the 
congressional homeland security committees a report on the review 
required by this section not later than one year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act. The report shall be submitted in unclassified 
form but may include a classified annex.

SEC. 204. EXCLUDED PARTY LIST SYSTEM WAIVERS.

  The Secretary of Homeland Security shall provide notification to the 
congressional homeland security committees within five days after the 
issuance of a waiver by the Secretary of Federal requirements that an 
agency not engage in business with a contractor in the Excluded Party 
List System (or successor system) as maintained by the General Services 
Administration and an explanation for a finding by the Secretary that a 
compelling reason exists for this action.

SEC. 205. INSPECTOR GENERAL OVERSIGHT OF SUSPENSION AND DEBARMENT.

  The Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security--
          (1) may audit decisions about grant and procurement awards to 
        identify instances where a contract or grant was improperly 
        awarded to a suspended or debarred entity and whether 
        corrective actions were taken to prevent recurrence; and
          (2) shall review the suspension and debarment program 
        throughout the Department of Homeland Security to assess 
        whether suspension and debarment criteria are consistently 
        applied throughout the Department and whether disparities exist 
        in the application of such criteria, particularly with respect 
        to business size and categories.

     TITLE III--ACQUISITION PROGRAM MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTABILITY AND 
                              TRANSPARENCY

SEC. 301. CONGRESSIONAL NOTIFICATION AND OTHER REQUIREMENTS FOR MAJOR 
                    ACQUISITION PROGRAM BREACH.

  (a) In General.--Subtitle D of title VIII of the Homeland Security 
Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 391 et seq.) is further amended by adding at the 
end the following new section:

``SEC. 838. CONGRESSIONAL NOTIFICATION AND OTHER REQUIREMENTS FOR MAJOR 
                    ACQUISITION PROGRAM BREACH.

  ``(a) Breach Defined.--The term `breach', with respect to a major 
acquisition program, means a failure to meet any cost, schedule, or 
performance parameter specified in the acquisition program baseline.
  ``(b) Requirements Within Department if Breach Occurs.--
          ``(1) Notifications.--
                  ``(A) Notification of potential breach.--If a major 
                acquisition program has a potential for a future 
                breach, as determined by the program manager for that 
                program, the program manager shall notify the person 
                exercising acquisition decision authority for the 
                program.
                  ``(B) Notification of actual breach.--If an actual 
                breach occurs in a major acquisition program, the 
                program manager for that program shall notify the head 
                of the Component concerned, the Component Acquisition 
                Executive for the program, the Executive Director 
                referred to in section 709(b) of this Act, the Under 
                Secretary for Management, and the Deputy Secretary.
                  ``(C) Notification to secretary.--If a major 
                acquisition program has an actual breach with a cost 
                overrun greater than 20 percent or a schedule delay 
                greater than 12 months from the costs or schedule set 
                forth in the acquisition program baseline for the 
                program, the Secretary and the Inspector General of the 
                Department shall be notified not later than five 
                business days after the actual breach is identified.
          ``(2) Remediation plan and root cause analysis.--
                  ``(A) In general.--In the case of an actual breach 
                with a cost overrun greater than 15 percent or a 
                schedule delay greater than 180 days from the costs or 
                schedule set forth in the acquisition program baseline, 
                a remediation plan and root cause analysis is required, 
                and the Under Secretary for Management or his designee 
                shall establish a date for submission within the 
                Department of a breach remediation plan and root cause 
                analysis in accordance with this subsection.
                  ``(B) Remediation plan.--The remediation plan 
                required under this subsection shall be submitted in 
                writing to the head of the Component concerned, the 
                Executive Director referred to in section 709(b) of 
                this Act, and the Under Secretary for Management. The 
                plan shall--
                          ``(i) explain the circumstances of the 
                        breach;
                          ``(ii) provide prior cost estimating 
                        information;
                          ``(iii) propose corrective action to control 
                        cost growth, schedule delays, or performance 
                        issues;
                          ``(iv) in coordination with Component 
                        Acquisition Executive, discuss all options 
                        considered, including the estimated impact on 
                        cost, schedule, or performance of the program 
                        if no changes are made to current requirements, 
                        the estimated cost of the program if 
                        requirements are modified, and the extent to 
                        which funding from other programs will need to 
                        be reduced to cover the cost growth of the 
                        program; and
                          ``(v) explain the rationale for why the 
                        proposed corrective action is recommended.
                  ``(C) Root cause analysis.--The root cause analysis 
                required under this subsection shall determine the 
                underlying cause or causes of shortcomings in cost, 
                schedule, or performance of the program, including the 
                role, if any, of the following:
                          ``(i) Unrealistic performance expectations.
                          ``(ii) Unrealistic baseline estimates for 
                        cost or schedule or changes in program 
                        requirements.
                          ``(iii) Immature technologies or excessive 
                        manufacturing or integration risk.
                          ``(iv) Unanticipated design, engineering, 
                        manufacturing, or technology integration issues 
                        arising during program performance.
                          ``(v) Changes in procurement quantities.
                          ``(vi) Inadequate program funding or changes 
                        in planned out-year funding from one five-year 
                        funding plan to the next five-year funding plan 
                        as outlined in the Future Years Homeland 
                        Security Program required under section 874 of 
                        this Act.
                          ``(vii) Legislative, legal, or regulatory 
                        changes.
                          ``(viii) Inadequate program management 
                        personnel, including lack of training, 
                        credentials, certifications, or use of best 
                        practices.
          ``(3) Correction of breach.--The Under Secretary for 
        Management or his designee shall establish a date for 
        submission within the Department of a program of corrective 
        action that ensures that one of the following actions has 
        occurred:
                  ``(A) The breach has been corrected and the program 
                is again in compliance with the original acquisition 
                program baseline parameters.
                  ``(B) A revised acquisition program baseline has been 
                approved.
                  ``(C) The program has been halted or cancelled.
  ``(c) Requirements Relating to Congressional Notification if Breach 
Occurs.--
          ``(1) Notification to congress.--If a notification is made 
        under subsection (b)(1)(B) for a breach in a major acquisition 
        program with a cost overrun greater than 15 percent or a 
        schedule delay greater than 180 days from the costs or schedule 
        set forth in the acquisition program baseline, or with an 
        anticipated failure for any key performance threshold or 
        parameter specified in the acquisition program baseline, the 
        Under Secretary for Management shall notify the congressional 
        homeland security committees of the breach in the next 
        quarterly Comprehensive Acquisition Status Report after the 
        Under Secretary for Management receives the notification from 
        the program manager under subsection (b)(1)(B).
          ``(2) Substantial variances in costs or schedule.--If a 
        likely cost overrun is greater than 20 percent or a likely 
        delay is greater than 12 months from the costs and schedule set 
        forth in the acquisition program baseline for a major 
        acquisition program, the Under Secretary for Management shall 
        include in the notification required in (c)(1) a written 
        certification, with supporting explanation, that--
                  ``(A) the acquisition is essential to the 
                accomplishment of the Department's mission;
                  ``(B) there are no alternatives to such capability or 
                asset that will provide equal or greater capability in 
                both a more cost-effective and timely manner;
                  ``(C) the new acquisition schedule and estimates for 
                total acquisition cost are reasonable; and
                  ``(D) the management structure for the acquisition 
                program is adequate to manage and control performance, 
                cost, and schedule.
          ``(3) Submissions to congress.--Not later than 30 calendar 
        days after submission to such committees of a breach 
        notification under paragraph (1) of this section for a major 
        acquisition program, the Under Secretary for Management shall 
        submit to such committees the following:
                  ``(A) A copy of the remediation plan and the root 
                cause analysis prepared under subsection (b)(2) for the 
                program.
                  ``(B) A statement describing the corrective action or 
                actions that have occurred pursuant to subsection 
                (b)(3) for the program, with a justification for the 
                action or actions.
  ``(d) Additional Actions if Breach Occurs.--
          ``(1) Prohibition on obligation of funds.--During the 90-day 
        period following submission under subsection (c)(3) of a 
        remediation plan, root cause analysis, and statement of 
        corrective actions with respect to a major acquisition program, 
        the Under Secretary for Management shall submit a certification 
        described in paragraph (2) of this subsection to the 
        congressional homeland security committees. If the Under 
        Secretary for Management does not submit such certification by 
        the end of such 90-day period, then funds appropriated to the 
        major acquisition program shall not be obligated until the 
        Under Secretary for Management submits such certification.
          ``(2) Certification.--For purposes of paragraph (1), the 
        certification described in this paragraph is a certification 
        that--
                  ``(A) the Department has adjusted or restructured the 
                program in a manner that addresses the root cause or 
                causes of the cost growth in the program; and
                  ``(B) the Department has conducted a thorough review 
                of the breached program's acquisition decision event 
                approvals and the current acquisition decision event 
                approval for the breached program has been adjusted as 
                necessary to account for the restructured program.''.
  (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents in section 1(b) of the 
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.) is further amended 
by adding after the item relating to section 837 the following new 
item:

``Sec. 838. Congressional notification and other requirements for major 
acquisition program breach.''.

SEC. 302. MULTIYEAR ACQUISITION STRATEGY.

  (a) In General.--
          (1) Amendment.--Subtitle D of title VIII of the Homeland 
        Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 391 et seq.) is further amended 
        by adding at the end the following new section:

``SEC. 839. MULTIYEAR ACQUISITION STRATEGY.

  ``(a) Multiyear Acquisition Strategy Required.--Not later than one 
year after the date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary 
shall submit to the appropriate homeland security committees a 
multiyear acquisition strategy to guide the overall direction of the 
acquisitions of the Department while allowing flexibility to deal with 
ever-changing threats and risks and to help industry better understand, 
plan, and align resources to meet the future acquisition needs of the 
Department. The strategy shall be updated and included in each Future 
Years Homeland Security Program required under section 874 of this Act.
  ``(b) Consultation.--In developing the strategy, the Secretary shall 
consult with others as the Secretary deems appropriate, including 
headquarters, Components, employees in the field, and when appropriate, 
individuals from industry and the academic community.
  ``(c) Form of Strategy.--The report shall be submitted in 
unclassified form but may include a classified annex for any sensitive 
or classified information if necessary. The Department also shall 
publish the plan in an unclassified format that is publicly available.
  ``(d) Contents of Strategy.--The strategy shall include the 
following:
          ``(1) Prioritized list.--A systematic and integrated 
        prioritized list developed by the Under Secretary for 
        Management or his designee in coordination with all of the 
        Component Acquisition Executives of Department major 
        acquisition programs that Department and Component acquisition 
        investments seek to address, that includes the expected 
        security and economic benefit of the program or system and an 
        analysis of how the security and economic benefit derived from 
        the program or system will be measured.
          ``(2) Inventory.--A plan to develop a reliable Department-
        wide inventory of investments and real property assets to help 
        the Department plan, budget, schedule, and acquire upgrades of 
        its systems and equipment and plan for the acquisition and 
        management of future systems and equipment.
          ``(3) Funding gaps.--A plan to address funding gaps between 
        funding requirements for major acquisition programs and known 
        available resources including, to the maximum extent 
        practicable, ways of leveraging best practices to identify and 
        eliminate overpayment for items to prevent wasteful purchasing, 
        achieve the greatest level of efficiency and cost savings by 
        rationalizing purchases, aligning pricing for similar items, 
        and utilizing purchase timing and economies of scale.
          ``(4) Identification of capabilities.--An identification of 
        test, evaluation, modeling, and simulation capabilities that 
        will be required to support the acquisition of the technologies 
        to meet the needs of the plan and ways to leverage to the 
        greatest extent possible the emerging technology trends and 
        research and development trends within the public and private 
        sectors and an identification of ways to ensure that the 
        appropriate technology is acquired and integrated into the 
        Department's operating doctrine and procured in ways that 
        improve mission performance.
          ``(5) Focus on flexible solutions.--An assessment of ways the 
        Department can improve its ability to test and acquire 
        innovative solutions to allow needed incentives and protections 
        for appropriate risk-taking in order to meet its acquisition 
        needs with resiliency, agility, and responsiveness to assure 
        the Nation's homeland security and facilitate trade.
          ``(6) Focus on incentives to save taxpayer dollars.--An 
        assessment of ways the Department can develop incentives for 
        program managers and senior Department acquisition officials to 
        prevent cost overruns, avoid schedule delays, and achieve cost 
        savings in major acquisition programs.
          ``(7) Focus on addressing delays and bid protests.--An 
        assessment of ways the Department can improve the acquisition 
        process to minimize cost overruns in requirements development, 
        procurement announcements, requests for proposals, evaluation 
        of proposals, protests of decisions and awards and through the 
        use of best practices as defined in section 4(b) of the DHS 
        Acquisition Accountability and Efficiency Act and lessons 
        learned by the Department and other Federal agencies.
          ``(8) Focus on improving outreach.--An identification and 
        assessment of ways to increase opportunities for communication 
        and collaboration with industry, small and disadvantaged 
        businesses, intra-government entities, university centers of 
        excellence, accredited certification and standards development 
        organizations, and national laboratories to ensure that the 
        Department understands the market for technologies, products, 
        and innovation that is available to meet its mission needs to 
        inform the requirements-setting process and before engaging in 
        an acquisition, including--
                  ``(A) methods designed especially to engage small and 
                disadvantaged businesses and a cost-benefit analysis of 
                the tradeoffs that small and disadvantaged businesses 
                provide, barriers to entry for small and disadvantaged 
                businesses, and unique requirements for small and 
                disadvantaged businesses; and
                  ``(B) within the Department Vendor Communication Plan 
                and Market Research Guide, instructions for interaction 
                by program managers with such entities to prevent 
                misinterpretation of acquisition regulations and to 
                permit freedom within legal and ethical boundaries for 
                program managers to interact with such businesses with 
                transparency.
          ``(9) Competition.--A plan regarding competition as described 
        in subsection (e).
          ``(10) Acquisition workforce.--A plan regarding the 
        Department acquisition workforce as described in subsection 
        (f).
          ``(11) Feasibility of workforce development fund pilot 
        program.--An assessment of the feasibility of conducting a 
        pilot program to establish an acquisition workforce development 
        fund as described in subsection (g).
  ``(e) Competition Plan.--The strategy shall also include a plan 
(referred to in subsection (d)(9)) that shall address actions to ensure 
competition, or the option of competition, for major acquisition 
programs. The plan may include assessments of the following measures in 
appropriate cases if such measures are cost effective:
          ``(1) Competitive prototyping.
          ``(2) Dual-sourcing.
          ``(3) Unbundling of contracts.
          ``(4) Funding of next-generation prototype systems or 
        subsystems.
          ``(5) Use of modular, open architectures to enable 
        competition for upgrades.
          ``(6) Acquisition of complete technical data packages.
          ``(7) Periodic competitions for subsystem upgrades.
          ``(8) Licensing of additional suppliers, including small 
        businesses.
          ``(9) Periodic system or program reviews to address long-term 
        competitive effects of program decisions.
  ``(f) Acquisition Workforce Plan.--
          ``(1) Acquisition workforce.--The strategy shall also include 
        a plan (referred to in subsection (d)(10)) to address 
        Department acquisition workforce accountability and talent 
        management that identifies the acquisition workforce needs of 
        each Component performing acquisition functions and develops 
        options for filling those needs with qualified individuals, 
        including a cost-benefit analysis of contracting for 
        acquisition assistance.
          ``(2) Additional matters covered.--The acquisition workforce 
        plan shall address ways to--
                  ``(A) improve the recruitment, hiring, training, and 
                retention of Department acquisition workforce 
                personnel, including contracting officer's 
                representatives, in order to retain highly qualified 
                individuals that have experience in the acquisition 
                life cycle, complex procurements, and management of 
                large programs;
                  ``(B) empower program managers to have the authority 
                to manage their programs in an accountable and 
                transparent manner as they work with the acquisition 
                workforce;
                  ``(C) prevent duplication within Department 
                acquisition workforce training and certification 
                requirements through leveraging already-existing 
                training within the Federal Government, academic 
                community, or private industry;
                  ``(D) achieve integration and consistency with 
                Government-wide training and accreditation standards, 
                acquisition training tools, and training facilities;
                  ``(E) designate the acquisition positions that will 
                be necessary to support the Department acquisition 
                requirements, including in the fields of--
                          ``(i) program management;
                          ``(ii) systems engineering;
                          ``(iii) procurement, including contracting;
                          ``(iv) test and evaluation;
                          ``(v) life cycle logistics;
                          ``(vi) cost estimating and program financial 
                        management; and
                          ``(vii) additional disciplines appropriate to 
                        Department mission needs;
                  ``(F) strengthen the performance of contracting 
                officer's representatives (as defined in Subpart 1.602-
                2 and Subpart 2.101 of the Federal Acquisition 
                Regulation), including by--
                          ``(i) assessing the extent to which 
                        contracting officer's representatives are 
                        certified and receive training that is 
                        appropriate;
                          ``(ii) determining what training is most 
                        effective with respect to the type and 
                        complexity of assignment; and
                          ``(iii) implementing actions to improve 
                        training based on such assessment; and
                  ``(G) identify ways to increase training for relevant 
                investigators and auditors to examine fraud in major 
                acquisition programs, including identifying 
                opportunities to leverage existing Government and 
                private sector resources in coordination with the 
                Inspector General of the Department.
  ``(g) Feasibility of Workforce Development Fund Pilot Program.--The 
strategy shall also include an assessment (referred to in subsection 
(d)(11)) of the feasibility of conducting a pilot program to establish 
a Homeland Security Acquisition Workforce Development Fund (in this 
subsection referred to as the `Fund') to ensure the Department 
acquisition workforce has the capacity, in both personnel and skills, 
needed to properly perform its mission and ensure that the Department 
receives the best value for the expenditure of public resources. The 
assessment shall address the following:
          ``(1) Ways to fund the Fund, including the use of direct 
        appropriations, or the credit, transfer, or deposit of 
        unobligated or unused funds from Department Components into the 
        Fund to remain available for obligation in the fiscal year for 
        which credited, transferred, or deposited and to remain 
        available for successive fiscal years.
          ``(2) Ways to reward the Department acquisition workforce and 
        program managers for good program management in controlling 
        cost growth, limiting schedule delays, and ensuring operational 
        effectiveness through providing a percentage of the savings or 
        general acquisition bonuses.
          ``(3) Guidance for the administration of the Fund that 
        includes provisions to do the following:
                  ``(A) Describe the costs and benefits associated with 
                the use of direct appropriations or credit, transfer, 
                or deposit of unobligated or unused funds to finance 
                the Fund.
                  ``(B) Describe the manner and timing for applications 
                for amounts in the Fund to be submitted.
                  ``(C) Explain the evaluation criteria to be used for 
                approving or prioritizing applications for amounts in 
                the Fund in any fiscal year.
                  ``(D) Explain the mechanism to report to Congress on 
                the implementation of the Fund on an ongoing basis.
                  ``(E) Detail measurable performance metrics to 
                determine if the Fund is meeting the objective to 
                improve the acquisition workforce and to achieve cost 
                savings in acquisition management.''.
          (2) Clerical amendment.--The table of contents in section 
        1(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et 
        seq.) is further amended by adding after the item relating to 
        section 838 the following new item:

``Sec. 839. Multiyear acquisition strategy.''.

  (b) Conforming Amendment to Future Years Homeland Security Program.--
Section 874(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 454(b)) 
is amended--
          (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (2);
          (2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (3) and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
          (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
          ``(4) include the multiyear acquisition strategy required 
        under section 839 of this Act.''.

SEC. 303. ACQUISITION REPORTS.

  (a) In General.--Subtitle D of title VIII of the Homeland Security 
Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 391 et seq.) is further amended by adding at the 
end the following new section:

``SEC. 840. ACQUISITION REPORTS.

  ``(a) Comprehensive Acquisition Status Report.--
          ``(1) In general.--The Under Secretary for Management each 
        year shall submit to the congressional homeland security 
        committees, at the same time as the President's budget is 
        submitted for a fiscal year under section 1105(a) of title 31, 
        United States Code, a comprehensive acquisition status report. 
        The report shall include the following:
                  ``(A) The information required under the heading 
                `Office of the Under Secretary for Management' under 
                Title I of division D of the Consolidated 
                Appropriations Act, 2012 (Public Law 112-74) (as 
                required under the Department of Homeland Security 
                Appropriations Act, 2013 (Public Law 113-6).
                  ``(B) A listing of programs that have been cancelled, 
                modified, paused, or referred to the Under Secretary 
                for Management or Deputy Secretary for additional 
                oversight or action by the Board, Department Office of 
                Inspector General, or the Comptroller General.
                  ``(C) A listing of established Executive Steering 
                Committees, which provide governance of a program or 
                related set of programs and lower-tiered oversight, and 
                support between acquisition decision events and 
                Component reviews, including the mission and membership 
                for each.
          ``(2) Information for major acquisition programs.--For each 
        major acquisition program, the report shall include the 
        following:
                  ``(A) A narrative description, including current gaps 
                and shortfalls, the capabilities to be fielded, and the 
                number of planned increments or units.
                  ``(B) Acquisition Review Board (or other board 
                designated to review the acquisition) status of each 
                acquisition, including the current acquisition phase, 
                the date of the last review, and a listing of the 
                required documents that have been reviewed with the 
                dates reviewed or approved.
                  ``(C) The most current, approved acquisition program 
                baseline (including project schedules and events).
                  ``(D) A comparison of the original acquisition 
                program baseline, the current acquisition program 
                baseline, and the current estimate.
                  ``(E) Whether or not an independent verification and 
                validation has been implemented, with an explanation 
                for the decision and a summary of any findings.
                  ``(F) A rating of cost risk, schedule risk, and 
                technical risk associated with the program (including 
                narrative descriptions and mitigation actions).
                  ``(G) Contract status (including earned value 
                management data as applicable).
                  ``(H) A lifecycle cost of the acquisition, and time 
                basis for the estimate.
          ``(3) Updates.--The Under Secretary shall submit quarterly 
        updates to such report not later than 45 days after the 
        completion of each quarter.
  ``(b) Quarterly Program Accountability Report.--The Under Secretary 
for Management shall prepare a quarterly program accountability report 
to meet the Department's mandate to perform program health assessments 
and improve program execution and governance. The report shall be 
submitted to the congressional homeland security committees.''.
  (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents in section 1(b) of the 
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.) is further amended 
by adding after the item relating to section 839 the following new 
item:

``Sec. 840. Acquisition reports.''.

SEC. 304. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE REVIEW OF MULTIYEAR 
                    ACQUISITION STRATEGY.

  (a) Review Required.--After submission to Congress of the first 
multiyear acquisition strategy (pursuant to section 839 of the Homeland 
Security Act of 2002) after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a review of the 
plan within 180 days to analyze the viability of the plan's 
effectiveness in the following:
          (1) Complying with the requirements in section 839 of the 
        Homeland Security Act of 2002, as added by section 302 of this 
        Act.
          (2) Establishing clear connections between Department 
        objectives and acquisition priorities.
          (3) Demonstrating that Department acquisition policy reflects 
        program management best practices and standards.
          (4) Ensuring competition or the option of competition for 
        major acquisition programs.
          (5) Considering potential cost savings through using already-
        existing technologies when developing acquisition program 
        requirements.
          (6) Preventing duplication within Department acquisition 
        workforce training requirements through leveraging already-
        existing training within the Federal Government, academic 
        community, or private industry.
          (7) Providing incentives for program managers to reduce 
        acquisition and procurement costs through the use of best 
        practices and disciplined program management.
          (8) Assessing the feasibility of conducting a pilot program 
        to establish a Homeland Security Acquisition Workforce 
        Development Fund.
  (b) Report Required.--The Comptroller General shall submit to the 
congressional homeland security committees a report on the review 
required by this section. The report shall be submitted in unclassified 
form but may include a classified annex.

SEC. 305. OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL REPORT.

  (a) Review Required.--No later than 2 years following the submission 
of the report submitted by the Comptroller General of the United States 
as required by section 304, the Department's Inspector General shall 
conduct a review of whether the Department has complied with the 
multiyear acquisition strategy (pursuant to section 839 of the Homeland 
Security Act of 2002) and adhered to the strategies set forth in the 
plan. The review shall also consider whether the Department has 
complied with the requirements to provide the Acquisition Review Board 
with a capability development plan for each major acquisition program.
  (b) Report Required.--The Inspector General shall submit to the 
congressional homeland security committees a report of the review 
required by this section. The report shall be submitted in unclassified 
form but may include a classified annex.

                          Purpose and Summary

    The purpose of H.R. 4228 is to require the Department of 
Homeland Security to improve discipline, accountability, and 
transparency in acquisition program management.

                  Background and Need for Legislation

    The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spends billions 
of taxpayer dollars each year in major acquisition programs to 
help protect the homeland. For example, in fiscal year 2013, 
DHS spent almost $10 billion on acquisition programs for a 
variety of missions, such as border security, aviation 
passenger screening, and infrastructure protection. DHS will 
spend at least $300 million on each program and take years to 
develop and procure them. Despite the critical need to protect 
the homeland from terrorist attacks and other events, DHS 
acknowledges that its current major acquisition portfolio is 
unaffordable. Due to increasing fiscal constraints and 
persistent security risks, DHS must ensure its acquisition 
processes are effective and efficient to minimize cost 
overruns, schedule delays, and performance issues. The DHS 
Acquisition Accountability and Efficiency Act addresses these 
issues and implements solutions to save taxpayer dollars and 
increase mission performance.
    Since 2005, the Comptroller General of the United States--
the head of the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO)--
has identified DHS's acquisition management as an activity on 
GAO's ``High Risk List,'' which identifies programs highly 
susceptible to fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement or most 
in need of broad reform. In April 2014, GAO noted weaknesses in 
DHS's acquisition planning process and portfolio management. 
GAO found that, as of November 2013, DHS still lacked 
Acquisition Program Baselines for 21 of 46 major acquisition 
programs and, as of December 2013, DHS had only approved life 
cycle cost estimates for 20 of 80 major acquisition programs. 
Further, GAO found that DHS' largest acquisition programs will 
likely experience schedule slips, cost growth, and capability 
reductions in the coming years if funding instability worsens.
    This year alone, there have been examples of poor DHS 
acquisition management. In March 2014, GAO found that U.S. 
Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) Arizona Border 
Surveillance Technology Plan, a plan including seven programs 
with estimated costs from $3 million to $961 million, does not 
include an Integrated Master Schedule in accordance with best 
practices nor does it have an independent cost estimate for its 
life cycle cost estimate. In January 2014, GAO found that CBP's 
TECS Modernization program, estimated to cost $724 million, 
lacks a fully developed master schedule and is revising its 
schedule baseline for the second time in under a year. 
Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) TECS Modernization 
program, estimated to cost $818 million, determined in June 
2013 as unviable, is reassessing its design alternatives and 
schedule and cost estimates, which jeopardizes its ability to 
meet its 2015 deadline.
    GAO also reported in September 2012 that 42 DHS acquisition 
programs experienced cost growth, schedule delays, or both. 
GAO's report noted that 16 programs incurred an aggregate total 
cost growth of 166 percent. However, the report noted that many 
acquisition programs lacked Acquisition Program Baselines-key 
documents detailing a program's cost, schedule, and performance 
goals. As a result, GAO could not assess to what extent cost 
growth occurred in most major acquisition programs at DHS.
    In addition, the DHS Office of Inspector General reported 
in 2013 that DHS lacked reliable Department-wide inventory data 
on legacy radio systems and mismanaged a $3 billion Department-
wide strategic sourcing contract to modernize these systems. 
The Inspector General also reported in 2013 that the U.S. 
Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Coast Guard could have 
better coordinated on the acquisition and modification of DHS 
helicopters. Examples from GAO and the Inspector General 
highlight the need for a more disciplined, accountable, and 
transparent process to DHS's acquisition management.
    Over ten years after the creation of the Department, DHS 
cannot rely on increased budgets to rectify past mistakes. DHS 
cannot continue to utilize immature processes for the 
management of acquisition functions. Combining 22 disparate 
agencies under one department was one of the most extensive 
reorganizations in the Federal Government since World War II. 
However, over ten years later, DHS must improve its management 
of major acquisitions. As the Department's Chief Acquisition 
Officer, the Under Secretary for Management should have the 
authorities needed to hold programs accountable.
    The Committee believes that DHS must increase its 
communication with Congress. Improving transparency when cost, 
schedule, or performance issues arise will increase the 
Committee's assurance that DHS has a plan to improve, track, 
and institutionalize lessons learned to prevent future issues. 
To date, DHS has lacked a strategy to guide the billions of 
dollars it spends on these major acquisition programs. A more 
strategic approach is needed to ensure taxpayer dollars are 
spent in the most efficient and effective manner. The DHS 
Acquisition Accountability and Efficiency Act addresses these 
areas to improve the Department's management and better secure 
the homeland.

                                Hearings

    No hearings were held specifically on H.R. 4228. However, 
the Committee held oversight hearings related to acquisition 
issues addressed in H.R. 4228. These hearings are listed below.

112th Congress
    On July 15, 2011, the Subcommittee on Oversight, 
Investigations, and Management held a hearing entitled 
``Homeland Security Contracting: Does the Department 
Effectively Leverage Emerging Technologies?'' The Subcommittee 
received testimony from Mr. Charles K. Edwards, Acting 
Inspector General, Department of Homeland Security; Mr. David 
Maurer, Director, Homeland Security and Justice Team, 
Government Accountability Office; Mr. Rafael Borras, Under 
Secretary for Management and Chief Acquisition Officer, 
Department of Homeland Security; Dr. Tara O'Toole, Under 
Secretary, Science and Technology Directorate, Department of 
Homeland Security; Mr. Jim Williams, Vice Chair, Homeland 
Security Committee, TechAmerica; Mr. Marc Pearl, President and 
CEO, Homeland Security and Defense Business Council; and Mr. 
Scott Amey, General Counsel, Project on Government Oversight.
    On September 21, 2012, the Subcommittee on Oversight, 
Investigations, and Management held a hearing entitled ``DHS 
Acquisition Management Challenges: Solutions for Saving 
Taxpayer Dollars.'' The Subcommittee received testimony from 
Mr. John Hutton, Director, Acquisition and Sourcing Management, 
Government Accountability Office; Dr. Nick Nayak, Chief 
Procurement Officer, Department of Homeland Security; Mr. Mark 
Borkowski, Assistant Commissioner, Office of Technology 
Innovation and Acquisition, Customs and Border Protection, 
Department of Homeland Security; Ms. Karen Shelton Waters, 
Assistant Administrator, Office of Acquisition, Transportation 
Security Administration, Department of Homeland Security.

113th Congress
    On September 19, 2013, the Subcommittee on Oversight and 
Management Efficiency held a hearing entitled ``DHS Acquisition 
Practices: Improving Outcomes for Taxpayers Using Defense and 
Private Sector Lessons Learned.'' The Subcommittee received 
testimony from Hon. Rafael Borras, Undersecretary for 
Management, Department of Homeland Security; Ms. Michele 
Mackin, Director, GAO; Ms. Anne Richards, Assistant Inspector 
General for Audits, DHS Office of Inspector General; Mr. 
William C. Greenwalt, Visiting Fellow, American Enterprise 
Institute; Mr. Stan Soloway, President and CEO, Professional 
Services Council; Mr. David Berteau, Senior Vice President, 
Center for Strategic and International Studies.

                        Committee Consideration

    The Subcommittee on Oversight and Management Efficiency met 
on March 26, 2014, to consider H.R. 4228, and ordered the 
measure forwarded to the Full Committee with a favorable 
recommendation, amended, by voice vote. The Committee took the 
following actions:
    The following amendments were offered:
 An Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute offered by Mr. 
Duncan (#1); was AGREED TO, as amended, by voice vote.

 An en bloc amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a 
Substitute to H.R. 4228 offered by Mr. Barber (#1A); was AGREED 
TO by voice vote.
     Consisting of the following amendments:

  An amendment:
     Page 17, line 6, insert after ``including'' the following: ``, in 
particular,''

  An amendment:
     Page 22, beginning on line 17, strike ``The Chief Financial 
Officer'' and all that follows through ``The Board shall'' on line 20, 
and insert ``The Secretary shall''.

  An amendment:
     Page 40, lines 15 and 16, strike ``ranked based on mission and 
greatest security risks to the homeland''.

 An amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to 
H.R. 4228 offered by Mr. Daines (#1B); was AGREED TO by voice 
vote.
     Page 42, insert after line 2 a new paragraph entitled ``(6) Focus 
on incentives to save taxpayer dollars.''
     Page 42, line 3, strike ``(6)'' and insert ``(7)''.
     Page 42, line 13, strike ``(7)'' and insert ``(8)''.
     Page 43, line 16, strike ``(8)'' and insert ``(9)''.
     Page 43, line 18, strike ``(9)'' and insert ``(10)''.
     Page 43, line 21, strike ``(10)'' and insert ``(11)''.
     Page 44, line 2, strike ``(d)(8)'' and insert ``(d)(9)''.
     Page 45, line 1, strike ``(d)(9)'' and insert ``(d)(10)''.
     Page 46, line 21, strike ``(d)(10)'' and insert ``(d)(11)''.;

 An en bloc amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a 
Substitute to H.R. 4228 offered by Mr. O'Rourke (#1C); was 
AGREED TO by voice vote.
     Consisting of the following amendments:

  An amendment:
     Page 21, starting on line 11, strike ``For each major 
acquisition'' and all that follows through the period on line 16, and 
insert the following: ``For each major acquisition, each head of a 
Component shall--
       ``(1) establish a complete life cycle cost estimate with 
supporting documentation;
       ``(2) verify each life cycle cost estimate against independent 
cost estimates, and reconcile any differences;
       ``(3) complete a cost-benefit analysis with supporting 
documentation;
       ``(4) develop and maintain a schedule that is consistent with 
scheduling best practices as identified by the Comptroller General of 
the United States, including, in appropriate cases, an integrated 
master schedule; and
       ``(5) ensure that all acquisition program information provided 
by the Component is complete, accurate, timely, and valid.

  An amendment:
     Page 40, line 17, after ``address'' insert ``, that includes the 
expected security benefit of the program or system and an analysis of 
how the security benefit derived from the program or system will be 
measured''

 An amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to 
H.R. 4228 on the roster by Mr. Payne (#1D); was ADOPTED by 
unanimous consent.
     Page 45, line 12, insert after ``personnel'' the following ``, 
including contracting officer's representatives,''.;

 An amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to 
H.R. 4228 offered by Mr. Payne (#1E); was ADOPTED by unanimous 
consent.
     Page 46, after line 18, insert the following:
       ``(F) strengthen the performance of contracting officer's 
representatives (as defined in Subpart 1.602-2 and Subpart 2.101 of the 
Federal Acquisition Regulation), including by-
         ``(i) assessing the extent to which contracting officer's 
representatives are certified and receive training that is appropriate;
         ``(ii) determining what training is most effective with 
respect to the type and complexity of assignment; and ``(ii) 
implementing actions to improve training based on such assessment.''.
     Page 46, line 4, strike ``and''.
     Page 46, line 18, strike the period and insert ``; and''.

    The Committee met on April 30, 2014, to consider H.R. 4228, 
and ordered the measure to be reported to the House, with a 
favorable recommendation, amended, by voice vote. The Committee 
took the following actions:
 An Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to H.R. 4228 
offered by Mr. Duncan (#1); was AGREED TO, amended, by voice 
vote.

 An en bloc amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a 
Substitute to H.R. 4228 offered by Mr. Thompson of Mississippi 
(#1A); was AGREED TO by voice vote.
     Consisting of the following amendments:

  An amendment:
     Page 11, after line 20, insert the following ``(F) Ensuring that 
grants and financial Assistance are provided only to responsible 
individuals and organizations that are not excluded from government 
participation.

  An amendment:
     Page 13, after line 2, insert the following new paragraph entitled 
``(4) Excluded parties list system consultation.''

  An amendment:
     Page 16, line 22, insert before the semicolon at the end the 
following: ``and including training on how best to identify actions 
that warrant referrals for suspension or debarment".

  An amendment:
     P. 17, line 11, strike ``businesses and'' and insert 
``businesses,''.
     Page 17, line 12, strike ``participation.'' and insert 
``participation, and ensure, to the extent practicable, small 
businesses that achieve qualified vendor status for security-related 
technologies are provided an opportunity to compete for contracts for 
such technology.''

 An amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to 
H.R. 4228 offered by Mr. Barletta (#1B); was AGREED TO by voice 
vote.
     Page 48, line 12, strike ``and''.
     Page 48, line 25, strike the period at the end and insert ``; 
and''.
     Page 48, after line 25, insert the following:
     ``(G) identify ways to increase training for relevant 
investigators and auditors to examine fraud in major acquisition 
programs, including identifying opportunities to leverage existing 
Government and private sector resources in coordination with the 
Inspector General of the Department.

 An amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to 
H.R. 4228 offered by Ms. Clarke (#1C); was AGREED TO by voice 
vote.
     Page 11, after line 20, insert the following:
     ``(F) Distributing guidance throughout the Department to ensure 
that contractors involved in acquisitions, particularly companies that 
access the Department's information systems and technologies, adhere to 
internal cybersecurity policies established by the Department of 
Homeland Security.

 An amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to 
H.R. 4228 offered by Mr. Barber (#1D); was WITHDRAWN by 
unanimous consent.
     Page 17, after line 12, insert the following (and make appropriate 
technical and conforming amendments):
     ``(10) encourage the Department to enter into contracts with 
nonprofit agencies employing persons who are blind or are other 
severally disabled as defined under chapter 85 of title 41, United 
States Code (popularly referred to as the Javits-Wagner-O'Day Act).''.

 An amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to 
H.R. 4228 offered by Mr. Barber (#1E); was AGREED TO by voice 
vote.
     At the end of title II (page 31, after line 17) insert the 
following new section (and conform the table of contents accordingly):
     ``Sec. 204. Suspension and Debarment Audits.''

 An amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to 
H.R. 4228 offered by Mr. O'Rourke (#1F); was AGREED TO by voice 
vote.
     Page 42, lines 2 and 4, after ``security'' insert ``and 
economic''.
     Page 43, line 15, after ``security insert ``and facilitate 
trade''.

 An amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to 
H.R. 4228 on the roster by Ms. Jackson Lee (#1G); was ADOPTED 
by unanimous consent.
     At the end of title II (page 31, after line 17) insert the 
following new section (and conform the table of contents accordingly):
     ``Sec. 204. Excluded Party List System Waivers.''

 An amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to 
H.R. 4228 offered by Mr. Duncan (#1H); was AGREED TO by voice 
vote.
     Page 6, line 3, insert after ``Senate'' the following'': ``, where 
appropriate''.

 An amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute to 
H.R. 4228 offered by Mr. O'Rourke (#1I); was WITHDRWAN by 
unanimous consent.
     Page 41, line 13, strike ``the academic community'' and insert 
``civil liberties and academic communities''.
     Page 43, after line 15, insert the a new paragraph entitled ``(6) 
Civil Liberties Protections.''

                            Committee Votes

    Clause 3(b) of Rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives requires the Committee to list the recorded 
votes on the motion to report legislation and amendments 
thereto.
    No recorded votes were requested during consideration of 
H.R. 4228.

                      Committee Oversight Findings

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(1) of Rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, the Committee has held oversight 
hearings and made findings that are reflected in this report.

   New Budget Authority, Entitlement Authority, and Tax Expenditures

    In compliance with clause 3(c)(2) of Rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives, the Committee finds that H.R. 
4228, the DHS Acquisition Accountability and Efficiency Act, 
would result in no new or increased budget authority, 
entitlement authority, or tax expenditures or revenues.

                  Congressional Budget Office Estimate

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(3) of Rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, a cost estimate provided by the 
Congressional Budget Office pursuant to section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974 was not made available to the 
Committee in time for the filing of this report. The Chairman 
of the Committee shall cause such estimate to be printed in the 
Congressional Record upon its receipt by the Committee.

         Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of Rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, H.R. 4228 contains the following 
general performance goals, and objectives, including outcome 
related goals and objectives authorized.
    The performance goals and objectives of H.R. 4228 include 
the development of a multiyear acquisition strategy to inform 
the overall direction of DHS's acquisition programs. The bill 
requires the Government Accountability Office to review the 
effectiveness of the multiyear acquisition strategy, as well 
as, the Office of Inspector General to evaluate the extent to 
which DHS has complied with the strategy. The bill also 
mandates the Department to provide the Committee with 
acquisition reports to detail the performance of major 
acquisition programs.
    In addition, the Department shall notify the Committee in 
instances when certain cost, schedule, or performance issues 
occur. In these cases, the development of a remediation plan 
and root cause analysis will inform DHS's approach on 
corrective actions and allow the Committee to hold the 
Department accountable for future acquisition issues.

                      Duplicative Federal Programs

    The Committee finds that H.R. 4228 does not contain any 
provision that establishes or reauthorizes a program known to 
be duplicative of another Federal program.

   Congressional Earmarks, Limited Tax Benefits, and Limited Tariff 
                                Benefits

    In compliance with Rule XXI of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives, this bill, as reported, contains no 
congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff 
benefits as defined in clause 9(e), 9(f), or 9(g) of the Rule 
XXI.

                       Federal Mandates Statement

    An estimate of Federal mandates prepared by the Director of 
the Congressional Budget Office pursuant to section 423 of the 
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act was not made available to the 
Committee in time for the filing of this report. The Chairman 
of the Committee shall cause such estimate to be printed in the 
Congressional Record upon its receipt by the Committee.

                        Preemption Clarification

    In compliance with section 423 of the Congressional Budget 
Act of 1974, requiring the report of any Committee on a bill or 
joint resolution to include a statement on the extent to which 
the bill or joint resolution is intended to preempt State, 
local, or Tribal law, the Committee finds that H.R. 4228 does 
not preempt any State, local, or Tribal law.

                  Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings

    The Committee estimates that H.R. 4228 would require no 
directed rule makings.

                      Advisory Committee Statement

    No advisory committees within the meaning of section 5(b) 
of the Federal Advisory Committee Act were created by this 
legislation.

                  Applicability to Legislative Branch

    The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to 
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public 
services or accommodations within the meaning of section 
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act.

             Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation


Section 1.   Short Title.
    This section provides that bill may be cited as the ``DHS 
Acquisition Accountability and Efficiency Act.''

Sec. 2.   Table of Contents.

Sec. 3.   Findings.
    This section provides the congressional findings on 
acquisition program management in the Department of Homeland 
Security.

Sec. 4.   Definitions.
    The following list of terms and positions are defined: 
``Secretary'', ``Department'', ``congressional homeland 
security committees'', ``acquisition'', ``best practices'', 
``acquisition decision authority'', ``acquisition decision 
event'', ``acquisition decision memorandum'', ``acquisition 
program baseline'', ``capability development plan'', 
``component acquisition executive'', ``life cycle cost'', and 
``major acquisition program''.

                    TITLE I-Acquisition Authorities


Sec. 101.   Acquisition Authorities for Under Secretary for 
Management.
    Section 101 designates the Under Secretary for Management 
(USM) as the Chief Acquisition Officer (CAO) for DHS. It also 
specifies that the ability to exercise Acquisition Decision 
Authority (ADA) is held by the Secretary but may be delegated 
to the Deputy Secretary or USM in order to approve, halt, 
modify, or cancel major acquisition programs. It is the 
Committee's intent that whoever holds the ADA will take action 
to stop or cancel failing programs. In particular, Section 101 
requires that the USM take responsibility to ensure that every 
major acquisition program has a Department-approved Acquisition 
Program Baseline (APB). The Committee finds it very concerning 
that according to an April 2014 GAO report, as of November 
2013, DHS officials reported that 21 of 46 programs still 
lacked approved baselines and as of April 2014 DHS has not 
approved most of its major acquisition programs' cost 
estimates.
    Section 101 also requires that the USM ensure that the 
heads of Components and Component Acquisition Executives follow 
Federal law, the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and Department 
acquisition management directives. It is the intent of the 
Committee that all of the Components with acquisition 
responsibilities follow these directives. Furthermore, it is 
the Committee's view that decision-making authority and 
processes should not reside solely within Department 
Headquarters. Rather, the USM should transparently incorporate 
Components into unified decision-making processes and the 
analytic efforts that inform decision-making on major 
acquisition programs and non-major acquisition programs to meet 
U.S. homeland security missions in a cost effective manner.
    Section 101 also authorizes the USM to delegate the ADA to 
the relevant Component Acquisition Executive in certain 
instances. First, for non-major acquisition programs with a 
life cycle cost of less than $300 million, the USM may delegate 
the ADA to the relevant Component Acquisition Executive. 
Second, for major acquisition programs with a life cycle cost 
between $300 million and $1 billion, the USM may delegate the 
ADA only if the following conditions are met: The Component 
shall have working policies, processes, and procedures that are 
consistent with DHS acquisition policy; possess adequate, 
experienced, dedicated program management professional staff 
proportionate to the size of the delegated portfolio; and each 
major acquisition program must have written documentation 
showing that it has a Department-approved APB and that it is 
meeting agreed-upon cost, schedule, and performance thresholds.
    The USM shall not have the authority to delegate the ADA 
for major acquisition programs with life cycle costs of over $1 
billion. Furthermore, it is the Committee's intention that the 
USM shall not delegate the ADA for any major acquisition 
program that has experienced an actual breach of a cost overrun 
greater than 15 percent of the APB or a schedule delay of more 
than 180 days in the delivery schedule specified in the APB. 
Section 101 also authorizes the Under Secretary for Science and 
Technology (S&T) to cooperate in acquisitions so that S&T can 
support current and future requirements more effectively.

Sec. 102.   Acquisition authorities for Chief Financial 
Officer.
    Section 102 authorizes the Chief Financial Officer's (CFO) 
responsibilities for providing leadership over financial 
management policy and programs for DHS as they relate to DHS 
acquisition programs in consultation with the USM. According to 
a 2014 GAO report, from fiscal years 2003 to 2013, DHS's budget 
authority nearly doubled from about $31 to $61 billion. Yet, 
DHS's leadership did not consistently address affordability 
issues during this time. In December 2012, the DHS Chief 
Financial Officer reported that major acquisition programs will 
cost 30 percent more than DHS's current five-year funding plan.
    Unfortunately, according to GAO, in 2013, DHS made little 
progress in addressing the Department's major acquisition 
funding gap and the 30 percent figure noted by DHS in 2012 was 
based on unreliable cost estimates, which raises concern that 
the funding gap may be even more significant. It is the 
Committee's view that the CFO should take an active role to 
help DHS strengthen and enhance the programming and budgeting 
process by incorporating the results of strategic analysis and 
joint requirements planning into portfolios and increase DHS's 
cost estimating capacity for major acquisition programs to help 
prevent cost overruns and schedule delays.
    The Committee intends to clarify and specify the role of 
the CFO with regard to the acquisition process at DHS. Nothing 
in this Act is intended to reduce or constrain the existing, 
government-wide CFO authorities that apply to the DHS CFO under 
current law.

Sec. 103.   Acquisition authorities for Chief Information 
Officer.
    Section 103 authorizes the Chief Information Officer 
(CIO)'s responsibilities to serve as the lead technical 
authority for IT programs, to oversee the management of the 
Homeland Security Enterprise Architecture, and to provide 
recommendations to the Acquisition Review Board on IT programs 
and IT acquisition strategic guidance. Section 103 also 
requires that if the CIO determines that there are any IT 
acquisitions that do not comply with Departmental management 
directives, the CIO shall provide recommendations to the 
Acquisition Review Board regarding noncompliance. It is the 
Committee's view that the CIO should take an active role to 
prevent IT failures of major acquisition programs. The CIO 
should also consider the advantages of already-existing 
innovative commercial solutions that may have the ability to 
meet U.S. homeland security mission needs while providing 
solutions for lower costs.
    The Committee intends to clarify and specify the important 
role of the CIO in IT related acquisition programs at DHS. 
Nothing in this Act is intended to reduce or constrain the 
existing government-wide CIO authorities as they apply to the 
DHS CIO under current law.

Sec. 104.   Chief Procurement Officer.
    Section 104 authorizes the position of Chief Procurement 
Officer (CPO). This section does not create a new office within 
DHS because many of these responsibilities are currently being 
executed through the Office of the CPO. Nothing in this section 
or Act is intended to diminish CPO authority as currently 
exercised. Section 104 authorizes that the CPO reports directly 
to the USM and is the senior procurement executive with 
responsibility over procurement and contracting. The CPO is 
also responsible for ensuring that DHS's contracting strategy 
and plans are consistent with the intent and direction of the 
ARB. Section 104 also designates the CPO as the main liaison to 
industry and authorizes the CPO to oversee a certification and 
training program for DHS's acquisition workforce that employs 
best practices used by others in the Federal Government and 
private sector. The Committee's intention is not for DHS to 
duplicate the efforts of other Federal acquisition 
certification and training efforts but instead to leverage 
already existing efforts within the Federal Government, private 
sector, or universities and colleges as appropriate.
    This section also ensures that the CPO participates in the 
selection and performance review of the head of each 
contracting activity within DHS and that the CPO follows the 
requirements established in the Small Business Act. The 
Committee understands that according to the Small Business 
Dashboard, DHS exceeded the Department goal of over 30 percent 
and the Government-wide goal of 23 percent for contracts 
awarded to Small Business and Small and Disadvantaged Business. 
Additionally, according to the FY12 Small Business Procurement 
Scorecard, DHS received an ``A'' rating. The Committee commends 
DHS's efforts in this regard. The Committee commends the 
Department's efforts to contract with nonprofit agencies 
employing persons who are blind or severely disabled as defined 
under Chapter 85 of Title 41, United States Code and encourages 
the CPO to continue such efforts. The Committee encourages the 
CPO to work toward developing a procurement goal and metrics 
for this initiative as part of its strategic planning process. 
The Committee urges DHS to think strategically to ensure that 
DHS clearly matches U.S. homeland security mission needs with 
the best business solutions available regardless of the size of 
business in order to serve U.S. Government interests most 
effectively.

Sec. 105.   Requirements to ensure greater accountability for 
acquisition programs.
    Section 105 authorizes the USM to establish a mechanism 
within the Management Directorate to improve the 
accountability, standardization, and transparency of major 
acquisition programs in order to increase effectiveness and 
efficiencies. This mechanism will serve as the central 
oversight function for all DHS acquisition programs. Section 
105 does not create a new office within DHS because many of 
these responsibilities are being executed through the Program 
Accountability and Risk Management (PARM) Office. However, the 
Committee's intention is not to codify PARM's existing 
structure but rather to provide specific guidance of objectives 
that DHS must meet while allowing DHS the flexibility to make 
adjustments to the structure as necessary.
    Section 105 also authorizes an Executive Director to report 
directly to the USM to hold responsibility for meeting the 
objectives as outlined in Section 105. The Executive Director's 
responsibilities include regular monitoring of the performance 
of DHS acquisition programs between acquisition decision 
events. The Committee expects the Executive Director to take an 
active role in regularly reviewing all major acquisition 
programs and any non-major acquisition programs that the 
Executive Director deems as ``high-risk'' in order to prevent 
cost overruns, performance issues, or schedule delays before 
these problems occur.
    The Committee believes that non-major acquisitions that 
meet the following criteria should be deemed ``high-risk'': (a) 
Its importance to the Department's strategic and performance 
plans is disproportionate to its life cycle cost; (b) it has 
high executive visibility; (c) it impacts more than one 
Component; (d) it has significant program or policy 
implications; or (e) the Deputy Secretary, Under Secretary for 
Management, or Acquisition Decision Authority recommends that 
the program is worthy of the Acquisition Review Board's 
examination.
    The Executive Director shall also assist the USM in 
managing DHS's acquisition portfolio; conducting oversight of 
all acquisition programs (major and non-major) to ensure that 
the programs have reliable and complete documentation; and 
serving as the focal point within DHS for acquisition policy, 
processes, and procedure regarding life cycle cost estimating 
and analysis. It is the Committee's view that the Executive 
Director shall work in consultation with the USM and CFO to 
address funding shortfalls identified by DHS and GAO.
    Moreover, the Executive Director should support the CPO in 
developing strategies and specific plans to address DHS 
acquisition workforce needs; develop standardized certification 
standards in consultation with the Component Acquisition 
Executives for all acquisition program managers; and play a 
role in performance evaluations of acquisition program 
managers. The Executive Director shall also be responsible for 
preparing the DHS Comprehensive Acquisition Status Report 
(CASR) and Quarterly Program Accountability Report (QPAR).
    The Committee believes that carrying out DHS's acquisition 
functions is a shared responsibility between DHS headquarters 
and its Components. However, Components have not always adhered 
to established DHS policies, which has contributed to cost 
overruns, schedule delays, and performance issues. As a result, 
section 105 also requires Components to follow Federal law, the 
Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), and DHS acquisition 
management directives. For major acquisition programs, heads of 
Components must establish a complete life cycle cost estimate 
with supporting documentation including an APB; verify each 
life cycle cost estimates against independent cost estimates 
(reconciling any differences); complete a cost-benefit analysis 
with supporting documentation; develop and maintain a schedule 
that is consistent with scheduling best practices identified by 
the Comptroller General of the U.S. including an integrated 
master schedule when appropriate; and ensure that the 
underlying acquisition program information is complete, 
accurate, timely, and valid.

           TITLE II-Acquisiton Program Management Discipline


Sec. 201.   Acquisition Review Board.
    Section 201 authorizes the Secretary to establish an 
Acquisition Review Board (ARB) to strengthen the accountability 
and uniformity within DHS's acquisition review process, review 
major acquisition programs, and evaluate the use of best 
practices. Section 201 does not create a new office within DHS 
because many of these responsibilities are being executed 
through an ARB already; however, section 201 codifies and 
sharpens the ARB's responsibilities in several ways.
    The Committees intends for the Deputy Secretary or USM to 
serve as the chair of the ARB. In addition, the composition of 
the ARB should include the CFO, CIO, CPO, Under Secretary for 
Science and Technology, Assistant Secretary for Policy, General 
Counsel, Chief Human Capital Officer, Chief Readiness Support 
Officer, Chief Security Officer, Component Acquisition 
Executive, and user representatives from the Component 
sponsoring a particular acquisition for review. At least two 
Component heads or their designees shall serve as permanent 
members of the ARB.
    The Committee intends for the ARB to meet every time a 
major acquisition program needs authorization to move from 
acquisition decision events through the acquisition life cycle. 
The Committee also expects the ARB to consider any major 
acquisition program in actual breach and monitor those programs 
with increased scrutiny in order to take appropriate corrective 
action for the program. In addition, the Committee intends for 
the ARB to convene for non-major acquisitions that are deemed 
``high-risk'' by the Executive Director and to meet regularly 
in order to ensure that all acquisition processes proceed in a 
timely fashion to achieve mission readiness.
    Furthermore, section 201 authorizes the ARB to determine 
whether a proposed acquisition has met the requirements of key 
phases of the acquisition life cycle framework in order to 
proceed to the next phase, eventual full-rate production, and 
deployment and to verify the acquisition documents of each 
major acquisition program. The Committee will conduct strenuous 
oversight of the ARB to determine whether it is carrying out 
its responsibilities to validate the APB and ensure the 
reliability of all underlying data for both major and non-major 
acquisition programs as required by this Act. In particular, 
section 201 also authorizes the ARB to adopt and implement 
practices that consider the trade-offs among cost, schedule, 
and performance objectives as part of the process for 
developing requirements for major acquisition programs prior to 
the initiation of the capability development.
    The Committee is concerned that according to a 2014 GAO 
report, the ARB within DHS has rarely directed programs to make 
affordability tradeoffs, such as by modifying requirements, 
even in light of the Department's 30 percent funding gap for 
its major acquisitions. GAO found that the ARB met 13 times in 
2013, but it only directed programs to make affordability 
tradeoffs twice. The Committee intends for the ARB to 
prioritize the consideration of trade-offs among cost, 
schedule, and performance objectives and emphasize improving 
these programs' affordability.
    Section 201 also requires that in the event that the person 
holding the Acquisition Decision Authority (ADA) approves a 
major acquisition program without a Department-approved APB to 
proceed beyond the acquisition decision event requiring a 
capability development plan (the second acquisition decision 
event), the USM shall create and approve an acquisition program 
baseline report, and the Secretary shall submit to the 
Congressional homeland security committees a written 
notification of such decision within seven days of such a 
decision and a report providing the rationale for the decision 
and plan to create an acquisition program baseline for the 
program within 60 days after the acquisition decision 
memorandum is signed.

Sec. 202.   Requirements to reduce duplication in acquisition 
programs.
    Section 202 authorizes the Deputy Secretary, in 
consultation with the USM, to establish Department-wide 
policies to integrate all phases of the investment life cycle 
and help DHS identify, validate, and prioritize standards for 
common Component requirements for major acquisition programs. 
Section 202 does not create a new office within DHS because 
many of these responsibilities are being executed through the 
Capabilities and Requirements Council (CRC). However, the 
Committee is concerned about the fragmented approach the CRC 
has had so far in failing to consider a range of tradeoffs 
across multiple functional portfolios. Thus, section 202 
provides specific guidance on DHS responsibilities to reduce 
duplication and inefficiency across multiple functional 
portfolios although it leaves the particular mechanism of 
implementation of these objectives up to the Deputy Secretary.
    In 2003, DHS established a Joint Requirements Council (JRC) 
to identify crosscutting opportunities and common requirements 
among DHS Components. JRC stopped meeting in 2006. GAO 
recommended in 2008 that DHS reinstate it. In June 2013, DHS 
initiated a CRC pilot to consider tradeoffs across acquisition 
programs within DHS's cybersecurity portfolio.
    Section 202 emphasizes that the Deputy Secretary's policies 
must include strategic alternatives for developing and 
facilitating a Department Component-driven requirements process 
that include oversight of a developmental test and evaluation 
capability; identification of priority gaps and overlaps in 
Departmental capability needs; and provision of feasible 
technical alternatives, including commercially-available 
alternatives, to meet capability needs. In particular, while 
the Committee believes that the Secretary, acting through the 
USM, holds the responsibility for the success or failure of DHS 
acquisition programs, it is the responsibility of DHS 
Headquarters to achieve Component buy-in and to facilitate a 
Component-driven requirements process that meets U.S. homeland 
security mission needs while reducing duplication and 
efficiency among Component's acquisition programs.
    Section 202 requires that the Deputy Secretary, in 
consultation with the USM, meet at least quarterly and 
communicate with Components often to ensure Components do not 
create overlapping requirements or duplicative spending on 
major investments and acquisition programs within their areas 
of responsibilities. The Committee believes that the Components 
must be working together to think strategically about how their 
acquisition decisions impact other Components and connect to 
the Department's strategic homeland security missions in the 
most cost effective manner possible.
    The Deputy Secretary is responsible for creating a 
mechanism such as the Capability and Requirements Council to 
review and validate the requirements documents of major 
investments and acquisition programs before these programs move 
through the acquisition decision events; and to ensure the 
requirements and scope of major investments or acquisition 
programs are stable, measurable, achievable, at an acceptable 
risk level, and match the resources planned to be available.
    Section 202 also requires that before any entity of the 
Department issues a solicitation for a new contract, that the 
Deputy Secretary is responsible for coordinating with all the 
other entities within DHS with acquisition responsibilities as 
appropriate to prevent duplication and inefficiency; implement 
portfolio reviews to identify common mission requirements and 
crosscutting opportunities among Components; standardize 
equipment purchases, streamline the acquisition process, 
improve efficiencies; and conduct best practices for strategic 
sourcing. The Deputy Secretary shall also ensure that program 
managers of major investments and acquisition programs focus on 
cost, schedule, risk, performance, and operational efficiency 
to determine that acquisition programs work as intended within 
cost and budget expectations.

Sec. 203.   Government Accountability Office review of Board 
and of requirements to reduce duplication in acquisition 
programs.
    Section 203 requires GAO to conduct a review within one 
year of the effectiveness of the Acquisition Review Board 
established under section 201 and the Management Directorate to 
Reduce Duplication in Acquisition Programs established under 
section 202 in improving DHS' acquisition management process.

Sec. 204.   Excluded Party List System waivers.
    Section 204 requires that the Secretary provide 
notification to the congressional homeland security committees 
within five days after issuance of a waiver for the requirement 
that an agency not engage in business with a contractor listed 
in the Excluded Party List System, and an explanation for that 
waiver. The Committee believes that this additional layer of 
congressional scrutiny of the decision to waive the exclusion 
should bring greater accountability to DHS's contracting 
process.

Sec. 205.   Inspector General oversight of suspension and 
debarment.
    Section 205 provides that the DHS Inspector General may 
audit grant and procurement award decisions to ensure entities 
that are suspended or debarred from receiving Federal funds are 
not improperly receiving those awards. The section also 
requires that the Inspector General review the Department's 
suspension and debarment program to assess whether criteria are 
being consistently applied throughout the Department.

      TITLE III-Acquisition Program Management Accountability and 
                              Transparency


Sec. 301.   Congressional notification and other requirements 
for major acquisition program breach.
    Section 301 requires two forms of reporting for major 
acquisition programs that experience a breach, defined as a 
failure to meet any cost, schedule, or performance parameter 
specified in the acquisition program baseline (APB). The 
Committee does not intend for breach notifications to become a 
paperwork exercise or for program managers to contort their 
program to prevent their supervisors from reporting a breach to 
the Congress. The breach notification's rationale is to 
increase the transparency of programs that are not meeting 
their APBs and require more fiscal discipline in managing a 
program's cost, schedule, and performance objectives.
    First, section 301 requires internal notification within 
DHS if a breach occurs. If a major acquisition program has a 
potential for a future breach, as determined by the program 
manager for that program, the program manager has the 
responsibility to notify the person exercising acquisition 
decision authority for the program. In the case of an actual 
breach in a major acquisition program, the program manager for 
that program must notify the head of the Component concerned, 
the Component Acquisition Executive for the program, and 
Executive Director, the USM, and the Deputy Secretary. In the 
case of a major acquisition that experiences an actual breach 
with a cost overrun greater than 20 percent or a schedule delay 
greater than 12 months from the costs or schedule set forth in 
the APB, the Secretary and the Inspector General must be 
notified no later than five business days after the actual 
breach is identified.
    Furthermore, in the case of an actual breach with a cost 
overrun greater than 15 percent or a schedule delay greater 
than 180 days from the costs or schedule set forth in the APB, 
section 301 requires DHS to develop a remediation plan and root 
cause analysis. The Committee encourages DHS to conduct such 
analysis for all major acquisition programs in actual breach if 
appropriate and if resources are available.
    The USM has the responsibility to establish a date for 
submission within DHS of the breach remediation plan and root 
cause analysis. The USM also has the responsibility to 
establish a date for submission within DHS of a program of 
corrective action that ensures that one of the following has 
occurred: (1) The breach has been corrected and the program is 
again in compliance with the original APB; (2) a revised APB 
has been approved; or (3) the program has been halted or 
canceled. The Committee believes that DHS should keep the 
original program baseline parameters on file in order to help 
assess the development of each program and ensure knowledge 
transfer in the case of personnel attrition or changes.
    Second, section 301 requires notification to the 
congressional homeland security committees for major 
acquisition programs that experience an actual breach with a 
cost overrun greater than 15 percent or a schedule delay 
greater than 180 days from the costs or schedule set forth in 
the APB or with an anticipated failure for any key performance 
threshold or parameter specified in the APB. The USM will 
submit this notification in the next quarterly Comprehensive 
Acquisition Status Report.
    In the event that a major acquisition program is likely to 
experience a cost overrun greater than 20 percent or a likely 
delay greater than 12 months from the costs and schedule set 
forth in the APB, the USM shall include in the notification to 
such committees a written certification that the acquisition is 
essential to the accomplishment of the Department's mission; 
there are no alternatives to such capability or asset that will 
provide equal or greater capability in both a more cost-
effective and timely manner; the new acquisition schedule and 
estimates for total acquisition costs are reasonable; and the 
management structure for the acquisition program is adequate to 
manage and control performance, cost and schedule.
    Additionally, no later than 30 calendar days after the USM 
submits the breach notification within the Comprehensive 
Acquisition Status Report, the USM shall submit to such 
committees a copy of the remediation plan and root cause 
analysis prepared for the major acquisition program and a 
statement describing the corrective action with a justification 
for the action.
    Finally, during the 90-day period following submission to 
the congressional homeland security committees of the 
remediation plan, root cause analysis, and statement describing 
the corrective action for the major acquisition program, the 
USM shall submit a certification that DHS has adjusted or 
restructured the program in a manner that addresses the root 
cause or causes of the cost growth and/or schedule delay in the 
program and DHS has conducted a thorough review of the breached 
program's current acquisition decision event approvals and 
adjusted the current acquisition decision event approval for 
the breached program as necessary to account for the 
restructured program. If the USM fails to submit this required 
certification within the 90-day period, then funds appropriated 
to the major acquisition program shall not be obligated until 
the USM submits such certification.
    The Committee is concerned about the lack of accountability 
with DHS acquisition programs. While the Committee wants to 
provide for some variances in cost and schedule and prevent 
disruption and potential increase of total acquisition costs, 
the Committee firmly believes that DHS must take steps to 
restrain the cost increases, schedule delays, and operational 
effectiveness failures within its major acquisition programs.

Sec. 302.   Multiyear acquisition strategy.
    Section 302 requires the Secretary to create a multiyear 
acquisition strategy to guide the overall direction of DHS's 
acquisitions while allowing flexibility to deal with ever-
changing threats and risks and to help industry better 
understand, plan, and align resources to meet the future 
acquisition needs of DHS. The strategy should be updated and 
included in each Future Years Homeland Security Program 
(FYHSP). The Committee foresees the list, inventory, funding 
gaps, and identification of capabilities to be an annual update 
as part of the FYHSP that will help both Congress and industry 
understand key homeland security priorities. Other parts should 
be updated each year as necessary, but they should be 
considered reaffirmed unless otherwise stated.
    Section 302 requires that DHS submit this Multiyear 
Acquisition Strategy no later than one year after the date of 
the enactment of this section. The Committee believes that the 
Secretary should consult to the maximum extent practicable with 
DHS Headquarters, Components, employees in the field, and 
individuals from industry and the academic community as 
appropriate. The Committee intends for DHS to emphasize the 
perspectives and experiences of its employees in the field in 
crafting its acquisition strategy in order to ensure that DHS 
bases its priorities on the practical needs of those who will 
be responsible for the operational implementation of these 
acquisitions to meet U.S. homeland security mission objectives. 
The Committee intends for the report to be submitted in an 
unclassified form online in the public domain. However, for any 
sensitive or classified information, DHS may include a 
classified annex.

List of Major Acquisition Programs and Inventory of Investments

    Section 302 also requires that the USM develop a systematic 
and integrated prioritized list of DHS's major acquisition 
programs that includes the expected security and economic 
benefit of the program or system and an analysis of how the 
security and economic benefit derived from the program or 
system will be measured. The Committee also expects that the 
strategy as part of the FYHSP report explain how DHS's homeland 
security strategy correlates to DHS's resource allocations and 
priorities for major acquisition investments. The Committee 
believes that DHS should submit enough information to provide 
Congress with the ability to identify and assess how much DHS 
plans to invest across its major acquisition portfolio, how 
those funding priorities are ranked based on risk and threat to 
the homeland, and how DHS expects to afford these priorities.
    Section 302 also requires that DHS develop a reliable 
Department-wide inventory of investments and real property 
assets to help DHS plan, budget, schedule, and acquire upgrades 
of its systems and equipment. In August 2013, the DHS Inspector 
General found that DHS lacks reliable Department-wide inventory 
data and had mismanaged a $3 billion Department-wide strategic 
sourcing contract to modernize its legacy radio systems. The 
Committee expects DHS to address this issue.

Funding Gaps

    Section 302 also requires that DHS develop a plan to 
address funding gaps between requirements for major acquisition 
programs and planned resources. The 2013 Senate Report No. 112-
169 required that the fiscal year 2014 FYHSP report include the 
funding plans for all major acquisitions. According to a 2014 
GAO report, the 2014 FYHSP report accounted for a greater 
proportion of major acquisition programs than prior years' 
reports, but it did not account for all of the programs on 
DHS's major acquisition oversight list. The Committee expects 
that the FYHSP present funding plans for all major acquisitions 
that include the planning, maintenance, and personnel funding. 
The Committee also expects that the strategy as part of the 
FYHSP report identify how major acquisition programs' annual 
cost estimates compare to their funding plans and identify the 
associated funding gaps in order to better understand how 
anticipated resource constraints could affect DHS's largest 
investments.

Identification of Capabilities

    Section 302 also requires DHS to identify the capabilities 
needed to support the acquisition or technologies to meet the 
needs of the Multiyear Acquisition Strategy and ways to 
leverage emerging technology trends and research and 
development trends within the public and private sectors. In 
particular, the Committee intends for DHS to prioritize 
innovative commercially-available alternatives to meet 
capability needs whenever possible. Section 302 also requires a 
focus on flexible solutions and ways to incentivize program 
managers and Department acquisition officials to save taxpayer 
dollars by preventing cost overruns, avoiding schedule delays, 
and achieving cost savings in major acquisition programs.

Acquisition Process and Communication with Industry

    Further, section 302 requires DHS to assess how to improve 
the acquisition process to minimize cost overruns in 
requirements development, procurement announcements, requests 
for proposals, and protests of decisions and awards. It also 
requires DHS to identify ways to increase opportunities for 
communication with industry, small and disadvantaged 
businesses, intra-government entities, university centers of 
excellence, accredited certification and standards development 
organizations, and National Laboratories to ensure that DHS 
understands the market for technologies, products, and 
innovation that is available to meet its mission needs in order 
to better inform the requirements-setting process and before 
DHS engages in an acquisition.
    In particular, the communications strategy should express 
how Federal guidance such as the Office of Federal Procurement 
Policy's ``Myth Busters'' will actually be ingrained into 
business process changes and trainings employees receive, so 
that the guidance will become a greater part of the culture of 
the acquisition workforce. The strategy should also make it 
clear to Congress and industry how goods and services are 
procured and provide greater clarity to all. DHS should also 
consider sending out press releases with contract 
notifications. DHS should look at mechanisms when making a 
contract award to do a same day release and notification.

Lowest-Price, Technically Acceptable

    The Committee is concerned that a well-intentioned effort 
by DHS to lower costs frequently results in awarding contracts 
based on a lowest-price, technically acceptable (LPTA) standard 
without considering a best-value tradeoff approach. The 
Committee believes that awarding contracts based on an LPTA 
basis should not become the default position of DHS. Instead, 
careful consideration must be given to each contract to ensure 
that there is an appropriate weighing of cost versus other 
considerations.

Development of the Acquisition Workforce

    Section 302 also requires a plan to ensure competition or 
the option of competition in major acquisition programs; a plan 
to address DHS acquisition workforce accountability and talent 
management; and the feasibility of conducting a pilot program 
to establish a Homeland Security Acquisition Workforce 
Development Fund. The Committee intends for DHS to develop 
innovative solutions to meet its needs through outlining DHS's 
specific acquisition workforce needs and through assessing the 
options involved with a fund to incentivize DHS acquisition 
personnel to control cost growth, limit schedule delays, and 
ensure operational effectiveness.
    DHS Contracting Officer's Representatives conduct oversight 
of DHS contracts and are responsible for monitoring contractor 
performance. The Committee therefore believes that steps should 
be taken to ensure that this particular cadre of the DHS 
workforce is strengthened. Section 302 instructs DHS to include 
in its plan, ways to strengthen the performance of its cadre of 
contracting officer's representatives by assessing the extent 
to which they are certified and trained; determining the most 
effective form of training and improving the training offered 
based on the final assessment.

Sec. 303.   Acquisition reports.
    Section 303 authorizes the USM to submit annually the 
Comprehensive Acquisition Status Report (CASR) along with 
quarterly updates no later than 45 days after the completion of 
each quarter. Section 303 also authorizes the USM to prepare a 
Quarterly Program Accountability Report (QPAR), which DHS is 
currently doing of its own initiative to perform program health 
assessments and to improve program execution and governance.
    Furthermore, the Committee intends for the USM to also 
include in the QPAR additional information for major 
acquisition programs that DHS considers in the ``sustainment 
phase'' as defined by the DHS May 2013 ``Acquisition Decision 
Memorandum.'' This 2013 Memorandum directed Component 
Acquisition Executives to ``waive the acquisition documentation 
requirements for the 42 Level 1 and 2 acquisition programs'' 
that were in the sustainment phase prior to 2008 when D 102-01 
was issued.
    The Committee is concerned about this decision, as it 
contradicts GAO findings for good program management. According 
to a 2013 GAO report, a knowledge deficit early in a program 
can cascade through design and production leaving decision 
makers with less knowledge to support decisions about when and 
how best to move into subsequent acquisition phases that commit 
more budgetary resources.
    The Committee believes that DHS's approach in removing 
these 42 programs from these requirements sends the wrong 
message to program managers about accountability for failure. 
Furthermore, there are several programs widely known to have 
serious problems with operational effectiveness, cost overruns, 
or schedule delays that were included as in the ``sustainment 
phase'' in the 2013 Memorandum. These programs were allowed to 
proceed without the assurance that they had the appropriate 
levels of knowledge to be successful. As a result, DHS allowed 
taxpayer dollars to be put at high risk.
    Thus, the Committee expects that the USM incorporate within 
each QPAR the following information on every major acquisition 
program for which five years or more have elapsed since final 
approval for system procurement and deployment was given, 
including (1) the Acquisition Program Baseline (APB) for the 
major acquisition program; (2) the current five-year life cycle 
cost for operation of the major acquisition program; (3) the 
life cycle cost projected at the time of procurement and 
deployment; (4) the projected five-year life cycle cost of 
commercially available alternatives capable of replicating the 
functionality or functionalities of the major acquisition 
program, including major subsystems or capability Components 
that can be separated or integrated into the major acquisition 
program; and (5) DHS's assessment of ways it can reduce life 
cycle costs associated with these major acquisition programs, 
including through using already-existing innovative 
commercially-available solutions.

Sec. 304.   Government Accountability Office review of 
multiyear acquisition strategy.
    Section 304 requires that GAO conduct a review of the 
Multiyear Acquisition Strategy within 180 days after submission 
to Congress of the first Multiyear Acquisition Strategy to 
analyze the plan's effectiveness.

Sec. 305.   Office of Inspector General report.
    Section 305 requires that the DHS Inspector General conduct 
a review no later than 2 years following the submission of the 
Multiyear Acquisition Strategy report to Congress to determine 
whether DHS has complied with the strategy; adhered to the 
strategies set forth in the plan; and complied with the 
requirements to provide the Acquisition Review Board with a 
capability development plan for each major acquisition.

         Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

  In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter is printed in italic, existing law in which no change is 
proposed is shown in roman):

                     HOMELAND SECURITY ACT OF 2002

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

  (a) * * *
  (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is 
as follows:

     * * * * * * *

                          TITLE VII--MANAGEMENT

     * * * * * * *
Sec. 708. Chief Procurement Officer.
Sec. 709. Requirements to ensure greater accountability for acquisition 
          programs.

 TITLE VIII--COORDINATION WITH NON-FEDERAL ENTITIES; INSPECTOR GENERAL; 
      UNITED STATES SECRET SERVICE; COAST GUARD; GENERAL PROVISIONS

     * * * * * * *

                        Subtitle D--Acquisitions

     * * * * * * *
Sec. 836. Acquisition Review Board.
Sec. 837. Requirements to reduce duplication in acquisition programs.
Sec. 838. Congressional notification and other requirements for major 
          acquisition program breach.
Sec. 839. Multiyear acquisition strategy.
Sec. 840. Acquisition reports.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

  (a) In General.-- In this Act, the following definitions 
apply:
          (1) * * *
          (2)(A) The term ``appropriate congressional 
        committee'' means any committee of the House of 
        Representatives or the Senate having legislative or 
        oversight jurisdiction under the Rules of the House of 
        Representatives or the Senate, respectively, over the 
        matter concerned.
          (B) The term ``congressional homeland security 
        committees'' means--
                  (i) the Committee on Homeland Security of the 
                House of Representatives and the Committee on 
                Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of 
                the Senate; and
                  (ii) the Committee on Appropriations of the 
                House of Representatives and of the Senate, 
                where appropriate.
  (b) Acquisition-Related Definitions.--In this Act, the 
following definitions apply:
          (1) Acquisition.--The term ``acquisition'' has the 
        meaning provided in section 131 of title 41, United 
        States Code.
          (2) Acquisition decision authority.--The term 
        ``acquisition decision authority'' means the authority, 
        held by the Secretary acting through the Deputy 
        Secretary or Under Secretary for Management--
                  (A) to ensure compliance with Federal law, 
                the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and 
                Department acquisition management directives;
                  (B) to review (including approving, halting, 
                modifying, or cancelling) an acquisition 
                program through the life cycle of the program;
                  (C) to ensure that program managers have the 
                resources necessary to successfully execute an 
                approved acquisition program; and
                  (D) to ensure good program management of 
                cost, schedule, risk, and system performance of 
                the acquisition, including assessing 
                acquisition program baseline breaches and 
                directing any corrective action for such 
                breaches.
          (3) Acquisition decision event.--The term 
        ``acquisition decision event'', with respect to an 
        investment or acquisition program, means a 
        predetermined point within the acquisition phases of 
        the investment or acquisition program at which the 
        investment or acquisition program will undergo a review 
        prior to commencement of the next phase.
          (4) Acquisition decision memorandum.--The term 
        ``acquisition decision memorandum'', with respect to an 
        acquisition, means the official acquisition decision 
        event record that includes a documented record of 
        decisions, exit criteria, and assigned actions for the 
        acquisition as determined by the person exercising 
        acquisition decision authority for the acquisition.
          (5) Acquisition program baseline.--The term 
        ``acquisition program baseline'', with respect to an 
        acquisition program, means a summary of the cost, 
        schedule, and performance parameters, expressed in 
        standard, measurable, quantitative terms, which must be 
        met in order to accomplish the goals of the program.
          (6) Capability development plan.--The term 
        ``capability development plan'', with respect to a 
        proposed acquisition, means the document that the 
        Acquisition Review Board approves for the first 
        acquisition decision event related to validating the 
        need of a proposed acquisition.
          (7) Component acquisition executive.--The term 
        ``Component Acquisition Executive'' means the senior 
        acquisition official within a Component who is 
        designated in writing by the Under Secretary for 
        Management, in consultation with the Component head, 
        with authority and responsibility for leading a process 
        and staff to provide acquisition and program management 
        oversight, policy, and guidance to ensure that 
        statutory, regulatory, and higher level policy 
        requirements are fulfilled, including compliance with 
        Federal law, the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and 
        Department acquisition management directives 
        established by the Under Secretary for Management.
          (8) Life cycle cost.--The term ``life cycle cost'', 
        with respect to an acquisition program, means all costs 
        associated with research, development, procurement, 
        operation, integrated logistics support, and disposal 
        under the program, including supporting infrastructure 
        that plans, manages, and executes the program over its 
        full life, and costs of common support items incurred 
        as a result of the program.
          (9) Major acquisition program.--The term ``major 
        acquisition program'' means a Department acquisition 
        program that is estimated by the Secretary to require 
        an eventual total expenditure of at least $300,000,000 
        (based on fiscal year 2014 constant dollars) over its 
        life cycle cost.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                         TITLE VII--MANAGEMENT

SEC. 701. UNDER SECRETARY FOR MANAGEMENT.

  (a) In General.--The Under Secretary for Management shall 
serve as the Chief Management Officer and principal advisor to 
the Secretary on matters related to the management of the 
Department, including management integration and transformation 
in support of homeland security operations and programs. The 
Secretary, acting through the Under Secretary for Management, 
shall be responsible for the management and administration of 
the Department, including the following:
          (1) * * *
          (2) [Procurement] Acquisition and procurement.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  (d) Acquisition and Related Responsibilities.--
          (1) In general.--Notwithstanding section 1702(b) of 
        title 41, United States Code, the Under Secretary for 
        Management is the Chief Acquisition Officer of the 
        Department. As Chief Acquisition Officer, the Under 
        Secretary shall have the authority and perform the 
        functions as specified in section 1702(b) of such 
        title, and perform all other functions and 
        responsibilities delegated by the Secretary or 
        described in this subsection.
          (2) Duties and responsibilities.--In addition to the 
        authority and functions specified in section 1702(b) of 
        title 41, United States Code, the duties and 
        responsibilities of the Under Secretary for Management 
        related to acquisition include the following:
                  (A) Advising the Secretary regarding 
                acquisition management activities, taking into 
                account risks of failure to achieve cost, 
                schedule, or performance parameters, to ensure 
                that the Department achieves its mission 
                through the adoption of widely accepted program 
                management best practices and standards.
                  (B) Exercising the acquisition decision 
                authority to approve, halt, modify (including 
                the rescission of approvals of program 
                milestones), or cancel major acquisition 
                programs, unless the Under Secretary delegates 
                the authority to a Component Acquisition 
                Executive pursuant to paragraph (3).
                  (C) Establishing policies for acquisition 
                that implement an approach that takes into 
                account risks of failure to achieve cost, 
                schedule, or performance parameters that all 
                Components of the Department shall comply with, 
                including outlining relevant authorities for 
                program managers to effectively manage 
                acquisition programs.
                  (D) Ensuring that each major acquisition 
                program has a Department-approved acquisition 
                program baseline.
                  (E) Ensuring that the heads of Components and 
                Component Acquisition Executives comply with 
                Federal law, the Federal Acquisition 
                Regulation, and Department acquisition 
                management directives.
                  (F) Ensuring that grants and financial 
                assistance are provided only to individuals and 
                organizations that are not suspended or 
                debarred.
                  (G) Distributing guidance throughout the 
                Department to ensure that contractors involved 
                in acquisitions, particularly companies that 
                access the Department's information systems and 
                technologies, adhere to internal cybersecurity 
                policies established by the Department of 
                Homeland Security.
          (3) Delegation of acquisition decision authority.--
                  (A) Level 3 acquisitions.--The Under 
                Secretary for Management may delegate 
                acquisition decision authority in writing to 
                the relevant Component Acquisition Executive 
                for an acquisition program that has a life 
                cycle cost estimate of less than $300,000,000.
                  (B) Level 2 acquisitions.--The Under 
                Secretary for Management may delegate 
                acquisition decision authority in writing to 
                the relevant Component Acquisition Executive 
                for a major acquisition program that has a life 
                cycle cost estimate of at least $300,000,000 
                but not more than $1,000,000,000 if all of the 
                following requirements are met:
                          (i) The Component concerned possesses 
                        working policies, processes, and 
                        procedures that are consistent with 
                        Department-level acquisition policy.
                          (ii) The Component Acquisition 
                        Executive has adequate, experienced, 
                        dedicated program management 
                        professional staff commensurate with 
                        the size of the delegated portfolio.
                          (iii) Each major acquisition program 
                        concerned has written documentation 
                        showing that it has a Department-
                        approved acquisition program baseline 
                        and it is meeting agreed-upon cost, 
                        schedule, and performance thresholds.
          (4) Excluded parties list system consultation.--The 
        Under Secretary for Management shall require that all 
        Department contracting and procurement officials 
        consult the Excluded Parties List System (or successor 
        system) as maintained by the General Services 
        Administration prior to awarding a contract or grant or 
        entering into other transactions to ascertain whether 
        the selected contractor is excluded from receiving 
        Federal contracts, certain subcontracts, and certain 
        types of Federal financial and non-financial assistance 
        and benefits.
          (5) Relationship to under secretary for science and 
        technology.--Nothing in this subsection shall diminish 
        the authority granted to the Under Secretary for 
        Science and Technology under this Act. The Under 
        Secretary for Management and the Under Secretary for 
        Science and Technology shall cooperate in matters 
        related to the coordination of acquisitions across the 
        Department so that investments of the Directorate of 
        Science and Technology can support current and future 
        requirements of the Components.

SEC. 702. CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER.

  (a) * * *
  (b) Program Analysis and Evaluation Function.--
          (1) * * *
          (2) Responsibilities.--The Office shall perform the 
        following functions:
                  (A) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                  (J) Notwithstanding section 902 of title 31, 
                United States Code, provide leadership over 
                financial management policy and programs for 
                the Department as they relate to the 
                Department's acquisitions programs, in 
                consultation with the Under Secretary for 
                Management.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SEC. 703. CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER.

  (a) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  (c) Acquisition Responsibilities.--Notwithstanding section 
11315 of title 40, United States Code, the acquisition 
responsibilities of the Chief Information Officer, in 
consultation with the Under Secretary for Management, shall 
include the following:
          (1) Serve as the lead technical authority for 
        information technology programs and establish 
        departmental information technology priorities, 
        policies, processes, standards, guidelines, and 
        procedures.
          (2) Oversee the management of the Homeland Security 
        Enterprise Architecture and ensure that, before each 
        acquisition decision event, approved information 
        technology acquisitions comply with departmental 
        information technology management processes, technical 
        requirements, and the Homeland Security Enterprise 
        Architecture, and in any case in which information 
        technology acquisitions do not comply with Departmental 
        management directives, make recommendations to the 
        Acquisition Review Board regarding such noncompliance.
          (3) Be responsible for providing recommendations to 
        the Acquisition Review Board established in section 836 
        of this Act on information technology programs, and be 
        responsible for developing information technology 
        acquisition strategic guidance.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SEC. 708. CHIEF PROCUREMENT OFFICER.

  (a) In General.--There is a Chief Procurement Officer of the 
Department, who shall report directly to the Under Secretary 
for Management. The Chief Procurement Officer is the senior 
procurement executive for purposes of section 1702(c) of title 
41, United States Code, and shall perform procurement functions 
as specified in such section. The Chief Procurement Officer 
also shall perform other functions and responsibilities set 
forth in this section and as may be assigned by the Under 
Secretary for Management.
  (b) Responsibilities.--The Chief Procurement Officer shall--
          (1) exercise leadership and authority to the extent 
        delegated by the Under Secretary for Management over 
        the Department procurement function;
          (2) issue acquisition regulations and policies;
          (3) account for the integrity, performance, and 
        oversight of Department procurement and contracting 
        functions and be responsible for ensuring that a 
        procurement's contracting strategy and plans are 
        consistent with the intent and direction of the 
        Acquisition Review Board established in section 836 of 
        this Act;
          (4) serve as the Department's business advisor and 
        main liaison to industry on procurement-related issues 
        by providing advice on industry engagement, acquisition 
        policy, oversight of the procurement function, and 
        development of the acquisition workforce;
          (5) oversee a centralized certification and training 
        program, in consultation with the Under Secretary for 
        Management, for the entire Department acquisition 
        workforce while using, to the greatest extent 
        practicable, best practices and acquisitions training 
        opportunities already in existence within the Federal 
        Government, the private sector, or universities and 
        colleges, as appropriate, and including training on how 
        best to identify actions that warrant referrals for 
        suspension or debarment;
          (6) delegate or retain contracting authority, as 
        appropriate, except as provided in section 701(d)(3) of 
        this Act;
          (7) participate in the selection, and periodic 
        performance review, of the head of each contracting 
        activity within the Department;
          (8) collect baseline data and establish performance 
        measures on the impact of strategic sourcing 
        initiatives on the private sector, including, in 
        particular, small businesses; and
          (9) ensure that a fair proportion (as defined 
        pursuant to the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 et 
        seq.)) of Federal contract and subcontract dollars are 
        awarded to small businesses, maximize opportunities for 
        small business participation, and ensure, to the extent 
        practicable, small businesses that achieve qualified 
        vendor status for security-related technologies are 
        provided an opportunity to compete for contracts for 
        such technology.

SEC. 709. REQUIREMENTS TO ENSURE GREATER ACCOUNTABILITY FOR ACQUISITION 
                    PROGRAMS.

  (a) Requirement To Establish Mechanism.--Within the 
Management Directorate, the Under Secretary for Management 
shall establish a mechanism to prioritize improving the 
accountability, standardization, and transparency of major 
acquisition programs of the Department in order to increase 
opportunities for effectiveness and efficiencies and to serve 
as the central oversight function of all Department acquisition 
programs.
  (b) Responsibilities of Executive Director.--The Under 
Secretary for Management shall designate an Executive Director 
to oversee the requirement under subsection (a). The Executive 
Director shall report directly to the Under Secretary and shall 
carry out the following responsibilities:
          (1) Monitor the performance of Department acquisition 
        programs regularly between acquisition decision events 
        to identify problems with cost, performance, or 
        schedule that Components may need to address to prevent 
        cost overruns, performance issues, or schedule delays.
          (2) Assist the Chief Acquisition Officer in managing 
        the Department's acquisition portfolio.
          (3) Conduct oversight of individual acquisition 
        programs to implement Department acquisition program 
        policy, procedures, and guidance with a priority on 
        ensuring the data it collects and maintains from its 
        Components is accurate and reliable.
          (4) Serve as the focal point within the Department 
        for policy, process, and procedure regarding life cycle 
        cost estimating and analysis.
          (5) Serve as the focal point and coordinator for the 
        acquisition life cycle review process and as the 
        executive secretariat for the Acquisition Review Board 
        established under section 836 of this Act.
          (6) Advise the persons having acquisition decision 
        authority in making acquisition decisions consistent 
        with all applicable laws and in establishing clear 
        lines of authority, accountability, and responsibility 
        for acquisition decisionmaking within the Department.
          (7) Engage in the strategic planning and performance 
        evaluation process required under section 306 of title 
        5, United States Code, and sections 1105(a)(28), 1115, 
        1116, and 9703 of title 31, United States Code, by 
        supporting the Chief Procurement Officer in developing 
        strategies and specific plans for hiring, training, and 
        professional development in order to rectify any 
        deficiency within the Department's acquisition 
        workforce.
          (8) Oversee the Component Acquisition Executive 
        structure to ensure it has sufficient capabilities and 
        complies with Department policies.
          (9) Develop standardized certification standards in 
        consultation with the Component Acquisition Executives 
        for all acquisition program managers.
          (10) In the event that a program manager's 
        certification or actions need review for purposes of 
        promotion or removal, provide input, in consultation 
        with the relevant Component Acquisition Executive, into 
        the relevant program manager's performance evaluation, 
        and report positive or negative experiences to the 
        relevant certifying authority.
          (11) Provide technical support and assistance to 
        Department acquisitions and acquisition personnel in 
        conjunction with the Chief Procurement Officer.
          (12) Prepare the Department's Comprehensive 
        Acquisition Status Report, as required by the 
        Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 
        2013 (division D of Public Law 113-6; 127 Stat. 343) 
        and section 840 of this Act, and make such report 
        available to congressional homeland security 
        committees.
          (13) Prepare the Department's Quarterly Program 
        Accountability Report as required by section 840 of 
        this Act, and make such report available to the 
        congressional homeland security committees.
  (c) Responsibilities of Components.--Each head of a Component 
shall comply with Federal law, the Federal Acquisition 
Regulation, and Department acquisition management directives 
established by the Under Secretary for Management. For each 
major acquisition program, each head of a Component shall--
          (1) establish a complete life cycle cost estimate 
        with supporting documentation, including an acquisition 
        program baseline;
          (2) verify each life cycle cost estimate against 
        independent cost estimates, and reconcile any 
        differences;
          (3) complete a cost-benefit analysis with supporting 
        documentation;
          (4) develop and maintain a schedule that is 
        consistent with scheduling best practices as identified 
        by the Comptroller General of the United States, 
        including, in appropriate cases, an integrated master 
        schedule; and
          (5) ensure that all acquisition program information 
        provided by the Component is complete, accurate, 
        timely, and valid.

TITLE VIII--COORDINATION WITH NON-FEDERAL ENTITIES; INSPECTOR GENERAL; 
UNITED STATES SECRET SERVICE; COAST GUARD; GENERAL PROVISIONS

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Subtitle D--Acquisitions

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SEC. 836. ACQUISITION REVIEW BOARD.

  (a) In General.--The Secretary shall establish an Acquisition 
Review Board (in this section referred to as the ``Board'') to 
strengthen accountability and uniformity within the Department 
acquisition review process, review major acquisition programs, 
and review the use of best practices.
  (b) Composition.--The Deputy Secretary or Under Secretary for 
Management shall serve as chair of the Board. The Secretary 
shall also ensure participation by other relevant Department 
officials, including at least two Component heads or their 
designees, as permanent members of the Board.
  (c) Meetings.--The Board shall meet every time a major 
acquisition program needs authorization to proceed from 
acquisition decision events through the acquisition life cycle 
and to consider any major acquisition program in breach as 
necessary. The Board may also be convened for non-major 
acquisitions that are deemed high-risk by the Executive 
Director referred to in section 709(b) of this Act. The Board 
shall also meet regularly for purposes of ensuring all 
acquisitions processes proceed in a timely fashion to achieve 
mission readiness.
  (d) Responsibilities.--The responsibilities of the Board are 
as follows:
          (1) Determine whether a proposed acquisition has met 
        the requirements of key phases of the acquisition life 
        cycle framework and is able to proceed to the next 
        phase and eventual full production and deployment.
          (2) Oversee executable business strategy, resources, 
        management, accountability, and alignment to strategic 
        initiatives.
          (3) Support the person with acquisition decision 
        authority for an acquisition in determining the 
        appropriate direction for the acquisition at key 
        acquisition decision events.
          (4) Conduct systematic reviews of acquisitions to 
        ensure that they are progressing in compliance with the 
        approved documents for their current acquisition phase.
          (5) Validate the acquisition documents of each major 
        acquisition program, including the acquisition program 
        baseline, to ensure the reliability of underlying data.
          (6) Ensure that practices are adopted and implemented 
        to require consideration of trade-offs among cost, 
        schedule, and performance objectives as part of the 
        process for developing requirements for major 
        acquisition programs prior to the initiation of the 
        capability development plan, second acquisition 
        decision event, including, at a minimum, the following 
        practices:
                  (A) Department officials responsible for 
                acquisition, budget, and cost estimating 
                functions are provided with the appropriate 
                opportunity to develop estimates and raise cost 
                and schedule matters before performance 
                objectives are established for capabilities 
                when feasible.
                  (B) Full consideration of possible trade-offs 
                among cost, schedule, and performance 
                objectives for each alternative is considered.
  (e) Acquisition Program Baseline Report Requirement.--If the 
person exercising acquisition decision authority over a major 
acquisition program approves the program to proceed beyond the 
acquisition decision event requiring a capability development 
plan before it has a Department-approved acquisition program 
baseline, then the Under Secretary for Management shall create 
and approve an acquisition program baseline report on the 
decision, and the Secretary shall--
          (1) within seven days after an acquisition decision 
        memorandum is signed, notify in writing the 
        congressional homeland security committees of such 
        decision; and
          (2) within 60 days after the acquisition decision 
        memorandum is signed, submit a report to such 
        committees stating the rationale for the decision and a 
        plan of action to require an acquisition program 
        baseline for the program.
  (f) Best Practices Defined.--In this section, the term ``best 
practices'' has the meaning provided in section 4(b) of the DHS 
Acquisition Accountability and Efficiency Act.

SEC. 837. REQUIREMENTS TO REDUCE DUPLICATION IN ACQUISITION PROGRAMS.

  (a) Requirement To Establish Policies.--In an effort to 
reduce duplication and inefficiency for all Department 
investments, including major acquisition programs, the Deputy 
Secretary, in consultation with the Under Secretary for 
Management, shall establish Department-wide policies to 
integrate all phases of the investment life cycle and help the 
Department identify, validate, and prioritize standards for 
common Component requirements for major acquisition program 
requirements in order to increase opportunities for 
effectiveness and efficiencies. The policies shall also include 
strategic alternatives for developing and facilitating a 
Department Component-driven requirements process that includes 
oversight of a development test and evaluation capability; 
identification of priority gaps and overlaps in Department 
capability needs; and provision of feasible technical 
alternatives, including innovative commercially available 
alternatives, to meet capability needs.
  (b) Mechanisms To Carry Out Requirement.--The Deputy 
Secretary, in consultation with the Under Secretary for 
Management, shall coordinate the actions necessary to carry out 
subsection (a), using such mechanisms as considered necessary 
by the Secretary to help the Department reduce duplication and 
inefficiency for all Department investments, including major 
acquisition programs.
  (c) Coordination.--In coordinating the actions necessary to 
carry out subsection (a), the Deputy Secretary shall consult 
with the Under Secretary for Management, Component Acquisition 
Executives, and any other Department officials, including the 
Under Secretary for Science and Technology or his designee, 
with specific knowledge of Department or Component acquisition 
capabilities to prevent unnecessary duplication of 
requirements.
  (d) Advisors.--The Deputy Secretary, in consultation with the 
Under Secretary for Management, shall seek and consider input 
within legal and ethical boundaries from members of Federal, 
State, local, and tribal governments, nonprofit organizations, 
and the private sector, as appropriate, on matters within their 
authority and expertise in carrying out the Department's 
mission.
  (e) Meetings.--The Deputy Secretary, in consultation with the 
Under Secretary for Management, shall meet at least quarterly 
and communicate with Components often to ensure that Components 
do not overlap or duplicate spending or priorities on major 
investments and acquisition programs within their areas of 
responsibility.
  (f) Responsibilities.--In carrying out this section, the 
responsibilities of the Deputy Secretary are as follows:
          (1) To review and validate the requirements documents 
        of major investments and acquisition programs prior to 
        acquisition decision events of the investments or 
        programs.
          (2) To ensure the requirements and scope of a major 
        investment or acquisition program are stable, 
        measurable, achievable, at an acceptable risk level, 
        and match the resources planned to be available.
          (3) Before any entity of the Department issues a 
        solicitation for a new contract, coordinate with other 
        Department entities as appropriate to prevent 
        duplication and inefficiency and--
                  (A) to implement portfolio reviews to 
                identify common mission requirements and 
                crosscutting opportunities among Components to 
                harmonize investments and requirements and 
                prevent overlap and duplication among 
                Components; and
                  (B) to the extent practicable, to standardize 
                equipment purchases, streamline the acquisition 
                process, improve efficiencies, and conduct best 
                practices for strategic sourcing.
          (4) To ensure program managers of major investments 
        and acquisition programs conduct analyses, giving 
        particular attention to factors such as cost, schedule, 
        risk, performance, and operational efficiency in order 
        to determine that programs work as intended within cost 
        and budget expectations.
          (5) To propose schedules for delivery of the 
        operational capability needed to meet each Department 
        investment and major acquisition program.
  (g) Best Practices Defined.--In this section, the term ``best 
practices'' has the meaning provided in section 4(b) of the DHS 
Acquisition Accountability and Efficiency Act.

SEC. 838. CONGRESSIONAL NOTIFICATION AND OTHER REQUIREMENTS FOR MAJOR 
                    ACQUISITION PROGRAM BREACH.

  (a) Breach Defined.--The term ``breach'', with respect to a 
major acquisition program, means a failure to meet any cost, 
schedule, or performance parameter specified in the acquisition 
program baseline.
  (b) Requirements Within Department if Breach Occurs.--
          (1) Notifications.--
                  (A) Notification of potential breach.--If a 
                major acquisition program has a potential for a 
                future breach, as determined by the program 
                manager for that program, the program manager 
                shall notify the person exercising acquisition 
                decision authority for the program.
                  (B) Notification of actual breach.--If an 
                actual breach occurs in a major acquisition 
                program, the program manager for that program 
                shall notify the head of the Component 
                concerned, the Component Acquisition Executive 
                for the program, the Executive Director 
                referred to in section 709(b) of this Act, the 
                Under Secretary for Management, and the Deputy 
                Secretary.
                  (C) Notification to secretary.--If a major 
                acquisition program has an actual breach with a 
                cost overrun greater than 20 percent or a 
                schedule delay greater than 12 months from the 
                costs or schedule set forth in the acquisition 
                program baseline for the program, the Secretary 
                and the Inspector General of the Department 
                shall be notified not later than five business 
                days after the actual breach is identified.
          (2) Remediation plan and root cause analysis.--
                  (A) In general.--In the case of an actual 
                breach with a cost overrun greater than 15 
                percent or a schedule delay greater than 180 
                days from the costs or schedule set forth in 
                the acquisition program baseline, a remediation 
                plan and root cause analysis is required, and 
                the Under Secretary for Management or his 
                designee shall establish a date for submission 
                within the Department of a breach remediation 
                plan and root cause analysis in accordance with 
                this subsection.
                  (B) Remediation plan.--The remediation plan 
                required under this subsection shall be 
                submitted in writing to the head of the 
                Component concerned, the Executive Director 
                referred to in section 709(b) of this Act, and 
                the Under Secretary for Management. The plan 
                shall--
                          (i) explain the circumstances of the 
                        breach;
                          (ii) provide prior cost estimating 
                        information;
                          (iii) propose corrective action to 
                        control cost growth, schedule delays, 
                        or performance issues;
                          (iv) in coordination with Component 
                        Acquisition Executive, discuss all 
                        options considered, including the 
                        estimated impact on cost, schedule, or 
                        performance of the program if no 
                        changes are made to current 
                        requirements, the estimated cost of the 
                        program if requirements are modified, 
                        and the extent to which funding from 
                        other programs will need to be reduced 
                        to cover the cost growth of the 
                        program; and
                          (v) explain the rationale for why the 
                        proposed corrective action is 
                        recommended.
                  (C) Root cause analysis.--The root cause 
                analysis required under this subsection shall 
                determine the underlying cause or causes of 
                shortcomings in cost, schedule, or performance 
                of the program, including the role, if any, of 
                the following:
                          (i) Unrealistic performance 
                        expectations.
                          (ii) Unrealistic baseline estimates 
                        for cost or schedule or changes in 
                        program requirements.
                          (iii) Immature technologies or 
                        excessive manufacturing or integration 
                        risk.
                          (iv) Unanticipated design, 
                        engineering, manufacturing, or 
                        technology integration issues arising 
                        during program performance.
                          (v) Changes in procurement 
                        quantities.
                          (vi) Inadequate program funding or 
                        changes in planned out-year funding 
                        from one five-year funding plan to the 
                        next five-year funding plan as outlined 
                        in the Future Years Homeland Security 
                        Program required under section 874 of 
                        this Act.
                          (vii) Legislative, legal, or 
                        regulatory changes.
                          (viii) Inadequate program management 
                        personnel, including lack of training, 
                        credentials, certifications, or use of 
                        best practices.
          (3) Correction of breach.--The Under Secretary for 
        Management or his designee shall establish a date for 
        submission within the Department of a program of 
        corrective action that ensures that one of the 
        following actions has occurred:
                  (A) The breach has been corrected and the 
                program is again in compliance with the 
                original acquisition program baseline 
                parameters.
                  (B) A revised acquisition program baseline 
                has been approved.
                  (C) The program has been halted or cancelled.
  (c) Requirements Relating to Congressional Notification if 
Breach Occurs.--
          (1) Notification to congress.--If a notification is 
        made under subsection (b)(1)(B) for a breach in a major 
        acquisition program with a cost overrun greater than 15 
        percent or a schedule delay greater than 180 days from 
        the costs or schedule set forth in the acquisition 
        program baseline, or with an anticipated failure for 
        any key performance threshold or parameter specified in 
        the acquisition program baseline, the Under Secretary 
        for Management shall notify the congressional homeland 
        security committees of the breach in the next quarterly 
        Comprehensive Acquisition Status Report after the Under 
        Secretary for Management receives the notification from 
        the program manager under subsection (b)(1)(B).
          (2) Substantial variances in costs or schedule.--If a 
        likely cost overrun is greater than 20 percent or a 
        likely delay is greater than 12 months from the costs 
        and schedule set forth in the acquisition program 
        baseline for a major acquisition program, the Under 
        Secretary for Management shall include in the 
        notification required in (c)(1) a written 
        certification, with supporting explanation, that--
                  (A) the acquisition is essential to the 
                accomplishment of the Department's mission;
                  (B) there are no alternatives to such 
                capability or asset that will provide equal or 
                greater capability in both a more cost-
                effective and timely manner;
                  (C) the new acquisition schedule and 
                estimates for total acquisition cost are 
                reasonable; and
                  (D) the management structure for the 
                acquisition program is adequate to manage and 
                control performance, cost, and schedule.
          (3) Submissions to congress.--Not later than 30 
        calendar days after submission to such committees of a 
        breach notification under paragraph (1) of this section 
        for a major acquisition program, the Under Secretary 
        for Management shall submit to such committees the 
        following:
                  (A) A copy of the remediation plan and the 
                root cause analysis prepared under subsection 
                (b)(2) for the program.
                  (B) A statement describing the corrective 
                action or actions that have occurred pursuant 
                to subsection (b)(3) for the program, with a 
                justification for the action or actions.
  (d) Additional Actions if Breach Occurs.--
          (1) Prohibition on obligation of funds.--During the 
        90-day period following submission under subsection 
        (c)(3) of a remediation plan, root cause analysis, and 
        statement of corrective actions with respect to a major 
        acquisition program, the Under Secretary for Management 
        shall submit a certification described in paragraph (2) 
        of this subsection to the congressional homeland 
        security committees. If the Under Secretary for 
        Management does not submit such certification by the 
        end of such 90-day period, then funds appropriated to 
        the major acquisition program shall not be obligated 
        until the Under Secretary for Management submits such 
        certification.
          (2) Certification.--For purposes of paragraph (1), 
        the certification described in this paragraph is a 
        certification that--
                  (A) the Department has adjusted or 
                restructured the program in a manner that 
                addresses the root cause or causes of the cost 
                growth in the program; and
                  (B) the Department has conducted a thorough 
                review of the breached program's acquisition 
                decision event approvals and the current 
                acquisition decision event approval for the 
                breached program has been adjusted as necessary 
                to account for the restructured program.

SEC. 839. MULTIYEAR ACQUISITION STRATEGY.

  (a) Multiyear Acquisition Strategy Required.--Not later than 
one year after the date of the enactment of this section, the 
Secretary shall submit to the appropriate homeland security 
committees a multiyear acquisition strategy to guide the 
overall direction of the acquisitions of the Department while 
allowing flexibility to deal with ever-changing threats and 
risks and to help industry better understand, plan, and align 
resources to meet the future acquisition needs of the 
Department. The strategy shall be updated and included in each 
Future Years Homeland Security Program required under section 
874 of this Act.
  (b) Consultation.--In developing the strategy, the Secretary 
shall consult with others as the Secretary deems appropriate, 
including headquarters, Components, employees in the field, and 
when appropriate, individuals from industry and the academic 
community.
  (c) Form of Strategy.--The report shall be submitted in 
unclassified form but may include a classified annex for any 
sensitive or classified information if necessary. The 
Department also shall publish the plan in an unclassified 
format that is publicly available.
  (d) Contents of Strategy.--The strategy shall include the 
following:
          (1) Prioritized list.--A systematic and integrated 
        prioritized list developed by the Under Secretary for 
        Management or his designee in coordination with all of 
        the Component Acquisition Executives of Department 
        major acquisition programs that Department and 
        Component acquisition investments seek to address, that 
        includes the expected security and economic benefit of 
        the program or system and an analysis of how the 
        security and economic benefit derived from the program 
        or system will be measured.
          (2) Inventory.--A plan to develop a reliable 
        Department-wide inventory of investments and real 
        property assets to help the Department plan, budget, 
        schedule, and acquire upgrades of its systems and 
        equipment and plan for the acquisition and management 
        of future systems and equipment.
          (3) Funding gaps.--A plan to address funding gaps 
        between funding requirements for major acquisition 
        programs and known available resources including, to 
        the maximum extent practicable, ways of leveraging best 
        practices to identify and eliminate overpayment for 
        items to prevent wasteful purchasing, achieve the 
        greatest level of efficiency and cost savings by 
        rationalizing purchases, aligning pricing for similar 
        items, and utilizing purchase timing and economies of 
        scale.
          (4) Identification of capabilities.--An 
        identification of test, evaluation, modeling, and 
        simulation capabilities that will be required to 
        support the acquisition of the technologies to meet the 
        needs of the plan and ways to leverage to the greatest 
        extent possible the emerging technology trends and 
        research and development trends within the public and 
        private sectors and an identification of ways to ensure 
        that the appropriate technology is acquired and 
        integrated into the Department's operating doctrine and 
        procured in ways that improve mission performance.
          (5) Focus on flexible solutions.--An assessment of 
        ways the Department can improve its ability to test and 
        acquire innovative solutions to allow needed incentives 
        and protections for appropriate risk-taking in order to 
        meet its acquisition needs with resiliency, agility, 
        and responsiveness to assure the Nation's homeland 
        security and facilitate trade.
          (6) Focus on incentives to save taxpayer dollars.--An 
        assessment of ways the Department can develop 
        incentives for program managers and senior Department 
        acquisition officials to prevent cost overruns, avoid 
        schedule delays, and achieve cost savings in major 
        acquisition programs.
          (7) Focus on addressing delays and bid protests.--An 
        assessment of ways the Department can improve the 
        acquisition process to minimize cost overruns in 
        requirements development, procurement announcements, 
        requests for proposals, evaluation of proposals, 
        protests of decisions and awards and through the use of 
        best practices as defined in section 4(b) of the DHS 
        Acquisition Accountability and Efficiency Act and 
        lessons learned by the Department and other Federal 
        agencies.
          (8) Focus on improving outreach.--An identification 
        and assessment of ways to increase opportunities for 
        communication and collaboration with industry, small 
        and disadvantaged businesses, intra-government 
        entities, university centers of excellence, accredited 
        certification and standards development organizations, 
        and national laboratories to ensure that the Department 
        understands the market for technologies, products, and 
        innovation that is available to meet its mission needs 
        to inform the requirements-setting process and before 
        engaging in an acquisition, including--
                  (A) methods designed especially to engage 
                small and disadvantaged businesses and a cost-
                benefit analysis of the tradeoffs that small 
                and disadvantaged businesses provide, barriers 
                to entry for small and disadvantaged 
                businesses, and unique requirements for small 
                and disadvantaged businesses; and
                  (B) within the Department Vendor 
                Communication Plan and Market Research Guide, 
                instructions for interaction by program 
                managers with such entities to prevent 
                misinterpretation of acquisition regulations 
                and to permit freedom within legal and ethical 
                boundaries for program managers to interact 
                with such businesses with transparency.
          (9) Competition.--A plan regarding competition as 
        described in subsection (e).
          (10) Acquisition workforce.--A plan regarding the 
        Department acquisition workforce as described in 
        subsection (f).
          (11) Feasibility of workforce development fund pilot 
        program.--An assessment of the feasibility of 
        conducting a pilot program to establish an acquisition 
        workforce development fund as described in subsection 
        (g).
  (e) Competition Plan.--The strategy shall also include a plan 
(referred to in subsection (d)(9)) that shall address actions 
to ensure competition, or the option of competition, for major 
acquisition programs. The plan may include assessments of the 
following measures in appropriate cases if such measures are 
cost effective:
          (1) Competitive prototyping.
          (2) Dual-sourcing.
          (3) Unbundling of contracts.
          (4) Funding of next-generation prototype systems or 
        subsystems.
          (5) Use of modular, open architectures to enable 
        competition for upgrades.
          (6) Acquisition of complete technical data packages.
          (7) Periodic competitions for subsystem upgrades.
          (8) Licensing of additional suppliers, including 
        small businesses.
          (9) Periodic system or program reviews to address 
        long-term competitive effects of program decisions.
  (f) Acquisition Workforce Plan.--
          (1) Acquisition workforce.--The strategy shall also 
        include a plan (referred to in subsection (d)(10)) to 
        address Department acquisition workforce accountability 
        and talent management that identifies the acquisition 
        workforce needs of each Component performing 
        acquisition functions and develops options for filling 
        those needs with qualified individuals, including a 
        cost-benefit analysis of contracting for acquisition 
        assistance.
          (2) Additional matters covered.--The acquisition 
        workforce plan shall address ways to--
                  (A) improve the recruitment, hiring, 
                training, and retention of Department 
                acquisition workforce personnel, including 
                contracting officer's representatives, in order 
                to retain highly qualified individuals that 
                have experience in the acquisition life cycle, 
                complex procurements, and management of large 
                programs;
                  (B) empower program managers to have the 
                authority to manage their programs in an 
                accountable and transparent manner as they work 
                with the acquisition workforce;
                  (C) prevent duplication within Department 
                acquisition workforce training and 
                certification requirements through leveraging 
                already-existing training within the Federal 
                Government, academic community, or private 
                industry;
                  (D) achieve integration and consistency with 
                Government-wide training and accreditation 
                standards, acquisition training tools, and 
                training facilities;
                  (E) designate the acquisition positions that 
                will be necessary to support the Department 
                acquisition requirements, including in the 
                fields of--
                          (i) program management;
                          (ii) systems engineering;
                          (iii) procurement, including 
                        contracting;
                          (iv) test and evaluation;
                          (v) life cycle logistics;
                          (vi) cost estimating and program 
                        financial management; and
                          (vii) additional disciplines 
                        appropriate to Department mission 
                        needs;
                  (F) strengthen the performance of contracting 
                officer's representatives (as defined in 
                Subpart 1.602-2 and Subpart 2.101 of the 
                Federal Acquisition Regulation), including by--
                          (i) assessing the extent to which 
                        contracting officer's representatives 
                        are certified and receive training that 
                        is appropriate;
                          (ii) determining what training is 
                        most effective with respect to the type 
                        and complexity of assignment; and
                          (iii) implementing actions to improve 
                        training based on such assessment; and
                  (G) identify ways to increase training for 
                relevant investigators and auditors to examine 
                fraud in major acquisition programs, including 
                identifying opportunities to leverage existing 
                Government and private sector resources in 
                coordination with the Inspector General of the 
                Department.
  (g) Feasibility of Workforce Development Fund Pilot 
Program.--The strategy shall also include an assessment 
(referred to in subsection (d)(11)) of the feasibility of 
conducting a pilot program to establish a Homeland Security 
Acquisition Workforce Development Fund (in this subsection 
referred to as the ``Fund'') to ensure the Department 
acquisition workforce has the capacity, in both personnel and 
skills, needed to properly perform its mission and ensure that 
the Department receives the best value for the expenditure of 
public resources. The assessment shall address the following:
          (1) Ways to fund the Fund, including the use of 
        direct appropriations, or the credit, transfer, or 
        deposit of unobligated or unused funds from Department 
        Components into the Fund to remain available for 
        obligation in the fiscal year for which credited, 
        transferred, or deposited and to remain available for 
        successive fiscal years.
          (2) Ways to reward the Department acquisition 
        workforce and program managers for good program 
        management in controlling cost growth, limiting 
        schedule delays, and ensuring operational effectiveness 
        through providing a percentage of the savings or 
        general acquisition bonuses.
          (3) Guidance for the administration of the Fund that 
        includes provisions to do the following:
                  (A) Describe the costs and benefits 
                associated with the use of direct 
                appropriations or credit, transfer, or deposit 
                of unobligated or unused funds to finance the 
                Fund.
                  (B) Describe the manner and timing for 
                applications for amounts in the Fund to be 
                submitted.
                  (C) Explain the evaluation criteria to be 
                used for approving or prioritizing applications 
                for amounts in the Fund in any fiscal year.
                  (D) Explain the mechanism to report to 
                Congress on the implementation of the Fund on 
                an ongoing basis.
                  (E) Detail measurable performance metrics to 
                determine if the Fund is meeting the objective 
                to improve the acquisition workforce and to 
                achieve cost savings in acquisition management.

SEC. 840. ACQUISITION REPORTS.

  (a) Comprehensive Acquisition Status Report.--
          (1) In general.--The Under Secretary for Management 
        each year shall submit to the congressional homeland 
        security committees, at the same time as the 
        President's budget is submitted for a fiscal year under 
        section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, a 
        comprehensive acquisition status report. The report 
        shall include the following:
                  (A) The information required under the 
                heading ``Office of the Under Secretary for 
                Management'' under Title I of division D of the 
                Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2012 (Public 
                Law 112-74) (as required under the Department 
                of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2013 
                (Public Law 113-6).
                  (B) A listing of programs that have been 
                cancelled, modified, paused, or referred to the 
                Under Secretary for Management or Deputy 
                Secretary for additional oversight or action by 
                the Board, Department Office of Inspector 
                General, or the Comptroller General.
                  (C) A listing of established Executive 
                Steering Committees, which provide governance 
                of a program or related set of programs and 
                lower-tiered oversight, and support between 
                acquisition decision events and Component 
                reviews, including the mission and membership 
                for each.
          (2) Information for major acquisition programs.--For 
        each major acquisition program, the report shall 
        include the following:
                  (A) A narrative description, including 
                current gaps and shortfalls, the capabilities 
                to be fielded, and the number of planned 
                increments or units.
                  (B) Acquisition Review Board (or other board 
                designated to review the acquisition) status of 
                each acquisition, including the current 
                acquisition phase, the date of the last review, 
                and a listing of the required documents that 
                have been reviewed with the dates reviewed or 
                approved.
                  (C) The most current, approved acquisition 
                program baseline (including project schedules 
                and events).
                  (D) A comparison of the original acquisition 
                program baseline, the current acquisition 
                program baseline, and the current estimate.
                  (E) Whether or not an independent 
                verification and validation has been 
                implemented, with an explanation for the 
                decision and a summary of any findings.
                  (F) A rating of cost risk, schedule risk, and 
                technical risk associated with the program 
                (including narrative descriptions and 
                mitigation actions).
                  (G) Contract status (including earned value 
                management data as applicable).
                  (H) A lifecycle cost of the acquisition, and 
                time basis for the estimate.
          (3) Updates.--The Under Secretary shall submit 
        quarterly updates to such report not later than 45 days 
        after the completion of each quarter.
  (b) Quarterly Program Accountability Report.--The Under 
Secretary for Management shall prepare a quarterly program 
accountability report to meet the Department's mandate to 
perform program health assessments and improve program 
execution and governance. The report shall be submitted to the 
congressional homeland security committees.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Subtitle H--Miscellaneous Provisions

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SEC. 874. FUTURE YEAR HOMELAND SECURITY PROGRAM.

  (a) * * *
  (b) Contents.--The Future Years Homeland Security Program 
under subsection (a) shall--
          (1) * * *
          (2) set forth the homeland security strategy of the 
        Department, which shall be developed and updated as 
        appropriate annually by the Secretary, that was used to 
        develop program planning guidance for the Future Years 
        Homeland Security Program; [and]
          (3) include an explanation of how the resource 
        allocations included in the Future Years Homeland 
        Security Program correlate to the homeland security 
        strategy set forth under paragraph (2)[.]; and
          (4) include the multiyear acquisition strategy 
        required under section 839 of this Act.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                            Additional Views

                                ------                                


 ADDITIONAL VIEWS OF BENNIE G. THOMPSON, RANKING MEMBER, ON BEHALF OF 
                          COMMITTEE DEMOCRATS

    Committee Democrats were pleased to support H.R. 4228, the 
``DHS Acquisition Accountability and Efficiency Act'' (Act). 
While we agree with the vast majority of the language contained 
within the Report accompanying H.R. 4228 (Report), we would 
like to highlight a number of areas within the legislation that 
that were strengthened by Democrat input and Amendments that 
warrant further detail. Additionally, we would like to 
disassociate ourselves with some of the language contained in 
the Report.

                  Background and Need for Legislation

    According to the Report, DHS ``will spend at least $300 
million on each program and take years to develop and procure 
them.'' Committee Democrats wish to point out that the $300 
million figure is an estimate. Committee Democrats anticipate 
that the provisions in the underlying legislation putting 
controls and limitations in place, including the strengthening 
of the Acquisition Review Board, may reduce this estimated 
amount.
    According to the Report, ``[t]o date, DHS has lacked a 
strategy to guide the billions of dollars it spends on these 
major acquisition programs.'' Committee Democrats agree that a 
more strategic approach is needed to ensure taxpayer dollars 
are spent in the most efficient and effective manner. However, 
Committee Democrats disagree with the notion that ``DHS has 
lacked a strategy.'' DHS has numerous acquisition and 
procurement strategies in place, including Management Directive 
102, which forms the framework for the underlying legislation, 
a DHS Acquisitions Planning Guide released by the Office of the 
Chief Procurement Officer, the Chief Procurement Office 
Strategic Plan, the Integrated Investment Life Cycle, which has 
aided the Department in narrowing the scope of its inclusion on 
the Government Accountability Office ``High Risk List.'' 
Committee Democrats note that while DHS has not always been 
successful at implementing the numerous strategies that are in 
place, strategies do exist.

                    TITLE I--ACQUISITION AUTHORITIES

Section 101--Acquisition authorities for Under Secretary for Management
    During the Full Committee Markup, the Committee adopted an 
amendment offered by Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-NY) related to cyber 
hygiene. Rep. Clarke's amendment requires the Under Secretary 
for Management (USM) to distribute guidance throughout DHS to 
ensure that contractors involved in acquisitions adhere to 
internal cybersecurity policies established by DHS. Every day, 
numerous DHS contractors interface with DHS' networks and 
access its information systems and technologies. According to 
DHS, 96% of cyber breaches are avoidable through simple or 
intermediate controls and almost 97% of cyber events could have 
been prevented or damages mitigated, if enterprises would 
simply use good cyber hygiene.
    At the Full Committee Markup, amendments were also adopted 
that were offered by Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS) that 
related to DHS' management of its suspension and debarment 
program. Pursuant to his amendments, Section 101 now requires 
that DHS contracting and procurement officials consult the U.S. 
General Services Administration's (GSA) Excluded Parties List 
System, or any successor system, prior to awarding a contract 
or other Federal funds to ensure that the recipient is eligible 
to receive a Federal contract or Federal financial and 
nonfinancial assistance and benefits. Committee Democrats 
believe that requiring DHS to make certain that it does not 
award contracts to individuals or entities that have been 
suspended or debarred can help prevent potential risks 
associated with such awards and to ensure that its operations 
are in compliance with the Federal Acquisition Regulation.
Section 103--Acquisition authorities for Chief Information Officer
    The Committee Report states that it is the Committee's view 
that the Chief Information Officer (CIO) should consider the 
advantages of already-existing innovative commercial solutions 
that may have the ability to meet U.S. homeland security 
mission needs while providing solutions for lower costs. While 
Democrat Members believe that there are many instances where 
commercially-available solutions may prove to be the 
appropriate course, it is the view of Committee Democrats that 
the CIO should weigh all appropriate options and determine 
which approach is most responsive to the Department's 
operational needs.
Section 104--Chief Procurement Officer
    During the Full Committee markup, an amendment offered by 
Ranking Member Thompson (D-MS) was adopted and included in 
Section 104. As a result of this amendment, the certification 
and training program overseen by the DHS Chief Procurement 
Officer (CPO) must also include training on how best to 
identify actions that warrant referrals for suspension or 
debarment. This amendment is consistent with Government 
Accountably Office and the Office of Management and Budget 
guidance that Federal agencies improve training in this area to 
better equip contracting officials with the knowledge they need 
to protect the Federal Government's interest.
    This section also incorporates Democrat language, 
championed by the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on 
Oversight and Management Efficiency Rep. Ron Barber (D-AZ), 
that strengthens the role of small businesses in DHS 
contracting. I am disappointed with the incomplete 
characterization of the Department's record when it comes to 
contracting with small businesses. According to the Report, DHS 
``exceeds the U.S. Government-wide goal of 31.75 percent for 
contracts awarded to Small Business and Small and Disadvantaged 
Business.'' However, this information is deceptive and obscures 
the true reality of whether DHS components are meeting Federal 
small business goals. For example, the Transportation Security 
Administration (TSA) has established 23.0 percent as its goal 
for prime small business contracting; however, it is current 
contracting at 16.2 percent. Similarly, the Federal Emergency 
Management Agency utilizes the DHS-wide goal of 32.0 percent as 
its own standard; yet, its current percentage is 24.8 percent, 
far below both its own and the DHS-wide goal. Committee 
Democrats commends DHS and those Components that meet or exceed 
its established goals and congratulates DHS on its agency-wide 
Scorecard grade. At the same time, Committee Democrats want to 
emphasize that established goals should be met or exceeded 
across all components.
    As a result of language offered by Committee Democrats that 
was incorporated into the Act, Section 104 requires the CPO to 
follow small business requirements established in the Small 
Business Act; take efforts to ensure that small businesses are 
not negatively impacted by strategic sourcing; and instructs 
DHS to maximize opportunities for small businesses, as required 
by law.
    Finally, as a result of an amendment offered by Ranking 
Member Thompson and adopted at the Full Committee Markup, this 
section seeks to provide opportunities to small businesses that 
succeed in completing the Department's process for becoming a 
qualified vendor for a security-related technology, thus 
increasing competition in the market. Representatives from TSA 
have testified that its small business challenges are 
attributable to the high cost associated with being able to 
endure the testing and evaluation that occurs on security-
related technologies the agency intends to procure.

          TITLE II--ACQUISITION PROGRAM MANAGEMENT DISCIPLINE

Section 201--Acquisition Review Board
    On April 17, 2014, the Government Accountability Office 
(GAO) released a report regarding homeland security 
acquisitions. While Committee Democrats were pleased with GAO's 
oversight and releasing reports on DHS acquisitions matters, 
this report did not; however, inform the basis of this 
legislation because it was released after the Full Committee 
Markup. As a result, Democrats do not support the inclusion of 
references to the ``2014 GAO report'' as a basis for the 
underlying legislation. While Committee Democrats will pursue 
the findings contained within the report and whether DHS has 
adequately addressed the recommendations, we cannot assert that 
we intend for the Acquisition Review Board (ARB) to make 
affordability ``trade-offs'' without first determining through 
oversight, which has not yet occurred, whether this is the best 
course of action.
Section 204--Excluded party list system waivers
    As part of the suspension and debarment process, the U.S. 
General Services Administration maintains a system for 
identifying suspended and debarred individuals and businesses. 
The purpose of this list--which must be consulted before the 
awarding of a contract or other funds--is to protect the 
Government from doing business with bad actors. Prior to 
issuing an award, contracting officers are required to consult 
the system to verify that a vendor is eligible to do business 
with the Government. However, contracting officers also have 
the ability to issue a waiver that allows the individual or 
business to receive a contract despite being suspended or 
debarred. According to the Federal Acquisition Regulation, in 
an effort to protect the Government, such a waiver should only 
be issued if a ``compelling reason'' exists. To ensure that the 
exercise of this waiver authority is responsible and 
appropriate, Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX) offered an 
amendment that was adopted by the Full Committee to Section 204 
that requires that the Secretary provide notification to the 
congressional homeland security committees within five days 
after issuance of a waiver for the requirement that an agency 
not engage in business with a contractor listed in the Excluded 
Party List System, and an explanation for that waiver. 
Committee Democrats believe that this additional layer of 
Congressional scrutiny of the decision to waive the exclusion 
should bring greater accountability to DHS' contracting process 
and guard against overruns and other contract breaches.
Section 205--Inspector General oversight of suspension and debarment
    Committee Democrats believe that failing to suspend or 
debar poorly performing contractors in addition to awarding 
contracts to those that have defrauded the government, violated 
laws, or committed other misconduct undermines public 
confidence and puts scarce homeland security dollars at risk 
and as a result Congressional oversight of this process is 
necessary. Moreover, the vast majority of DHS contracts are 
awarded in an effort to carry out the homeland security 
mission; therefore if this process lacks integrity, it has the 
potential to impact our Nation's security. Committee Democrats 
also believes that while there is a need for DHS to implement a 
robust suspension and debarment program, this process should be 
consistently applied, among all business concerns, including 
large, small, minority, veteran-owned, disadvantaged and woman-
owned businesses. As a result, Rep. Ron Barber (D-AZ) 
introduced an amendment that was adopted at Full Committee that 
resulted in Section 204 providing that the DHS Inspector 
General may audit grant and procurement award decisions to 
ensure entities that are suspended or debarred from receiving 
Federal funds are not improperly receiving those awards. Rep. 
Barber's adopted amendment also required that the Inspector 
General review the Department's suspension and debarment 
program to assess whether suspension and debarment criteria is 
disproportionately impacts small, minority, veteran-owned, 
women-owned or disadvantaged businesses that contract with DHS.

     TITLE III--ACQUISITION PROGRAM MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTABILITY AND 
                              TRANSPARENCY

Development of the Acquisition Workforce
    DHS Contracting Officer's Representatives (CORs) conduct 
oversight of DHS contracts and are primarily responsible for 
monitoring contractor performance. It is the responsibility of 
this aspect of the workforce to detect and address when 
breaches occur and poor performance. Committee Democrats 
believe that steps should be taken to ensure that this 
particular cadre of the DHS workforce is strengthened. To that 
end, Rep. Donald Payne (D-NJ) offered an amendment that was 
adopted during the Subcommittee on Oversight and Management 
Efficiency Markup of H.R. 4228 that was incorporated into the 
Amendment in the Nature of the Substitute that was offered by 
Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC) at Full Committee. Pursuant to Rep. 
Payne's amendment, Section 302 contains provisions that 
strengthen the DHS CORs workforce. According to the DHS 
Inspector General, many major acquisitions fail due to 
inadequate contractor oversight. Furthermore, the Office of 
Management and Budget has found that CORs are increasingly 
being asked to manage high-value, complex contracts that 
involve varying degrees of risk; however, many are not trained 
and developed appropriately. As a result of Rep. Payne's 
amendment, Section 302 seeks to address this challenge by 
requiring DHS to provide particular emphasis on CORs in its 
efforts to recruit, hire, train and retain an effective 
acquisition and procurement workforce. This section also 
instructs DHS to include in its plan, ways to strengthen the 
performance of its cadre of contracting officer's 
representatives by assessing the extent to which they are 
certified and trained; determining the most effective form of 
training and improving the training offered based on the final 
assessment.
Section 303--Acquisition reports
    Committee Democrats are looking forward to receiving the 
Quarterly Program Accountability Report that the USM is 
authorized to submit to pursuant to Section 303. Moreover, 
Committee Democrats agree with the consternation expressed in 
the Report with the DHS May 2013 Acquisition Decision 
Memorandum that allows Component Acquisition Executive to waive 
acquisition documentation for 42 Level I and Level II 
acquisition programs that were in the sustainment phase prior 
to 2008. While Committee Democrats disagree with that decision, 
we do not agree that the waiver requirement bears any relation 
to the creation of a knowledge deficit, as indicate by the 
Report. Upon information received from DHS, the decision to 
grant this waiver authority was an attempt to reduce the large 
number of programs reviewed by the Acquisitions Review Board to 
avoid more comprehensive and focused review on more recent and 
prospective acquisitions. DHS thus used 2008 as the cutoff date 
for ARB requirements. Unfortunately, this decision removed from 
review some major question programs that were worthy of closer 
scrutiny. Therefore, Committee Democrats associate themselves, 
in part, with the criticism associated with this decision but 
do not agree that this decision was in contradiction with the 
referenced 2013 GAO report.
                                                Bennie G. Thompson.

                                  
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