Agile Acquisition to Retain Technological Edge Act
Latest action. Referred to the subcommitteeA smaller panel inside a standing committee with jurisdiction over a slice of its subject matter. Most hearings and the first markup usually happen here.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) on Research and Technology.
Agile Acquisition to Retain Technological Edge Act
This bill expresses the sense of Congress that all stakeholders in the acquisition system of the Department of Defense (DOD), including Congress and industry, should be: (1) successful, (2) proactive, (3) agile, (4) transparent, and (5) innovative.
Authority is permanently extended for: (1) funding the DOD Acquisition Workforce Development Fund, and (2) expedited hiring for acquisition workforce positions.
A dual-track career path is established that permits officers and enlisted personnel to gain experience in a primary career in combat arms and a secondary career in the acquisition field.
DOD is required to:
provide mandatory training for members of the armed forces and DOD employees responsible for specified procurement-related market research, and
contract for an independent comprehensive study of strategic planning related to the defense acquisition workforce.
Each major defense acquisition program and each major system approved by a Milestone Decision Authority shall have an acquisition strategy, including a risk management and mitigation strategy, for which the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics shall be responsible.
The Weapon Systems Acquisition Reform Act of 2009 is amended to repeal the provision regarding prototyping requirements for major defense acquisition programs.
The Under Secretary shall: (1) complete an examination of the decision authority related to acquisition of services, and (2) develop guidance to improve capabilities and processes related to oversight and management of services contracts.
Defense business system requirements are revised.
The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1991 is amended to eliminate the pilot program designation of the mentor-protege program.
The Small Business Act is amended to direct the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to implement the plan to improve the quality of data reported on bundled or consolidated contracts in the federal procurement data system by the first day of FY2017.
The Secretary of Defense shall direct the Defense Business Board to review DOD regulations and practices related to government access to and use of intellectual property rights of private sector firms.
The summary continues for 12 more paragraphs. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on March 25, 2015. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on August 18, 2015: Referred to the Subcommittee on Research and Technology.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 114th Congress (2015-16), 329 of the 10,233 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.2 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
WILLIAM THORNBERRY (R-TX) introduced it on March 25, 2015, and 1 member has since signed on as a cosponsor.
They are 1 Democrat.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on March 25, 2015, 4187 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 4041 days ago, on August 18, 2015.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 114th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2017 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers