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Subtitle A–Amendments to General Contracting Authorities, Procedures, and Limitations

(Sec. 802) Amends the restrictions on undefinitized contractual actions. Requires DOD to consider the cost risk to the contractor as of the date that a qualifying proposal to definitize a contract was submitted if the contract was not then definitized within the statutory 180-day period. Applies the 180-day definitization period to foreign military sales contracts. Defines a qualifying proposal as a proposal that contains sufficient information to enable a meaningful audit of the definitization proposal.

(Sec. 803) Revises requirements related to DOD’s accounting for and reporting of contracts for services.

(Sec. 804) Specifies that the source selection criteria to be used in the procurement of personal protective equipment or critical safety items are criteria that: (1) are predominately based on technical qualifications of the item and not predominately based on price, (2) do not use reverse auction or lowest price technically acceptable contracting methods, and (3) reflect a preference for best value source selection methods.

(Sec. 805) Removes the retroactive application requirement for the cap on the allowable compensation of contractor employees. (As a result, the cap would apply to compensation costs incurred after January 1, 2012, under contracts entered into on or after December 31, 2011.)

(Sec. 806) Revises requirements for the detection and avoidance of counterfeit electronic parts to require contractors and DOD to meet certain requirements using “suppliers that meet anticounterfeiting requirements” rather than “trusted suppliers.”

(Sec. 807) Expands the permissible uses of special emergency procurement authorities to include support of international disaster assistance and support of a national emergency or natural disaster relief efforts in the United States as defined by the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act.

(Sec. 808) Requires DOD to comply with domestic source requirements for footwear furnished to enlisted members of the Armed Forces upon their initial entry into the Armed Forces. Requires DOD to furnish the footwear directly to members instead of providing a cash allowance. Permits a waiver to be granted in cases of medical necessity.

(Sec. 809) Establishes a procurement policy checklist to ensure accountability in the acquisition of services and specifies requirements for the checklist.

(Sec. 809A) Extends for one year the cap on the total spending for services contracts.

(Sec. 809B) Extends the authority for the enhanced transfer of technology developed at DOD laboratories.

Subtitle C–Provisions Relating to Commercial Items

(Sec. 821) Expands the types of nondevelopmental items that may be considered commercial items to include items that the procuring agency determines were developed at private expense and sold in substantial quantities on a competitive basis to foreign governments.

(Sec. 822) Requires DOD procurement officials to conduct or obtain market research when determining price reasonableness for commercial items.

(Sec. 823) Permits contractors to submit information or analysis pertaining to the value of a commercial item when responding to solicitations. Permits contracting officers to consider value analysis, in addition to historic pricing data, when determining price reasonableness for commercial items.

(Sec. 824) Expands DOD centralized records relating to commercial item determinations to include market research and price reasonableness analysis. Eliminates the requirement that the records be publicly accessible.

(Sec. 825) Permits DOD to carry out a commercial solutions opening pilot program, under which innovative commercial items may be acquired through a competitive selection of proposals resulting from a general solicitation and the peer review of the proposals.

Subtitle D–Other Matters

(Sec. 840) Exempts audits for the National Nuclear Security Administration from the prohibition on the performance of non-defense audits by the Defense Contract Audit Agency.

(Sec. 841) Requires DOD to select service providers for auditing services and audit readiness services based on the best value, as determined by the resource sponsor for an auditing contract, rather than based on the lowest price technically acceptable service provider.

(Sec. 842) Modifies the justification and approval process for sole-source contracts valued at $20 million or greater.

(Sec. 843) Requires DOD to brief Congress on the use and implementation of the two-phase design-build selection procedures for defense contracts.

(Sec. 844) Prohibits any DOD function performed by DOD civilian employees and tied to a certain military base from being converted to contractor performance until DOD assesses whether it has carried out sufficient outreach programs to assist small business concerns owned and controlled by women or socially and economically disadvantaged individuals that are located near the military base.

(Sec. 847) Specifies that it is DOD policy to avoid using lowest price technically acceptable source selection criteria in inappropriate circumstances that potentially deny DOD the benefits of cost and technical tradeoffs in the source selection process. Limits the use of lowest price technically acceptable source selection criteria to specified situations.

Requires DOD, to the maximum extent practicable, to avoid using lowest price technically acceptable source selection criteria when the procurement is predominately for the acquisition of information technology services, systems engineering and technical assistance services, audit or audit readiness services, or other knowledge-based professional services.

Requires DOD to report to Congress on the use of lowest-price technically acceptable source selection criteria.