Sec. 825. Pilot program for authority to acquire innovative commercial items using general solicitation competitive procedures
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The Secretary of Defense may carry out a pilot program, to be known as 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 such proposals. Use of general solicitation competitive procedures for the pilot program under subsection
(a)shall be considered to be use of competitive procedures for purposes of chapter 137 of title 10, United States Code. The Secretary may not enter into a contract under the pilot program for an amount in excess of $10,000,000. The total amount that may be obligated or expended under the pilot program for a fiscal year may not exceed $75,000,000. The Secretary may not acquire innovative commercial items under the pilot program to replace a system under a major defense acquisition program in its entirety. The Secretary shall issue guidance for the implementation of the pilot program under this section within the Department of Defense. Such guidance shall be issued in consultation with the Office of Management and Budget and shall be posted for access by the public. Not later than six months after the initiation of the pilot program, and every six months thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and House of Representatives a report on the activities the Department of Defense carried out under the pilot program. The report under this subsection shall include the following: An assessment of the impact of the pilot program on competition. An assessment of the ability under the pilot program to attract proposals from nontraditional defense contractors (as defined in section 2302(9) of title 10, United States Code). A comparison of acquisition timelines for— procurements made using the pilot program; and procurements made using other competitive procedures that do not use general solicitations. A recommendation on whether the authority for the pilot program should be made permanent. The requirement to submit a report under this subsection shall terminate on the date occurring five years after the date of the enactment of this Act. In this section, the term innovative means— any new technology, process, or method, able to be used to improve or replace existing information system applications, programs, or networks, or used to improve research and development of information technology advancements; or any new application of an existing technology, process, or method. The authority to enter into a contract under a pilot program under this section terminates on the date occurring five years after the date of the enactment of this Act.