Sec. 237. Limitation on contract awards for certain unmanned vessels
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None of the funds authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2021 by section 201 for research, development, test, and evaluation may be used for the award of a contract for a covered vessel until the date that is 30 days after the date on which the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering submits to the congressional defense committees a report and certification described in subsection
(c)for such contract and covered vessel. For purposes of this section, a covered vessel is one of the following: A large unmanned surface vessel (LUSV). A medium unmanned surface vehicle (MUSV). A large displacement unmanned undersea vehicle (LDUUV). An extra-large unmanned undersea vehicle (XLUUV). A report and certification described in this subsection regarding a contract for a covered vessel is— a report— submitted to the congressional defense committees not later than 60 days after the date of the completion of an independent technical risk assessment for such covered vessel; and on the findings of the Under Secretary with respect to such assessment; and a certification, submitted to the congressional defense committees with the report described in paragraph (1), that certifies that— the Under Secretary has determined, in conjunction with the Senior Technical Authority designated under section 8669b(a)(1) of title 10, United States Code, for the class of naval vessels that includes the covered vessel, that the critical mission, hull, mechanical, and electrical subsystems of the covered vessel— have been demonstrated in vessel-representative form, fit, and function; and have achieved performance levels equal to or greater than applicable Department of Defense threshold requirements for such class of vessels; and such contract is necessary to meet Department research, development, test, and evaluation objectives for such covered vessel that cannot otherwise be met through further land-based subsystem prototyping or other demonstration approaches. In this section, the term critical mission, hull, mechanical, and electrical subsystems , with respect to a covered vessel, includes the following subsystems: Command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance. Autonomous vessel navigation, vessel control, contact management, and contact avoidance. Communications security, including cryptopgraphy, encryption, and decryption. Main engines, including the lube oil, fuel oil, and other supporting systems. Electrical generation and distribution, including supporting systems. Military payloads. Any other subsystem identified as critical by the Senior Technical Authority designated under section 8669b(a)(1) of title 10, United States Code, for the class of naval vessels that includes the covered vessel.