Sec. 4. Acquisition workforce
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/bill/117/s/4623/rs/section-4·A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator, in coordination with the Federal Acquisition Institute and the Office of Personnel Management, as necessary, shall pilot a program for entry of junior and mid-career professionals to the General Schedule Contracting series (GS–1102) workforce, by— considering the inclusion of program participants from other job series and fields, including veterans, military spouses, and private sector procurement professionals; providing alternatives to education and training requirements for entry into the General Schedule Contracting series (GS–1102) workforce, such as allowing for use of educational credits in a technical discipline relevant to agency procurement, such as information and communications technology and scientific and engineering disciplines; providing pathways to reciprocity or fulfillment of certification requirements for Department of Defense professional contracting certification holders and commercial sector acquisition certification holders, such as certified professional contract managers and certified Federal contract managers; and providing a capstone class or experience and relevant mentorship opportunities.
Not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall provide to the relevant committees of Congress a briefing on implementation of the pilot program and any recommendations related to expansion or extension. The duration of the pilot program under this subsection shall be not less than 5 years after the date of the enactment of this Act. Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Acquisition Institute shall incorporate experiential learning into the training framework for the General Schedule Contracting series (GS–1102).
Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Acquisition Institute, in coordination with the Administrator, the Administrator of General Services, the Chief Information Officers Council, and the United States Digital Service shall develop and implement or otherwise provide a cross-functional information and communications technology acquisition training program to acquisition workforce members involved in acquiring information and communications technology.
The training shall— include learning objectives related to market research and communicating with industry, developing requirements, acquisition planning, and awarding and administering contracts for information and communications technology; include learning objectives encouraging use of small business programs to acquire information and communications technology; include learning objectives encouraging the use of commercial or commercially available off-the-shelf
(COTS)technologies to the greatest extent practicable; include case studies of lessons learned from Federal information and communications technology procurements and contracts; include experiential learning opportunities; include continuous learning recommendations and resources to keep the skills of acquisition workforce members current; and be made available to acquisition workforce members designated by a Chief Acquisition Officer, Senior Procurement Executive, or Head of the Contracting Activity to participate in the training program. Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the Federal Acquisition Institute shall provide to the relevant committees of Congress, the Chief Acquisition Officers Council and the Chief Information Officers Council— a briefing outlining the Director’s progress in developing and implementing or otherwise providing the information and communications technology acquisition training described in paragraph (1); and a list of any congressionally mandated acquisition training that the Director determines to be outdated or no longer necessary for other reasons. The training program shall be offered for a minimum of 5 years following the date of implementation of the training program.