Sec. 865. Improving the domestic textile and industrial base
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Subject to the availability of appropriations, the Secretary of Defense, acting through the Director of the Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment Office of the Department of Defense, shall ensure that the Textile Automation to Enhance Domestic Military Production program continues public-private partnerships and investments into technological advancement of the domestic textile and footwear industrial base. The investments pursuant to paragraph
(1)may include— recapitalization of facilities related to domestic textile and footwear development or production; efficient vertical integration of such existing facilities; expanding domestic production capacity of textiles or footwear; implementing technological advancements to improve efficiency and quality assurance of domestic textiles or footwear; and any other investment that would encourage the maturation and qualification of domestic sources of textiles or footwear— to ensure competition and reduce the reliance of the Department of Defense on textiles and footwear from foreign manufacturers for which an exception granted under section 4862(c) of title 10, United States Code, applies; or that the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy determines necessary for the health of the industrial base. The Secretary of Defense shall prioritize ensuring that the Defense Contract Management Agency has the necessary resources, including personnel, to carry out the duties of the Defense Contract Management Agency with respect to the oversight of contracts of the Department of Defense. Not later than April 1, 2026, the Secretary of Defense shall provide to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and House of Representatives a briefing on the plan of the Department of Defense to ensure that the Defense Contract Management Agency has the necessary resources, including personnel, to carry out the duties of the Defense Contract Management Agency with respect to oversight travel of existing contracts of the Department and prioritize oversight over the compliance with section 4862 of title 10, United States Code. The plan described in subparagraph
(A)shall include— to the extent available, an analysis from a federally funded research and development center on the resources, including personnel, required for the Defense Contract Management Agency to enable the Defense Contract Management Agency to carry out the duties of the Defense Contract Management Agency with respect to the oversight of contracts of the Department of Defense; and a plan to ensure that, not later than September 30, 2030, the Defense Contract Management Agency has the required resources, including personnel, to effectively oversee the compliance of the Department of Defense with section 4862 of title 10, United States Code. The Director of the Defense Logistics Agency in coordination with the Secretary concerned for each covered Armed Force, shall develop a strategy to maximize the use of annual or, where applicable, multi-year contracts by the Department of Defense for acquisitions involving the domestic textile or footwear industries to ensure the long-term stability and predictability of the requirements of the Department with respect to the goods or services acquired from such industries. The Secretary concerned for each covered Armed Force shall, on an annual basis, submit to the Director of the Defense Logistics Agency the requirements of such covered Armed Force for textiles and footwear for the year and the funding necessary to meet such requirements, subject to the availability of funds authorized for such purpose. The Secretary concerned for each covered Armed Force shall aggregate data on the annual requirement of each covered Armed Force for common items, to ensure the Director of the Defense Logistics Agency can maximize efficiency and cost effectiveness in the acquisition of such common items. The data the Secretary concerned for a covered Armed Force is required to aggregate under subparagraph
(A)shall include the requirements of the covered Armed Force concerned for the upcoming fiscal year for common items. The Secretary concerned for each covered Armed Force shall aggregate the annual requirement of each covered Armed Force common items and incorporate such aggregate requirement into the next fiscal years program objective memorandum process of such Armed Force. The Director of the Defense Logistics Agency shall, to the maximum extent practicable, use the aggregate data described in paragraph (3)(A) to execute annual contracts for common items and textiles and footwear required by only one of the covered Armed Forces to support the long-term stability of the domestic textile and footwear industries. If the Director of the Defense Logistics Agency does not receive the requirements and funding described in paragraph
(2)for a covered Armed Force for a year, or such other information required for the Director to acquire textiles and footwear meeting such requirements for such year, the Director may waive subparagraph
(A)of this paragraph with respect to such requirements. Not later than 30 days after the date on which the Director of the Defense Logistics Agencies issues a waiver under clause (i), the Director shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and House of Representatives a notice of such waiver, including an explanation of the rational for granting such waiver. In this section— the term covered Armed Force means the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Space Force; the term common item mean a textile or footwear required by more by than one of the covered Armed Forces; and the term Secretary concerned has the meaning given such term in section 101(a) of title 10, United States Code. Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the Defense Logistics Agency shall conduct an assessment of the textile and footwear industrial base producing textiles and footwear described in subsection
(b)of section 4862 of title 10, United States Code, that are not subject to the prohibition under subsection
(a)of such section to assess the resilience of the supply chain of the domestic textile and footwear industries. The assessment required under paragraph
(1)shall include the following: An identification of the textile and footwear goods supplied to the Department of Defense by a single source. Data pertaining to past delays in the delivery of textiles and footwear resulting from rigidity in the supply chains of the domestic textile and footwear industrial base, including an assessment of any challenges related to the capacity of the domestic textile and footwear industrial base to meet any surge or contingency requirements of the Department of Defense for textiles or footwear. An analysis of the capability of the domestic textile and footwear industrial base to mitigate the risk posed by rigidity in the supply chains of the domestic textile and footwear industrial base and the challenges to the domestic textile and footwear industrial base meeting the surge and contingency requirements of the Department of Defense for textiles or footwear, including— opportunities for public-private partnerships to enable recapitalization of manufacturing lines or vertical integration; opportunities for increased flexibility in production, including adjustments to accommodate both increases in requirements for textiles or footwear and manufacturing of new or different textiles or footwear; and an assessment of any ongoing research and development initiatives by either the Department of Defense or domestic industry to meet any requirements for textiles or footwear that are currently covered by a waiver under section 4862(c) of title 10, United States Code. An identification of any regulations or processes of the Department of Defense impeding the supply chain resilience of the domestic textile and footwear industries. An identification of opportunities for the Department of Defense to make additional investments into the domestic textile and footwear industries to increase production capacity such industries, facilitate greater competition, and reduce the reliance of the Department on textiles and footwear from foreign manufacturers for which an exception granted under section 4862(c) of title 10, United States Code, applies. Not later than September 30, 2026, the Secretary of Defense shall provide to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and House of Representatives a briefing on the implementation of subsections (a), (b), and
(c)of this section and in carrying out subsection (d). The briefing required by paragraph
(1)shall include— an explanation of the progress made in carrying out the requirements under subsections
(a)through (d); a timeline for completion of each such requirement; and an identification of any barriers, including any legislative authorities, policies, and resource deficiencies, to carrying out such requirements. Not later than January 1, 2027, the Secretary concerned for each covered Armed Force that does not operate a program for certifying combat boots as meeting uniform regulations regarding durability, quality, and uniform standards shall establish in such covered Armed Force a process to certify that combat boots used by members of such covered Armed Force meet uniform regulations regarding durability, quality, and uniform standards. The Secretary concerned for each covered Armed Force shall conduct a study assessing the service requirements for combat boots for such covered Armed Force to determine the requirements for certifying combat boots under the program established in such covered Armed Force under paragraph
(1)as meeting uniform regulations regarding durability, quality, and uniform standards. The study required under subparagraph
(A)shall include an identification of— general requirements for wear, durability and quality; specialty-specific requirements based on the duties and operating environments of members of Armed Forces; and minimum requirements for biomechanics for the health and readiness of such members. Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this section, and not less frequently than every three months thereafter until the Secretary concerned for a covered Armed Force establishes the program required under paragraph
(1)in such covered Armed Force and completes the study required under paragraph (2), such Secretary concerned shall provide to the Committees on Armed Services for the Senate and House of Representatives a briefing on the progress towards establishing such program and completing such study.