§ 353. Acquisition professional career program

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(a)Establishment There is established in the Department an acquisition professional career program to develop a cadre of acquisition professionals within the Department.

(b)Administration The Under Secretary for Management shall administer the acquisition professional career program established pursuant to subsection (a).

(c)Program requirements The Under Secretary for Management shall carry out the following with respect to the acquisition professional career program.1

(1)Designate the occupational series, grades, and number of acquisition positions throughout the Department to be included in the program and manage centrally such positions.

(2)Establish and publish on the Department’s website eligibility criteria for candidates to participate in the program.

(3)Carry out recruitment efforts to attract candidates—

(A)from institutions of higher education, including such institutions with established acquisition specialties and courses of study, historically Black colleges and universities, and Hispanic-serving institutions;

(B)with diverse work experience outside of the Federal Government; or

(C)with military service.

(4)Hire eligible candidates for designated positions under the program.

(5)Develop a structured program comprised of acquisition training, on-the-job experience, Department-wide rotations, mentorship, shadowing, and other career development opportunities for program participants.

(6)Provide, beyond required training established for program participants, additional specialized acquisition training, including small business contracting and innovative acquisition techniques training.

(d)Reports Not later than one year after December 27, 2021, and annually thereafter through 2027, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate a report on the acquisition professional career program. Each such report shall include the following information:

(1)The number of candidates approved for the program.

(2)The number of candidates who commenced participation in the program, including generalized information on such candidates’ backgrounds with respect to education and prior work experience, but not including personally identifiable information.

(3)A breakdown of the number of participants hired under the program by type of acquisition position.

(4)A list of Department components and offices that participated in the program and information regarding length of time of each program participant in each rotation at such components or offices.

(5)Program attrition rates and post-program graduation retention data, including information on how such data compare to the prior year’s data, as available.

(6)The Department’s recruiting efforts for the program.

(7)The Department’s efforts to promote retention of program participants.

(e)Definitions In this section:

(1)Hispanic-serving institution The term “Hispanic-serving institution” has the meaning given such term in section 1101a of title 20.

(2)Historically Black colleges and universities The term “historically Black colleges and universities” has the meaning given the term “part B institution” in section 1061(2) of title 20.

(3)Institution of higher education The term “institution of higher education” has the meaning given such term in section 1001 of title 20.

(Pub. L. 107–296, title VII, § 713, as added Pub. L. 117–81, div. F, title LXIV, § 6405(a), Dec. 27, 2021, 135 Stat. 2401.)

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