(a) Establishment.—The Secretary of Defense shall establish an account to be known as the “Department of Defense Acquisition Workforce Development Account” (in this section referred to as the “Account”) to provide funds, in addition to other funds that may be available, for the recruitment, training, and retention of acquisition personnel of the Department of Defense.
(b) Purpose.—The purpose of the Account is to ensure that the Department of Defense acquisition workforce has the capacity, in both personnel and skills, needed to properly perform its mission, provide appropriate oversight of contractor performance, and ensure that the Department receives the best value for the expenditure of public resources.
(c) Management.—The Account shall be managed by a senior official of the Department of Defense designated by the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment for that purpose, from among persons with an extensive background in management relating to acquisition and personnel.
(d) Elements.—The Account shall consist of amounts appropriated to the Account by law.
(e) Availability of Funds.—
(1) In general.—(A) Subject to the provisions of this subsection, amounts in the Account shall be available to the Secretary of Defense for expenditure, or for transfer to a military department or Defense Agency, for the recruitment, training, and retention of acquisition personnel of the Department of Defense for the purpose of the Account, including for the provision of training and retention incentives to the acquisition workforce of the Department and to develop acquisition tools and methodologies, and undertake research and development activities, leading to acquisition policies and practices that will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of defense acquisition efforts. In the case of temporary members of the acquisition workforce designated pursuant to subsection (g)(2), such funds shall be available only for the limited purpose of providing training in the performance of acquisition-related functions and duties.
(B) Amounts in the Account also may be used to pay salaries of personnel at the Office of the Secretary of Defense, military departments, and Defense Agencies to manage the Account.
(C) Amounts in the Account may be used to pay the expenses of the public-private talent exchange program established under section 1599g of this title.
(2) Prohibition.—Amounts in the Account may not be obligated for any purpose other than purposes described in paragraph (1) or otherwise in accordance with this subsection.
(3) Guidance.—The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, acting through the senior official designated to manage the Account, shall issue guidance for the administration of the Account. Such guidance shall include provisions—
(A) identifying areas of need in the acquisition workforce for which amounts in the Account may be used, including—
(i) changes to the types of skills needed in the acquisition workforce;
(ii) incentives to retain in the acquisition workforce qualified, experienced acquisition workforce personnel; and
(iii) incentives for attracting new, high-quality personnel to the acquisition workforce;
(B) describing the manner and timing for applications for amounts in the Account to be submitted;
(C) describing the evaluation criteria to be used for approving or prioritizing applications for amounts in the Account in any fiscal year;
(D) describing measurable objectives of performance for determining whether amounts in the Account are being used in compliance with this section; and
(E) describing the amount from the Account that may be used to pay salaries of personnel at the Office of the Secretary of Defense, military departments, and Defense Agencies to manage the Account and the circumstances under which such amounts may be used for such purpose.
(4) Limitation on payments to or for contractors.—Amounts in the Account shall not be available for payments to contractors or contractor employees, other than for the purposes of—
(A) providing advanced training to Department of Defense employees;
(B) developing acquisition tools and methodologies and performing research on acquisition policies and best practices that will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of defense acquisition efforts; and
(C) supporting human capital and talent management of the acquisition workforce, including benchmarking studies, assessments, and requirements planning.
(5) Prohibition on payment of base salary of current employees.—Amounts in the Account may not be used to pay the base salary of any person who was an employee of the Department serving in a position in the acquisition workforce as of January 28, 2008, and who has continued in the employment of the Department since such time without a break in such employment of more than a year.
(6) Duration of availability.—Amounts appropriated to the Account pursuant to subsection (d) shall remain available for expenditure for the fiscal year in which appropriated and the succeeding fiscal year.
(f) Expedited Hiring Authority.—For purposes of sections 3304, 5333, and 5753 of title 5, the Secretary of Defense may—
(1) designate any category of positions in the acquisition workforce as positions for which there exists a shortage of candidates or there is a critical hiring need; and
(2) utilize the authorities in such sections to recruit and appoint qualified persons directly to positions so designated.
(g) Acquisition Workforce Defined.—In this section, the term “acquisition workforce” means the following:
(1) Personnel in positions designated under section 1721 of this title as acquisition positions for purposes of this chapter.
(2) Other military personnel or civilian employees of the Department of Defense who—
(A)(i) contribute significantly to the acquisition process by virtue of their assigned duties; or
(ii) contribute significantly to the acquisition or development of systems relating to cybersecurity; and
(B) are designated as temporary members of the acquisition workforce by the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, or by the senior acquisition executive of a military department, for the limited purpose of receiving training for the performance of acquisition-related functions and duties.
