March 6, 2025
Mr. Durbin (for himself, Mr. Grassley, Ms. Duckworth, Ms. Ernst, and Mr. Cotton) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services
To require the establishment within the Department of Defense of a pilot program on arsenal workload sustainment, and for other purposes.
Section 1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Arsenal Workload Sustainment Act
.
Sec. 2. Pilot program on arsenal workload sustainment
(a) Findings
Congress finds the following:
(1)
The United States has a long and proud history of manufacturing defense products.
(2)
Factories and arsenals of the Department of the Army that are owned and operated by the United States Government are a critical component of the organic industrial base.
(3)
The first ever National Defense Industrial Strategy released in 2024 recognized the need of the Department of Defense to more strategically utilize the organic industrial base in order to maintain a competitive military advantage.
(4)
Sufficient workload at arsenals of the Department of the Army that are owned and operated by the United States Government ensure cost efficiency and technical competence in peacetime, while preserving the ability to provide an effective and timely response to mobilizations, national defense contingency situations, and other emergency requirements.
(b) Establishment of pilot program
Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall establish a pilot program to be known as the Arsenal Workload Sustainment Pilot Program
(in this section referred to as the pilot program
).
(c) Duration
The pilot program shall be conducted for a period of five years.
(d) Preferences for procurement actions or solicitations
(1) In general
In carrying out the pilot program, the Secretary of Defense shall give a preference described in paragraph (2) for any procurement action or solicitation by a non-public partner who has entered into a public-private partnership with the Secretary in the source selection process if such non-public partner uses an arsenal of the Department of the Army that is owned and operated by the United States Government as a partner in any type of contractual agreement with the United States Government.
(2) Preference described
A preference described in this paragraph is the addition of 20 percent to the price of any offer by a non-public partner that does not use an arsenal of the Department of the Army that is owned and operated by the United States Government as a partner in its bid for the same procurement action or solicitation described in paragraph (1).
(3) Further preference
In selecting non-public partners under paragraph (1), the Secretary of Defense shall give preference to non-public partners that—
(A)
utilize the Advanced Manufacturing Center of Excellence of the Army; and
(B)
ensure not less than 25 percent of the activities under the partnership are performed by employees of the Department of Defense.
(e) Report required
(1) In general
Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on the activities carried out under the pilot program, including a description of any operational challenges identified.
(2) Elements
The report required under paragraph (1) shall include the following:
(A)
A breakout, by relevant budget accounts, of workload at an arsenal of the Department of the Army that is owned and operated by the United States Government that was achieved in the prior fiscal year, whether directly or through public-private partnerships under the pilot program.
(B)
An assessment of relevant budget accounts where such an arsenal can be utilized to meet future procurement needs of the Department of Defense, irrespective of cost.
(C)
An outlook of expected workload at each such arsenal during the period covered by the future-years defense program submitted to Congress under section 221 of title 10, United States Code.
(D)
The capital investments required to be made at each such arsenal to ensure compliance and operational capacity.
(f) Definitions
In this section:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees
The term appropriate congressional committees means—
(A)
the Committee on Armed Services and the Subcommittee on Defense of the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and
(B)
the Committee on Armed Services and the Subcommittee on Defense of the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
(2) Non-public partner
The term non-public partner means a corporation, individual, university, or nonprofit organization that is not part of the United States Government.