Access to Contract Equity Act

Summary: Access to Contract Equity Act - States that, with respect to a contract goal by the Department of Defense, the Coast Guard, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for the award of five percent of their procurement contracts to small disadvantaged businesses and certain minority institutions, no suspension of price modifications (allowing an item's contract price to exceed fair market value) shall be issued in an industry category if the President determines that contracts for a price exceeding fair market value are necessary to remedy demonstrated discrimination in such category. Requires such determination to be published in the Federal Register, and allows any person affected by the application of such determination to seek appropriate judicial review. 
Amends provisions of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1991 relating to the Mentor-Protege Pilot Program to: (1) make the program term three years, or five years in unusual circumstances as determined by the Secretary of Defense; (2) authorize (currently, requires) the Secretary to reimburse a mentor firm for the full cost of certain payments and assistance made under the program; (3) allow the Secretary to provide such reimbursement using a separate contract; (4) make determinations made in the annual performance reviews of a mentor firm's agreement a major factor in determining reimbursement amounts; and (5) limit to $1 million per fiscal year the total amount reimbursed for assistance to a protege firm, except when the Secretary determines that unusual circumstances justify reimbursement of a higher amount.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Access to Contract Equity Act''.

SEC. 2. CONTRACT GOALS FOR SMALL DISADVANTAGED BUSINESSES AND CERTAIN 
              INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION.

    (a) Modification of Limitation on Use of Price Adjustments.--
Subparagraph (B) of section 2323(e)(3) of title 10, United States Code, 
is amended--
            (1) by redesignating clause (iii) as clause (iv); and
            (2) by inserting after clause (ii) the following new 
        clause:
            ``(iii) No suspension shall be issued in an industry 
        category under this paragraph if the President determines in 
        writing that contracts for a price exceeding fair market cost 
        are necessary to remedy demonstrated discrimination in such 
        industry category. Any such determination shall be published in 
        the Federal Register for a period of not less than 60 days 
        before becoming effective. Any person or entity adversely 
        affected by the application of such designation may seek 
        judicial review in the appropriate United States district 
        court.''.
    (b) Extension of Section 2323.--Subsection (k) of section 2323 of 
such Code is amended by striking out ``2000'' both places it appears 
and inserting in lieu thereof ``2005''.

SEC. 3. MENTOR-PROTEGE PROGRAM IMPROVEMENTS.

    (a) Program Participation Term.--Subsection (e)(2) of section 831 
of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1991 (10 
U.S.C. 2302 note) is amended to read as follows:
            ``(2) A program participation term for any period of not 
        more than three years, except that the term may be a period of 
        up to five years if the Secretary of Defense determines in 
        writing that unusual circumstances justify a program 
        participation term in excess of three years.''.
    (b) Incentives Authorized for Mentor Firms.--Subsection (g) of such 
section is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``shall'' and inserting 
        ``may'';
            (2) in paragraph (2)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A)--
                            (i) by striking ``shall'' and inserting 
                        ``may'';
                            (ii) by striking ``subsection (f)'' and all 
                        that follows through ``(i) as a line item'' and 
                        inserting ``subsection (f) as provided for in a 
                        line item'';
                            (iii) by striking the semicolon preceding 
                        clause (ii) and inserting ``, except that this 
                        clause does not apply in a case in which the 
                        Secretary of Defense determines in writing that 
                        unusual circumstances justify reimbursement 
                        using a separate contract.''; and
                            (iv) by striking clauses (ii), (iii), and 
                        (iv); and
                    (B) by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting the 
                following:
    ``(B) The determinations made in annual performance reviews of a 
mentor firm's mentor-protege agreement under subsection (l)(2) shall be 
a major factor in the determinations of amounts of reimbursement, if 
any, that the mentor firm is eligible to receive in the remaining years 
of the program participation term under the agreement.
    ``(C) The total amount reimbursed under this paragraph to a mentor 
firm for costs of assistance furnished in a fiscal year to a protege 
firm may not exceed $1,000,000, except in a case in which the Secretary 
of Defense determines in writing that unusual circumstances justify a 
reimbursement of a higher amount.''; and
            (3) in paragraph (3)(A), by striking ``either subparagraph 
        (A) or (C) of paragraph (2) or are reimbursed pursuant to 
        subparagraph (B) of such paragraph'' and inserting ``paragraph 
        (2)''.
    (c) Five-Year Extension of Authority.--Subsection (j) of such 
section is amended to read as follows:
    ``(j) Expiration of Authority.--(1) No mentor-protege agreement may 
be entered into under subsection (e) after September 30, 2004.
    ``(2) No reimbursement may be paid, and no credit toward the 
attainment of a subcontracting goal may be granted, under subsection 
(g) for any cost incurred after September 30, 2005.''.
    (d) Reports and Reviews.--Subsection (l) of such section is amended 
to read as follows:
    ``(l) Reports and Reviews.--(1) The mentor firm and protege firm 
under a mentor-protege agreement shall submit to the Secretary of 
Defense an annual report on the progress made by the protege firm in 
employment, revenues, and participation in Department of Defense 
contracts during the fiscal year covered by the report. The requirement 
for submission of an annual report applies with respect to each fiscal 
year covered by the program participation term under the agreement and 
each of the two fiscal years following the expiration of the program 
participation term. The Secretary shall prescribe the timing and form 
of the annual report.
    ``(2)(A) The Secretary shall conduct an annual performance review 
of each mentor-protege agreement that provides for reimbursement of 
costs. The Secretary shall determine on the basis of the review 
whether--
            ``(i) all costs reimbursed to the mentor firm under the 
        agreement were reasonably incurred to furnish assistance to the 
        protege firm in accordance with the requirements of this 
        section and applicable regulations; and
            ``(ii) the mentor firm and protege firm accurately reported 
        progress made by the protege firm in employment, revenues, and 
        participation in Department of Defense contracts during the 
        program participation term covered by the mentor-protege 
        agreement and the two fiscal years following the expiration of 
        the program participation term.
    ``(B) The Secretary shall act through the Commander of the Defense 
Contract Management Command in carrying out the reviews and making the 
determinations under subparagraph (A).
    ``(3) Not later than 6 months after the end of each of fiscal years 
2000 through 2004, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to Congress an 
annual report on the mentor-protege program for that fiscal year.
    ``(2) The annual report for a fiscal year shall include, at a 
minimum, the following:
            ``(A) The number of mentor-protege agreements that were 
        entered into during the fiscal year.
            ``(B) The number of mentor-protege agreements that were in 
        effect during the fiscal year.
            ``(C) The total amount reimbursed to mentor firms pursuant 
        to subsection (g) during the fiscal year.
            ``(D) Each mentor-protege agreement, if any, that was 
        approved during the fiscal year in accordance with subsection 
        (e)(2) to provide a program participation term in excess of 3 
        years, together with the justification for the approval.
            ``(E) Each reimbursement of a mentor firm in excess of the 
        limitation in subsection (g)(2)(C) that was made during the 
        fiscal year pursuant to an approval granted in accordance with 
        that subsection, together with the justification for the 
        approval.
            ``(F) Trends in the progress made in employment, revenues, 
        and participation in Department of Defense contracts by the 
        protege firms participating in the program during the fiscal 
        year and the protege firms that completed or otherwise 
        terminated participation in the program during the preceding 
        two fiscal years.''.
    (e) Repeal of Limitation on Availability of Funding.--Subsection 
(n) of such section is repealed.
    (f) Effective Date and Savings Provision.--(1) The amendments made 
by this section shall take effect on October 1, 1999, and shall apply 
with respect to mentor-protege agreements that are entered into under 
section 831(e) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 
Year 1991 on or after that date.
    (2) Section 831 of the National Defense Authorization Act for 
Fiscal Year 1991, as in effect on September 30, 1999, shall continue to 
apply with respect to mentor-protege agreements entered into before 
October 1, 1999.