I 
113TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4228 
To require the Department of Homeland Security to improve discipline, 
accountability, and transparency in acquisition program management. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 13, 2014 
Mr. DUNCAN of South Carolina (for himself, Mr. MCCAUL, Mr. BARBER, and 
Mr. DAINES) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Homeland Security 
A BILL 
To require the Department of Homeland Security to improve 
discipline, accountability, and transparency in acquisition 
program management. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘DHS Acquisition Ac-
countability and Efficiency Act’’. 
SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
The table of contents for this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title. 
Sec. 2. Table of contents. 
Sec. 3. Findings. 
Sec. 4. Definitions. 
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TITLE I—ACQUISITION AUTHORITIES 
Sec. 101. Acquisition authorities for Under Secretary for management. 
Sec. 102. Acquisition authorities for Chief Financial Officer. 
Sec. 103. Acquisition authorities for Chief Information Officer. 
Sec. 104. Chief Procurement Officer. 
Sec. 105. Requirements to ensure greater accountability for acquisition pro-
grams. 
TITLE II—ACQUISITION PROGRAM MANAGEMENT DISCIPLINE 
Sec. 201. Acquisition Review Board. 
Sec. 202. Requirements to reduce duplication in acquisition programs. 
Sec. 203. Government Accountability Office review of Board and of require-
ments to reduce duplication in acquisition programs. 
TITLE III—ACQUISITION PROGRAM MANAGEMENT 
ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY 
Sec. 301. Congressional notification and other requirements for major acquisi-
tion program breach. 
Sec. 302. Multiyear acquisition strategy. 
Sec. 303. Government Accountability Office review of multiyear acquisition 
strategy. 
Sec. 304. Office of Inspector General report. 
SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) The Department of Homeland Security does 
not consistently implement its policies and Govern-
ment and private sector best practices for acquisi-
tions and procurement. 
(2) It is difficult to determine the cost of the 
Department’s major acquisition programs because 
the Department has not provided consistent, com-
parable updates on an annual basis. As of January 
2014, the Department identified over 80 major ac-
quisition programs costing over $300,000,000, and, 
based on 2011, estimates it plans to spend about 
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$170,000,000,000 in the future on major acquisition 
programs. 
(3) Since 2005, the Government Accountability 
Office has placed Department acquisition manage-
ment activities on its ‘‘High-Risk List’’, which iden-
tifies Government operations that have greater sus-
ceptibility to fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanage-
ment or greater need for transformation to address 
economy, efficiency, or effectiveness challenges. 
(4) While the Department has taken actions to 
address some high-risk acquisition program manage-
ment issues, many programs continue to experience 
challenges with funding instability, workforce short-
falls, reliable cost estimates, realistic schedules, 
agreed-upon baseline objectives, and consistent and 
reliable data needed to accurately measure program 
performance. 
(5) Of the 77 Department major acquisition 
programs in 2011, the Government Accountability 
Office identified 42 programs that experienced cost 
growth, schedule slips, or both. The Department re-
ported that the magnitude of the cost growth for 16 
of the 42 programs, which increased from almost 
$20,000,000,000 to over $50,000,000,000 in 2011, 
had an aggregate increase of 166 percent. 
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(6) In 2012, the Government Accountability Of-
fice found that only 20 of 63 programs had Depart-
ment-approved acquisition program baselines. The 
Government Accountability Office also reported that 
the Department planned to spend more than $105 
billion on programs lacking acquisition program 
baselines. 
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—In this Act: 
(1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of Homeland Security. 
(2) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 
means the Department of Homeland Security. 
(3) CONGRESSIONAL
HOMELAND
SECURITY 
COMMITTEES.—The term ‘‘congressional homeland 
security committees’’ means— 
(A) the Committee on Homeland Security 
of the House of Representatives and the Com-
mittee on Homeland Security and Govern-
mental Affairs of the Senate; and 
(B) the Committee on Appropriations of 
the House of Representatives and of the Sen-
ate. 
(b) ADDITIONAL DEFINITIONS.—In this Act: 
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(1) ACQUISITION.—The term ‘‘acquisition’’ has 
the meaning provided in section 131 of title 41, 
United States Code. 
(2) BEST PRACTICES.—The term ‘‘best prac-
tices’’, with respect to acquisition, means a knowl-
edge-based approach to capability development that 
includes identifying and validating needs; assessing 
alternatives to select the most appropriate solution; 
clearly establishing well-defined requirements; devel-
oping realistic cost assessments and schedules; se-
curing stable funding that matches resources to re-
quirements; demonstrating technology, design, and 
manufacturing maturity; using milestones and exit 
criteria or specific accomplishments that dem-
onstrate progress; adopting and executing standard-
ized processes with known success across programs; 
establishing an adequate workforce that is qualified 
and sufficient to perform necessary functions; and 
integrating these capabilities into the Department’s 
mission and business operations. 
(c) AMENDMENTS TO DEFINITIONS IN HOMELAND 
SECURITY ACT OF 2002.—Section 2 of the Homeland Se-
curity Act of 2002 is amended— 
(1) by inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In this 
Act,’’; 
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(2) in section 2(2)— 
(A) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘(2)’’; and 
(B) by adding at the end the following new 
subparagraph: 
‘‘(B) The term ‘congressional homeland se-
curity committees’ means— 
‘‘(i) the Committee on Homeland Se-
curity of the House of Representatives and 
the Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and 
‘‘(ii) the Committee on Appropriations 
of the House of Representatives and of the 
Senate.’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following new sub-
section: 
‘‘(b) ACQUISITION-RELATED DEFINITIONS.—In this 
Act, the following definitions apply: 
‘‘(1) ACQUISITION.—The term ‘acquisition’ has 
the meaning provided in section 131 of title 41, 
United States Code. 
‘‘(2) ACQUISITION DECISION AUTHORITY.—The 
term ‘acquisition decision authority’ means the au-
thority, held by the Secretary acting through the 
Under Secretary for Management or Deputy Sec-
retary— 
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‘‘(A) to ensure compliance with Federal 
law, the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and 
Department acquisition management directives; 
‘‘(B) to review (including approving, halt-
ing, modifying, or cancelling) an acquisition 
program through the life cycle of the program; 
‘‘(C) to ensure that program managers 
have the resources necessary to successfully 
execute an approved acquisition program; and 
‘‘(D) to ensure good program management 
of cost, schedule, risk, and system performance 
of the acquisition, including assessing acquisi-
tion program baseline breaches and directing 
any corrective action for such breaches. 
‘‘(3) ACQUISITION DECISION EVENT.—The term 
‘acquisition decision event’, with respect to an in-
vestment or acquisition program, means a predeter-
mined point within the acquisition phases of the in-
vestment or acquisition program at which the invest-
ment or acquisition program will undergo a review 
prior to commencement of the next phase. 
‘‘(4) ACQUISITION DECISION MEMORANDUM.— 
The term ‘acquisition decision memorandum’, with 
respect to an acquisition, means the official acquisi-
tion decision event record that includes a docu-
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mented record of decisions, exit criteria, and as-
signed actions for the acquisition as determined by 
the person exercising acquisition decision authority 
for the acquisition. 
‘‘(5) ACQUISITION
PROGRAM
BASELINE.—The 
term ‘acquisition program baseline’, with respect to 
an acquisition program, means a summary of the 
cost, schedule, and performance parameters, ex-
pressed in standard, measurable, quantitative terms, 
which must be met in order to accomplish the goals 
of the program. 
‘‘(6) CAPABILITY
DEVELOPMENT
PLAN.—The 
term ‘capability development plan’, with respect to a 
proposed acquisition, means the document that the 
Accountability Review Board approves for the first 
acquisition decision event related to validating the 
need of a proposed acquisition. 
‘‘(7) COMPONENT ACQUISITION EXECUTIVE.— 
The term ‘Component Acquisition Executive’ means 
the senior acquisition official within a Component 
who is designated in writing by the Under Secretary 
for Management, in consultation with the Compo-
nent head, with authority and responsibility for lead-
ing a process and staff to provide acquisition and 
program management oversight, policy, and guid-
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ance to ensure that statutory, regulatory, and higher 
level policy requirements are fulfilled, including com-
pliance with Federal law, the Federal Acquisition 
Regulation, and Department acquisition manage-
ment directives established by the Under Secretary 
for Management. 
‘‘(8) LIFE CYCLE COST.—The term ‘life cycle 
cost’, with respect to an acquisition program, means 
all costs associated with research, development, pro-
curement, operation, integrated logistics support, 
and disposal under the program, including sup-
porting infrastructure that plans, manages, and exe-
cutes the program over its full life, and costs of com-
mon support items incurred as a result of the pro-
gram. 
‘‘(9) MAJOR ACQUISITION PROGRAM.—The term 
‘major acquisition program’ means a Department 
acquisition program that is estimated by the Sec-
retary to require an eventual total expenditure of at 
least $300,000,000 (based on fiscal year 2014 con-
stant dollars) over its life cycle cost.’’. 
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TITLE I—ACQUISITION 
AUTHORITIES 
SEC. 101. ACQUISITION AUTHORITIES FOR UNDER SEC-
RETARY FOR MANAGEMENT. 
Section 701 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 
(6 U.S.C. 341) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)(2), by striking ‘‘Procure-
ment’’ and inserting ‘‘Acquisition and procurement’’; 
and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(d) ACQUISITION
AND
RELATED
RESPONSIBIL-
ITIES.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 
1702(b) of title 41, United States Code, the Under 
Secretary for Management is the Chief Acquisition 
Officer of the Department. As Chief Acquisition Of-
ficer, the Under Secretary shall have the authority 
and perform the functions as specified in section 
1702(b) of such title, and perform all other func-
tions and responsibilities delegated by the Secretary 
or described in this subsection. 
‘‘(2) DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES.—In addi-
tion to the authority and functions specified in sec-
tion 1702(b) of title 41, United States Code, the du-
ties and responsibilities of the Under Secretary for 
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Management related to acquisition include the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(A) Advising the Secretary regarding ac-
quisition management activities, taking into ac-
count risks of failure to achieve cost, schedule, 
or performance parameters, to ensure that the 
Department achieves its mission through the 
adoption of widely accepted program manage-
ment best practices and standards. 
‘‘(B) Exercising the acquisition decision 
authority to approve, halt, modify (including 
the recession of approvals of program mile-
stones), or cancel major acquisition programs, 
unless the Under Secretary delegates the au-
thority to a Component Acquisition Executive 
pursuant to paragraph (3). 
‘‘(C) Establishing policies for acquisition 
that implement an approach that takes into ac-
count risks of failure to achieve cost, schedule, 
or performance parameters that all Components 
of the Department shall comply with, including 
outlining relevant authorities for program man-
agers to effectively manage acquisition pro-
grams. 
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‘‘(D) Ensuring that the heads of Compo-
nents and Component Acquisition Executives 
comply with Federal law, the Federal Acquisi-
tion Regulation, and Department acquisition 
management directives. 
‘‘(3) DELEGATION
OF
ACQUISITION
DECISION 
AUTHORITY.— 
‘‘(A) LEVEL 3 ACQUISITIONS.—The Under 
Secretary for Management may delegate acqui-
sition decision authority in writing to the rel-
evant Component Acquisition Executive for an 
acquisition program that has a life cycle cost 
estimate of less than $300,000,000. 
‘‘(B) LEVEL 2 ACQUISITIONS.—The Under 
Secretary for Management may delegate acqui-
sition decision authority in writing to the rel-
evant Component Acquisition Executive for a 
major acquisition program that has a life cycle 
cost estimate of at least $300,000,000 but not 
more than $1,000,000,000 if all of the following 
requirements are met: 
‘‘(i) The Component concerned pos-
sesses working policies, processes, and pro-
cedures that are consistent with Depart-
ment-level acquisition policy. 
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‘‘(ii) The Component Acquisition Ex-
ecutive has adequate, experienced, dedi-
cated program management professional 
staff commensurate with the size of the 
delegated portfolio. 
‘‘(iii) Each major acquisition program 
concerned 
has 
written 
documentation 
showing that it has a Department-ap-
proved acquisition program baseline and it 
is meeting agreed-upon cost, schedule, and 
performance thresholds. 
‘‘(4) RELATIONSHIP
TO
UNDER
SECRETARY 
FOR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY.—Nothing in this 
subsection shall diminish the authority granted to 
the Under Secretary for Science and Technology 
under this Act. The Under Secretary for Manage-
ment and the Under Secretary for Science and 
Technology shall cooperate in matters related to the 
coordination of acquisitions across the Department 
so that investments of the Directorate of Science 
and Technology can support current and future re-
quirements of the Components.’’. 
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