Title: Military Readiness and Cost Savings Act
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
Military Readiness and Cost Savings Act
This bill directs the Department of Defense to seek to enter into a contract with an institution—to be designated as the National Center for Military Painting and Applied Research—to serve as a resource for testing paint coatings for military assets and developing training tools and programs concerning military painting and coating. The bill includes authority to enter into an agreement to provide these services to the Coast Guard.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3181 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3181

  To direct the Secretary of Defense to enter into a contract with an 
  eligible institution to carry out research and education activities 
                     relating to military painting.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 10, 2019

 Ms. Finkenauer (for herself, Mrs. Bustos, Mr. Loebsack, Mr. Ryan, and 
  Mr. Tonko) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Armed Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To direct the Secretary of Defense to enter into a contract with an 
  eligible institution to carry out research and education activities 
                     relating to military painting.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Military Readiness and Cost Savings 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Bob Stump National Defense Authorization Act for 
        Fiscal Year 2003 (Public Law 107-314), which passed with broad 
        bipartisan support, established an Office of Corrosion Policy 
        and Oversight within the Office of the Under Secretary of 
        Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. The office was created 
        to ``oversee and coordinate efforts throughout the Department 
        of Defense to prevent and mitigate corrosion of the military 
        equipment and infrastructure of the Department''.
            (2) Corrosion of the equipment and infrastructure of the 
        Department of Defense (referred to in this section as the 
        ``Department'') is expensive and impedes military readiness. 
        According to a study commissioned by the Department's Office of 
        Corrosion Policy and Oversight, corrosion costs the Department 
        $20.6 billion annually across all services. These costs 
        comprise 21 percent of the Department's total maintenance costs 
        across all services. Corrosion is responsible for 11 percent, 
        or roughly 1.1 million, of all non-available days for 
        Department assets.
            (3) Chemical-agent-resistant-coatings, which help to 
        protect military vehicles and equipment from chemical and 
        biological weapons and severe environmental conditions that 
        cause corrosion, can range in price from $100 to $800 per 
        gallon. With approximately 3,760 assets of varying sizes 
        painted at a typical Department depot per year, such coatings 
        comprise a significant annual cost category for the operation 
        of the facility and the maintenance of military assets, 
        according to analysis from the Southwest Research Institute.
            (4) Military painter training and certification helps 
        reduce waste and rework of military assets, reducing the costs 
        associated with the application of chemical-agent-resistant-
        coatings. For example, one military painter training and 
        certification provider helped Letterkenny Army Depot use 8,100 
        fewer gallons of such coatings per year, saving the depot 
        $500,000 per year through improved transfer efficiency and 
        reduced rework, according to the Southwest Research Institute.
            (5) The Senate Report accompanying S. 1519 (115th Congress; 
        the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018) 
        included language recognizing the importance of military 
        painter training, noting that ``paint training programs can 
        save the Department time and funding resources by using 
        advanced technology and equipment along with hands-on training 
        to effectively apply coatings and reduce waste. Additionally, 
        increasing coating transfer efficiency and preventing corrosion 
        and rework can improve asset readiness''.
            (6) Investing in military painter and coating training and 
        certification programs helps improve military readiness, 
        increases safety for service members, and reduces paint costs. 
        It is prudent for Congress to invest in research that will 
        foster innovations in those areas.
            (7) The importance of corrosion resistance goes beyond 
        Department assets. Across nearly every sector, corrosion is 
        expensive and poses a safety risk to users. For example, 
        decaying roads and bridges cost the United States economy 
        $5,000,000,000 a year, according to the National Association of 
        Corrosion Engineers. Congress has a duty to pair Federal 
        infrastructure investment with corrosion management to ensure 
        new and existing public infrastructure is built to last.
            (8) The proper application of anticorrosion coatings 
        requires a high degree of knowledge and skill. According to the 
        International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, a poorly 
        executed corrosion prevention project will leave an asset 
        unprotected, increase costs to repair or replace all or parts 
        of it, and irresponsibly use taxpayer dollars. Using trained 
        and certified painters is the most effective way to ensure 
        assets are truly protected from corrosion.

SEC. 3. NATIONAL CENTER FOR MILITARY PAINTER TRAINING AND APPLIED 
              RESEARCH.

    (a) Establishment.--Chapter 131 of title 10, United States Code, is 
amended by inserting after section 2228 the following new section:
``Sec. 2228a. National Center for Military Painter Training and Applied 
              Research
    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary of Defense, acting through the 
Director of the Office of Corrosion Policy and Oversight, shall seek to 
enter into a contract with an eligible institution under which the 
institution will carry out the functions described in subsection (c).
    ``(b) Designation.--The Secretary shall designate the institution 
that is awarded a contract under subsection (a) as the `National Center 
for Military Painting and Applied Research' (referred to in this 
section as the `Center').
    ``(c) Functions.--The Center shall--
            ``(1) serve as a testing facility for the application of 
        new paint coatings developed by industry-leading research and 
        development facilities;
            ``(2) partner with industry to assess the efficacy of 
        specific blends of chemical-agent-resistant coating powder on 
        certain military assets to assure maximum cost efficiency, 
        coating effectiveness, and quality finish;
            ``(3) expand training and certification programs for 
        military painters to covered facilities that have an ongoing, 
        unmet need for such programs;
            ``(4) develop new teaching tools, which may include the use 
        of virtual reality technology to enable trainees to simulate 
        the painting of a variety of military assets;
            ``(5) develop online learning modules for training military 
        painters in the use of liquid and powder coatings;
            ``(6) explore the adoption of automated painting 
        technologies while recognizing that the repair of certain 
        military assets is best performed manually;
            ``(7) provide on-site consultation and technical assistance 
        at covered facilities to maximize cost efficiency, quality 
        assurance, and operational effectiveness in painting and 
        coating operations; and
            ``(8) conduct outreach to servicemembers at covered 
        facilities, in coordination with Department of Defense and any 
        appropriate skilled labor organizations, employers, and 
        industry organizations with specialties in corrosion and 
        painting, to raise awareness of military painter career 
        opportunities and any related industrial and commercial 
        painting apprenticeship opportunities for Veterans.
    ``(d) Contract Procedures.--A contract under subsection (a) shall 
be awarded in accordance with full and open competition (as that term 
is defined in chapter 1 of title 41, United States Code).
    ``(e) Provision of Services for Coast Guard.--The Secretary of 
Defense may enter into an agreement with the Secretary of the 
department in which the Coast Guard is operating under which the Center 
may provide, with or without reimbursement for the cost thereof, 
training and other assistance to the Coast Guard in accordance with 
subsection (c).
    ``(f) Annual Report.--Not later than September 30 of each year 
covered by the contract under subsection (a), the Center shall submit 
to the Director of the Office of Corrosion Policy and Oversight a 
report that describes the progress of the Center in carrying out the 
functions described in subsection (c), including the progress of the 
Center in--
            ``(1) expanding training programs for military painters; 
        and
            ``(2) conducting applied research relating to military 
        painting.
    ``(g) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) The term `eligible institution' means an entity 
        that--
                    ``(A) as of the date of the enactment of this 
                section, provides military painter training programs 
                that lead to a certification that is recognized by the 
                Department of Defense;
                    ``(B) demonstrates the ability to establish 
                sustainable military painter operations at multiple 
                covered facilities, including on military bases and 
                depots;
                    ``(C) has a proven ability to scale a military 
                painter training program to meet the needs of multiple 
                covered facilities, including by developing or 
                expanding a certified train-the-trainer program;
                    ``(D) demonstrates experience in developing and 
                managing a military painter training and certification 
                program that has proven success in achieving cost 
                savings and unit readiness through training in the 
                prevention and control of corrosion; and
                    ``(E) possesses the facilities and equipment 
                necessary to conduct applied research on the efficacy 
                of military paint composites and coatings and the 
                transfer efficiency of such composites and coatings.
            ``(2) The term `covered facilities' means--
                    ``(A) the facilities of the Department of Defense, 
                including the facilities of--
                            ``(i) the Armed Forces;
                            ``(ii) the reserve components, including 
                        the National Guard; and
                            ``(iii) the Army Corps of Engineers; and
                    ``(B) subject to an agreement under subsection (e), 
                the facilities of the Coast Guard.
    ``(h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section--
            ``(1) $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2020; and
            ``(2) $3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 
        2023.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 
2228 the following new item:

``2228a. National Center for Military Painter Training and Applied 
                            Research.''.
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