Title: A bill to ensure the maintenance of critical supply lines within the defense industrial base.
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
This bill requires the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment within the Department of Defense (DOD) to review unmanned aerial systems to determine and develop appropriate actions related to sourcing and industrial capacity.
The bill also requires designated senior DOD officials to conduct annual assessments of workforce, infrastructure, and industrial base capabilities and capacity to support a strategy to support domestic manufacturing and industrial base capabilities to support future defense requirements.
The Government Accountability Office must brief Congress and report on, among other topics, its findings related to the strategy, effectiveness, and responsibilities of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3135 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 3135

 To ensure the maintenance of critical supply lines within the defense 
                            industrial base.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            November 2, 2021

Mr. Cornyn (for himself and Ms. Hassan) introduced the following bill; 
  which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To ensure the maintenance of critical supply lines within the defense 
                            industrial base.

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

SECTION 1. MAINTENANCE OF CRITICAL SUPPLY LINES.

    (a) Addition of Certain Items to List of High-Priority Goods and 
Services for Analyses, Recommendations, and Actions Related to Sourcing 
and Industrial Capacity.--Section 849(c) of the William M. (Mac) 
Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 
(Public Law 116-283) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph:
            ``(14) Unmanned aerial systems.''.
    (b) Designation of Critical Technology Areas.--Section 217(b)(2) of 
the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for 
Fiscal Year 2021 (Public Law 116-283) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``; and'' and 
        inserting a semicolon;
            (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking the semicolon and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(C) a strategy to support domestic manufacturing 
                and industrial base capabilities to support future 
                defense requirements;''.
    (c) Comptroller General Report on Assistant Secretary of Defense 
for Industrial Base Policy.--
            (1) Briefing and report.--Not later than 270 days after the 
        date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of 
        the United States shall brief the Committees on Armed Services 
        of the Senate and the House of Representatives on the 
        Comptroller General's preliminary findings related to the 
        topics set forth in paragraph (2). The Comptroller General 
        shall submit to such committees a report with a final 
        description and assessment of such topics at an agreed upon 
        date.
            (2) Topics covered.--The topics referred to under paragraph 
        (1) are as follows:
                    (A) The strategy, effectiveness, and 
                responsibilities of the Assistant Secretary of Defense 
                for Industrial Base Policy.
                    (B) The efforts of the Under Secretary of Defense 
                for Research and Engineering and the Under Secretary of 
                Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment to assess the 
                manufacturing and procurement of critical materials, 
                including describing the offices and individuals that 
                are responsible for identifying critical materials 
                supply chain shortfalls, how such shortfalls are 
                identified, and any variation in methods used across 
                the Department of Defense.
                    (C) The efforts of the Under Secretary of Defense 
                for Research and Engineering and the Under Secretary of 
                Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment to implement 
                procedures to protect supply chains for critical 
                programs and technologies and disseminate that 
                information to other appropriate Federal agencies and 
                organizations.
                    (D) Such other matters as the Comptroller General 
                determines appropriate.
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