10 USC 2474 – Centers of Industrial and Technical Excellence: designation; public-private partnerships
(a)
Terms Used In 10 USC 2474
- Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
- Public law: A public bill or joint resolution that has passed both chambers and been enacted into law. Public laws have general applicability nationwide.
(2) The Secretary of Defense shall establish a policy to encourage the Secretary of each military department and the head of each Defense Agency to reengineer industrial processes and adopt best-business practices at their Centers of Industrial and Technical Excellence in connection with their core competency requirements, so as to serve as recognized leaders in their core competencies throughout the Department of Defense and in the national technology and industrial base (as defined in section 4801(1) of this title).
(3) The Secretary of a military department may conduct a pilot program, consistent with applicable requirements of law, to test any practices referred to in paragraph (2) that the Secretary determines could improve the efficiency and effectiveness of operations at Centers of Industrial and Technical Excellence, improve the support provided by the Centers for the armed forces user of the services of the Centers, and enhance readiness by reducing the time that it takes to repair equipment.
(b)
(A) For employees of the Center, private industry, or other entities outside the Department of Defense to perform (under contract, subcontract, or otherwise) work related to the core competencies of the Center, including any depot-level maintenance and repair work that involves one or more core competencies of the Center.
(B) For private industry or other entities outside the Department of Defense to use, for any period of time determined to be consistent with the needs of the Department of Defense, any facilities or equipment of the Center that are not fully utilized for a military department’s own production or maintenance requirements.
(2) The objectives for exercising the authority provided in paragraph (1) are as follows:
(A) To maximize the utilization of the capacity of a Center of Industrial and Technical Excellence.
(B) To reduce or eliminate the cost of ownership of a Center by the Department of Defense in such areas of responsibility as operations and maintenance and environmental remediation.
(C) To reduce the cost of products of the Department of Defense produced or maintained at a Center.
(D) To leverage private sector investment in—
(i) such efforts as plant and equipment recapitalization for a Center; and
(ii) the promotion of the undertaking of commercial business ventures at a Center.
(E) To foster cooperation between the armed forces and private industry.
(3) If the Secretary concerned, or the Secretary of Defense in the case of a Defense Agency, authorizes the use of public-private partnerships under this subsection, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report evaluating the need for loan guarantee authority, similar to the ARMS Initiative loan guarantee program under section 7555 of this title, to facilitate the establishment of public-private partnerships and the achievement of the objectives set forth in paragraph (2).
(c)
(d)
(e)
(1) the use of the equipment or facilities will not have a significant adverse effect on the readiness of the armed forces, as determined by the Secretary concerned or, in the case of a Center in a Defense Agency, by the Secretary of Defense; and
(2) the private-sector entity agrees—
(A) to reimburse the Department of Defense for the direct and indirect costs (including any rental costs) that are attributable to the entity’s use of the equipment or facilities, as determined by that Secretary; and
(B) to hold harmless and indemnify the United States from—
(i) any claim for damages or injury to any person or property arising out of the use of the equipment or facilities, except under the circumstances described in section 2563(c)(3) of this title; and
(ii) any liability or claim for damages or injury to any person or property arising out of a decision by the Secretary concerned or the Secretary of Defense to suspend or terminate that use of equipment or facilities during a war or national emergency.
(f)
(g)