National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010/Division A/Title III/Subtitle F

SUBTITLE F — OTHER MATTERS

Sec. 351. Authority for airlift transportation at Department of Defense rates for non-Department of Defense Federal cargoes.

(a) In General.—Section 2642 (a) of title 10, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

"(3) During the five-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010, for military airlift services provided to any element of the Federal Government outside the Department of Defense in circumstances other than those specified in paragraphs (1) and (2), but only if the Secretary of Defense determines that the provision of such services will promote the improved use of airlift capacity without any negative effect on the national security objectives or the national security interests contained within the United States commercial air industry.".

(b) Annual Report.—Not later than March 1 of each year for which the paragraph (3) of section 2642 (a) of title 10, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), is in effect, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and House of Representatives an annual report describing, in detail, the Secretary's use of the authority under that paragraph, including—

(1) how the authority was used;

(2) the frequency with which the authority was used;

(3) the Secretary's rationale for the use of the authority; and

(4) for which agencies the authority was used.

Sec. 352. Policy on ground combat and camouflage utility uniforms.

(a) Establishment of Policy.—It is the policy of the United States that the design and fielding of all future ground combat and camouflage utility uniforms of the Armed Forces may uniquely reflect the identity of the individual military services, as long as such ground combat and camouflage utility uniforms, to the maximum extent practicable—

(1) provide members of every military service an equivalent level of performance, functionality, and protection commensurate with their respective assigned combat missions;

(2) minimize risk to the individual soldier, sailor, airman, or marine operating in the joint battlespace; and

(3) provide interoperability with other components of individual war fighter systems, including body armor and other individual protective systems.

(b) Comptroller General Assessment.—The Comptroller General shall conduct an assessment of the ground combat uniforms and camouflage utility uniforms currently in use in the Department of Defense. The assessment shall examine, at a minimum, each of the following:

(1) The overall performance of each uniform in various anticipated combat environments and theaters of operations.

(2) Whether the uniform design of each uniform conforms adequately and is interoperable with currently issued personal protective gear and body armor.

(3) Costs associated with the design, development, production, procurement, and fielding of existing service-specific ground combat and camouflage utility uniforms.

(4) Challenges and risks associated with fielding members of the Armed Forces into combat theaters in unique or service-specific ground combat or camouflage utility uniforms, including the tactical risk to the individuals serving in individual augmentee, in-lieu of force, or joint duty assignments of use of different ground combat uniforms in a combat environment.

(5) Implications of the use of patents and other proprietary measures that may preclude sharing of technology, advanced uniform design, camouflage techniques, and fire retardence.

(6) Logistical requirements to field and support forces in varying combat or utility uniforms.

(c) Report Required.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit to the congressional defense committees the results of the assessment conducted under subsection (b).

(d) Requirement for Joint Criteria.—In support of the policy established in subsection (a), the Secretaries of the military departments, consistent with the authority set out in subtitles B, C, and D of title 10, United States Code, shall establish joint criteria for future ground combat uniforms by not later than 270 days after the Comptroller General submits the report required under subsection (c). The joint criteria shall take into account the findings and recommendations of such report and ensure that new technologies, advanced materials, and other advances in ground combat uniform design may be shared between the military services and are not precluded from being adapted for use by any military service due to military service-unique proprietary arrangements.

Sec. 353. Condition-based maintenance demonstration programs.

(a) Tactical Wheeled Vehicles Program.—The Secretary of the Army may conduct a 12-month condition-based maintenance demonstration program on selected vehicle systems that include on-board diagnostic systems suitable to such a demonstration program.

(b) Surface Combatant Ship Program.—The Secretary of the Navy may conduct a 12-month condition-based maintenance demonstration program on selected systems or components of surface combatant ships that include integral diagnostic systems suitable to such a demonstration program.

(c) Issues to Be Addressed.—The demonstration programs described in subsections (a) and (b) shall address, with respect to each vehicle, system, or component for which the program is conducted—

(1) the top 10 maintenance issues;

(2) non-evidence of failures; and

(3) the projected return on investment analysis for a 10-year period.

(d) Open Architecture.—The design, system integration, and operations of the demonstration programs described in subsections (a) and (b) shall be conducted with an open architecture designed to—

(1) facilitate interface with industry standard computer languages, common software systems, diagnostics tools, reference models, diagnostics reasoners, electronic libraries, and user interfaces for multiple ship and vehicle types; and

(2) promote competition and ensure the best overall value to the Department of Defense.

(e) Report.—Not later than October 1, 2010, the Secretary of the Army and the Secretary of the Navy shall jointly submit to the congressional defense committees a report containing the assessments of each of the Secretaries with respect to whether the respective military department could reduce maintenance costs and improve operational readiness by implementing condition-based maintenance for the current and future tactical wheeled vehicle fleets and Navy surface combatants.

Sec. 354. Extension of arsenal support program initiative.

Section 343 of the Floyd D. Spence National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2001 (10 U.S.C. 4551 note), as amended by section 341 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 (Public Law 110-181; 122 Stat. 69), is further amended—

(1) in subsection (a), by striking "2010" and inserting "2011"; and

(2) in subsection (g)(1), by striking "2010" and inserting "2011".