119-hr4123

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4123 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

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119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 4123

 To improve Federal technology procurement, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 June 25, 2025

 Mr. Burlison (for himself, Mr. Subramanyam, Mrs. Luna, and Mr. Lynch) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
 Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committee on 
 Small Business, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
 Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
 within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To improve Federal technology procurement, and for other purposes.

 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 ``Federal Improvement in Technology 
Procurement Act'' or the ``FIT Procurement Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

 In this Act:

    (1) Acquisition workforce.--The term ``acquisition 
 workforce'' means employees of an executive agency who are 
 responsible for procurement, contracting, program or project 
 management that involves the performance of acquisition-related 
 functions, or others as designated by the Chief Acquisition 
 Officer, senior procurement executive, or head of the 
 contracting activity.

    (2) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
 Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy.

    (3) Chief acquisition officer.--The term ``Chief 
 Acquisition Officer'' means a Chief Acquisition Officer 
 appointed pursuant to 

section 1702 of title 41, United States 
 Code.

    (4) Cross-functional.--The term ``cross-functional'' means 
 a structure in which individuals with different functional 
 expertise or from different areas of an organization work 
 together as a team.

    (5) Executive agency.--The term ``executive agency'' has 
 the meaning given the term in 

section 133 of title 41, United 
 States Code.

    (6) Experiential learning.--The term ``experiential 
 learning'' means on-the-job experiences or simulations that 
 serve to enhance workforce professional skills.

    (7) Information and communications technology.--The term 
 ``information and communications technology''--
        (A) has the meaning given the term in 

section 4713

    (k) of title 41, United States Code; and
        (B) includes information and communications 
 technologies covered by any definition contained in the 
 Federal Acquisition Regulation, including a definition 
 added after the date of the enactment of this Act by 
 the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council pursuant to 
 notice and comment.

    (8) Relevant committees of congress.--The term ``relevant 
 committees of Congress'' means the Committee on Homeland 
 Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the 
 Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the House of 
 Representatives.

    (9) Senior procurement executive.--The term ``senior 
 procurement executive'' means a senior procurement executive 
 designated pursuant to 

section 1702
            (c) of title 41, United 
 States Code.

    (10) Small business.--The term ``small business'' has the 
 meaning given the term ``small business concern'' in 

section 3 
 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632).

SEC. 3. ACQUISITION WORKFORCE.

    (a) Experiential Learning.--Not later than 18 months after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Acquisition Institute shall 
establish a pilot program to consider the incorporation of experiential 
learning into the Federal Credentials Program, the Federal Acquisition 
Certification-Contracting Officer's Representative Program, and the 
Federal Acquisition Certification for Program and Project Managers 
Program, or any successor program.

    (b) Training on Information and Communications Technology 
Acquisition.--

    (1) In general.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
 the enactment of this Act, the Director of the Federal 
 Acquisition Institute, in coordination with the Administrator, 
 the Administrator of General Services, and the Administrator of 
 the Office of Electronic Government, and in consultation with 
 the heads of other executive agencies as determined to be 
 appropriate by the Director of the Federal Acquisition 
 Institute, shall develop and implement or otherwise provide a 
 cross-functional information and communications technology 
 acquisition training program for acquisition workforce members 
 involved in acquiring information and communications 
 technology. The training shall do the following:
        (A) Include learning objectives related to market 
 research, communicating with industry and industry 
 perspectives on the procurement process, including how 
 investment decisions are impacted by Government 
 communication and engagement, developing requirements, 
 acquisition planning, best practices for developing and 
 executing outcome-based contracts, and source selection 
 strategy, evaluating proposals, and awarding and 
 administering contracts for information and 
 communications technology.
        (B) Include learning objectives that provide a 
 basic understanding of key technologies executive 
 agencies need, such as cloud computing, artificial 
 intelligence and artificial intelligence-enabled 
 applications, and cybersecurity solutions.
            (C) Include learning objectives that encourage the 
 use of commercial or commercially available off-the-
 shelf technologies to the greatest extent practicable.
            (D) Include case studies of lessons learned from 
 Federal information and communications technology 
 procurements and contracts, and related matters as 
 determined to be relevant by the Director of the 
 Federal Acquisition Institute.
        (E) Include experiential learning opportunities, 
 and opportunities to practice acquisition teaming 
 involving collaboration of team members with varied 
 relevant domain expertise to complete acquisition-
 related tasks, including tasks with accelerated 
 timelines.
        (F) Include continuous learning recommendations and 
 resources to keep the skills of acquisition workforce 
 members current, including tools that help adopt or 
 adapt the use of innovative acquisition practices or 
 other flexible business practices commonly used in 
 commercial buys.
        (G) Be made available to acquisition workforce 
 members designated by a Chief Acquisition Officer, 
 senior procurement executive, or head of the 
 contracting activity to participate in the training 
 program.
        (H) Inform executive agencies about streamlined and 
 alternative procurement methods for procurement of 
 information and communications technology, including--
            (i) simplified procedures for certain 
 commercial products and commercial services in 
 accordance with subpart 13.5 of the Federal 
 Acquisition Regulation, prize competitions 
 under the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act 
 of 2010 (Public Law 111-358), competitive 
 programs that encourage businesses to engage in 
 Federal research or research and development 
 with the potential for commercialization, and 
 joint venture partnerships;
            (ii) innovative procurement techniques 
 designed to streamline the procurement process 
 and lower barriers to entry, such as use of 
 oral presentations and product demonstrations 
 instead of lengthy written proposals, 
 appropriately leveraging performance and 
 outcomes-based contracting, and other 
 techniques discussed on the Periodic Table of 
 Acquisition Innovations or other similar 
 successor knowledge management portals; and
            (iii) information on appropriate use, 
 examples and templates, and any other 
 information determined relevant by the 
 Administrator to assist contracting officers 
 and other members of the acquisition workforce 
 in using the procedures described in clauses
            (i) and
            (ii) .
            (I) Incorporate learning objectives to identify and 
 mitigate waste, fraud, and abuse and ensure the 
 protection of established privacy, civil rights, and 
 civil liberties in the procurement process.

    (2) Report.--Not later than 2 years after the date of the 
 enactment of this Act, the Director of the Federal Acquisition 
 Institute shall provide to the relevant committees of Congress, 
 the Chief Acquisition Officers Council, and the Chief 
 Information Officers Council--
        (A) a report on the progress of the Director in 
 developing and implementing or otherwise providing the 
 information and communications technology acquisition 
 training described in paragraph

    (1) ; and
        (B) a list of any acquisition training that the 
 Director determines to be outdated or no longer 
 necessary.

    (3) Duration.--The training program shall be updated as 
 appropriate, but at least every 2 years after implementation, 
 and offered for a minimum of 6 years following the date of 
 implementation of the training program.
            (c) Acquisition Workforce Training Fund.--

Section 1703
            (i) (3) of 
title 41, United States Code, is amended by striking ``Five percent'' 
and inserting ``Seven and a half percent''.
            (d) Harmonization of Acquisition Workforce Training Requirements.--

Section 2 of the Artificial Intelligence Training for the Acquisition 
Workforce Act (Public Law 117-207; 41 U.S.C. 1703 note) is amended--

    (1) in subsection

    (a)

    (4) , by striking ``Director.--The term 
 `Director' means the Director of the Office of Management and 
 Budget.'' and inserting ``Administrator.--The term 
 `Administrator' means the Administrator of General Services.''.

    (2) in subsection

    (b) --
        (A) in paragraph

    (1) , by striking ``Director, in 
 coordination with the Administrator of General Services 
 and any other person determined relevant by the 
 Director'' and inserting ``Administrator, in 
 coordination with the Director of the Office of 
 Management and Budget'';
        (B) in paragraph

    (4) , by striking ``Director'' and 
 inserting ``Administrator'';
            (C) in paragraph

    (5) , by striking ``Director'' and 
 inserting ``Administrator''; and
            (D) in paragraph

    (6) , by striking ``Director'' and 
 inserting ``Administrator''.

SEC. 4. INNOVATIVE PROCUREMENT METHODS.

    (a) Increase in Simplified Acquisition Threshold.--

Section 134 of 
title 41, United States Code, is amended by striking ``$250,000'' and 
inserting ``$500,000''.

    (b) Increase in Micro Purchase Threshold.--

Section 1902

    (a)

    (1) of 
title 41, United States Code, is amended by striking ``$10,000'' and 
inserting ``$25,000.''.
            (c) Advances for Commercial Technology Subscriptions and Tenancy.--

Section 3324
            (d) of title 31, United States Code, is amended--

    (1) in paragraph

    (1)
            (C) , by striking ``; and'' and 
 inserting a semicolon;

    (2) in paragraph

    (2) --
        (A) by inserting ``or commercially available 
 content'' after ``publication''; and
        (B) by striking the period at the end and inserting 
 ``; and''; and

    (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
 ``

    (3) charges for information and communications technology 
 subscriptions, reservations, or tenancy, which means the 
 sharing of computing resources in a private or public 
 environment, including cloud environments, for which the 
 ordering agency defines appropriate access and security 
 standards.''.

SEC. 5. INCREASING COMPETITION IN FEDERAL CONTRACTING.

    (a) Use of Past Performance.--

    (1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
 the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall issue 
 guidance, including examples and templates where appropriate, 
 on--
        (A) when a wider range of projects, such as 
 commercial or non-government, as well as Government 
 projects, should be accepted as relevant past 
 performance, in order to have increased competition 
 among eligible firms with capability to perform a 
 requirement, such as a requirement without much 
 precedent;
        (B) a means by which an agency may validate non-
 government past performance references, such as by 
 requiring an official of an entity providing past 
 performance references to attest to their authenticity 
 and by providing verifiable contact information for the 
 references; and
            (C) use of alternative evaluation methods other 
 than past performance that may be appropriate for a 
 requirement without much precedent, such as 
 demonstrations and testing of technologies as part of 
 the proposal process.

    (2) Supplement not supplant.--The guidance issued under 
 paragraph

    (1) shall supplement existing Federal and agency 
 policy and procedures for consideration of past performance and 
 other evaluation factors and methods.

    (b) Enhancing Competition in Federal Procurement.--

    (1) Council recommendations.--Not later than 90 days after 
 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall 
 convene the Chief Acquisition Officers Council (in this section 
 referred to as the ``Council''), to make recommendations to 
 identify and eliminate specific, unnecessary procedural 
 barriers that disproportionately affect the ability of small 
 businesses to compete for Federal contracts, with a focus on 
 streamlining documentation and qualification requirements 
 unrelated to the protection of privacy and civil liberties.

    (2) Consultation.--The Council shall obtain input from the 
 public, including from the APEX Accelerators program (formerly 
 known as Procurement Technical Assistance Center network) and 
 other contractor representatives, to identify Federal 
 procurement policies and regulations that are obsolete, overly 
 burdensome or restrictive, not adequately harmonized, or 
 otherwise serve to create barriers to small business 
 participation in Federal contracting or unnecessarily increase 
 bid and proposal costs.

    (3) Examination of actions.--The Council shall consider the 
 input obtained under paragraph

    (2) and any other information 
 determined to be relevant by the Council to identify 
 legislative, regulatory, and other actions to increase 
 competition and remove barriers to small business participation 
 in the procurement process.

    (4) Implementation.--Not later than 2 years after the date 
 of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator, in 
 consultation with the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council, 
 the Chief Acquisition Officers Council, and other executive 
 agencies as appropriate, shall implement the regulatory and 
 other non-legislative actions identified under paragraph

    (3) , 
 as determined necessary by the Administrator, to remove 
 barriers to entry for small businesses seeking to participate 
 in Federal Government procurement.

    (5) Briefing.--Not later than 2 years after the date of the 
 enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall brief the 
 relevant committees of Congress on the legislative actions 
 identified under paragraph

    (3) , and the actions implemented 
 under paragraph

    (4) .
            (c) Consideration of Cost-Efficiency and Quality.--The 
Administrator shall advocate for and prioritize contracting policies 
that ensure that cost-efficiency and quality of goods and services are 
key determining factors in awarding Federal contracts.

SEC. 6. COMPTROLLER GENERAL ASSESSMENT OF SMALL BUSINESS PARTICIPATION 
 IN FEDERAL PROCUREMENT.

 Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to 
Congress and make publicly available a report that--

    (1) assesses the current level of small business 
 participation in Federal procurement, identifying barriers, 
 opportunities, and the impact of existing policies on the 
 ability of small businesses to compete in Federal procurement;

    (2) catalogs and evaluates the effectiveness of programs 
 intended to support small business participation in Federal 
 procurement; and

    (3) analyzes trends in small business involvement in 
 Federal technology projects, including data on contract awards, 
 the diversity of sectors represented, and the geographic 
 distribution of small business contractors.

SEC. 7. CONFLICT OF INTEREST PROCEDURES.

 The Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council and the Administrator 
shall update the Federal Acquisition Regulation as necessary to provide 
additional guidance to executive agencies to address personal and 
organizational conflicts of interest involving members of the 
acquisition workforce.

SEC. 8. NO ADDITIONAL FUNDING.

 No additional funds are authorized to be appropriated for the 
purpose of carrying out this Act.
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