Management of intellectual property matters within the Department of Defense
(a)
Policy Required .—
The Secretary of Defense, acting through the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, shall develop policy on the acquisition or licensing of intellectual property—
(1)
to enable coordination and consistency across the military departments and the Department of Defense in strategies for acquiring or licensing intellectual property and communicating with industry;
(2)
to ensure that program managers are aware of the rights afforded the Federal Government and contractors in intellectual property and that program managers fully consider and use all available techniques and best practices for acquiring or licensing intellectual property early in the acquisition process; and
(3)
to encourage customized intellectual property strategies for each system based on, at a minimum, the unique characteristics of the system and its components, the product support strategy for the system, the organic industrial base strategy of the military department concerned, and the commercial market.
(b)
Cadre of Intellectual Property Experts .—
section 1707 of this titleFor a provision requiring establishment of a cadre of personnel who are experts in intellectual property matters, see .
(c)
Guidelines and Resources.—
(1)
In general .—
The Secretary of Defense, acting through the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, shall develop guidelines and resources on the acquisition or licensing of intellectual property, including—
(A)
section 4401(b) of this title intellectual property strategies and other mechanisms supporting the use of modular open system approaches (as defined in );
(B)
evaluation and negotiation of intellectual property licenses in competitive and non-competitive awards;
(C)
section 3774(c) of this title models and best practices for specially negotiated licenses, including specially negotiated licenses described in ; and
(D)
definitions, key terms, examples, and case studies that clarify differences between—
(i)
detailed manufacturing and process data;
(ii)
form, fit, and function data;
(iii)
data required for operations, maintenance, installation, and training;
technical data pertaining to an interface between an item or process and other items or processes necessary for the segregation of an item or process from, or the reintegration of that item or process (or a functionally equivalent item or process) with, other items or processes.
(2)
Guidelines and resources limit .—
section 1707 of this titleThe guidelines and resources developed under paragraph (1) may not alter or affect any authority or duty under this section or .
(3)
Review and consultation .—
In developing the guidelines and resources described in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall—
(A)
section 3771 of this title review the applicable statutory and regulatory history, including among the definitions and key terms in , to ensure consistency; and
(B)
regularly consult with appropriate government and industry persons and organizations.
(4)
Training .—
The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that the acquisition workforce receives training on the guidelines and resources developed under paragraph (1).
Pub. L. 86–616, § 3(a)74 Stat. 388section 1181(b) of this titleSection 3791, added , , , authorized Secretary of the Army to convene at any time a board of general officers to review record of any commissioned officer on active list of Regular Army to determine whether he should be required, because of moral dereliction, professional dereliction, or because his retention is not clearly consistent with interests of national security, to show cause for his retention on active list. See .
Pub. L. 86–616, § 3(a)74 Stat. 388section 3791 of this titlesection 1182 of this titleSection 3792, added , , , provided for boards of inquiry, composed of three or more general officers, to be convened at such places as Secretary of the Army prescribes, to receive evidence and make findings and recommendations whether an officer, required to show cause under , should be retained on active list of Regular Army. See .
Amendments
Pub. L. 117–263, § 841(1)2022—, substituted “Department of Defense” for “department of defense” in section catchline.
The Secretary of Defense shall establish a pilot program for the use of innovative intellectual property strategies that meet the criteria described in subsection (b) to acquire the necessary technical data rights required for the operation, maintenance, and installation of, and training for, covered programs designated under subsection (c).
“(b)
Criteria for Strategies .—
The innovative intellectual property strategies used in a pilot program established under this section may include the following:
“(1)
The use of an escrow account to verify and hold intellectual property data.
“(2)
The use of royalties or licenses.
“(3)
Other strategies, as determined by the Secretary.
“(c)
Designation of Covered Programs .—
Not later than , and with respect to the pilot program established under this section—
“(1)
the Secretary of each military department shall designate one covered program within the military department under the jurisdiction of such Secretary; and
“(2)
section 101 of title 10 the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment shall designate one covered program within the Defense Agencies or Department of Defense Field Activities (as defined, respectively, in , United States Code).
“(d)
Briefing Requirement .—
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act [], the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, in coordination with the Secretaries of the military departments, shall provide a briefing to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives with a detailed plan to implement the pilot program required under this section.
“(e)
Annual Report .—
Beginning on the date on which the first program is designated under subsection (c) and until the termination date in subsection (f), the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, in coordination with the Secretaries of the military departments, shall provide an annual report to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives on—
“(1)
the effectiveness of the pilot program in acquiring the necessary technical data rights necessary to support timely, cost-effective maintenance and sustainment of the acquisition programs designated under subsection (c); and
“(2)
any recommendations for the applicability of lessons learned from the pilot program.
“(f)
Termination .—
The authority to carry out the pilot program established under this section shall terminate on .
“(g)
Definitions .—
In this section:
“(1)
The term ‘covered program’ means an acquisition program under which procurements are conducted using a pathway of the adaptive acquisition framework (as described in Department of Defense Instruction 5000.02, ‘Operation of the Adaptive Acquisition Framework’).
“(2)
section 3771 of title 10 The term ‘technical data rights’ has the meaning given in , United States Code.”