(a) Establishment of process
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall establish a process to provide timely guidance to covered entities and Department of Defense personnel to ensure protection of covered information during covered preaward engagements.
(b) Requirements
The process established under subsection (a) shall provide the following:
Standard procedures and guidance to Department of Defense personnel for structuring a covered preaward engagement to reduce the risk of inadvertent disclosure or improper receipt of classified or controlled information.
Development and use of standard templates, request procedures, and best practices for use by covered entities and Department of Defense officials during covered preaward engagements.
Timely notification to a covered entity on measures to ensure proper handling of sensitive information including—
whether the proposed covered preaward engagement may involve covered information;
whether a solicitation-stage Department of Defense Form 254, security classification guide, nondisclosure agreement, controlled unclassified information guidance, or other security instrument may be required before the engagement proceeds;
appropriate procedures for marking, transmitting, storing, or discussing covered information during the engagement;
referral, where appropriate, to existing mechanisms of the Department of Defense for access to classified facilities, secure workspaces, secure networks, or shared classified commercial infrastructure; and
points of contact for resolving unresolved classification, disclosure, or safeguarding questions.
(c) Briefing
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary of Defense shall provide to the congressional defense committees a briefing on the implementation of this section, including—
steps taken to coordinate the process established under this section with existing mechanisms of the Department of Defense for facility clearances, secure workspaces, classified networks, shared classified commercial infrastructure, and each solicitation-stage Department of Defense Form 254; and
any recommendations for improving the ability of covered entities to engage with the Department before award of a contract, grant, cooperative agreement, other transaction agreement, or other agreement while protecting classified and controlled information.
(d) Definitions
In this section:
The term covered entity means—
a small business concern, as defined under section 3 of the Small Business Act ( 15 U.S.C. 632 ); or
a nontraditional defense contractor, as defined in section 3014 of title 10, United States Code.
The term covered information means information that is or may be—
classified information;
controlled unclassified information;
controlled technical information;
export-controlled technical data;
government-furnished information; or
other technical, operational, or security-sensitive information that may require safeguarding under law, regulation, or Department of Defense policy.
The term covered preaward engagement means an engagement between the Department of Defense and a covered entity before the award of a contract, grant, cooperative agreement, other transaction agreement, or other agreement, including market research, technical exchange, concept development, demonstration planning, request for information activity, broad agency announcement activity, commercial solutions opening activity, prototype discussions, or other preaward acquisition or technology-transition activity.