National Digital Reserve Corps Act

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3855 To amend title 5, United States Code, to establish a National Digital Reserve Corps to help address the digital and cybersecurity needs of Executive agencies, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 6, 2023 Mr. TONY GONZALES of Texas (for himself and Ms. KELLY of Illinois) intro- duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Over- sight and Accountability, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdic- tion of the committee concerned A BILL To amend title 5, United States Code, to establish a National Digital Reserve Corps to help address the digital and cybersecurity needs of Executive agencies, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Digital Re- 4 serve Corps Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:42 Jul 01, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3855.IH H3855 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 3855 IH SEC. 2. NATIONAL DIGITAL RESERVE CORPS. 1 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart I of part III of title 5, 2 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 3 following new chapter: 4 ‘‘CHAPTER 104—NATIONAL DIGITAL 5 RESERVE CORPS 6 ‘‘10401. Definitions. ‘‘10402. Establishment. ‘‘10403. Organization. ‘‘10404. Assignments. ‘‘10405. Reservist continuing education. ‘‘10406. Congressional reports. ‘‘10407. Construction. ‘‘§ 10401. Definitions 7 ‘‘In this chapter: 8 ‘‘(1) ACTIVE RESERVIST.—The term ‘active re- 9 servist’ means a reservist holding a position to which 10 such reservist has been appointed under section 11 10403(c)(2). 12 ‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘Adminis- 13 trator’ means the Administrator of the General 14 Services Administration. 15 ‘‘(3) COVERED EXECUTIVE AGENCY.—The term 16 ‘covered Executive agency’ means an Executive 17 agency as defined in section 105, except that such 18 term includes the United States Postal Service, the 19 Postal Regulatory Commission, and the Executive 20 Office of the President. 21 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:42 Jul 01, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3855.IH H3855 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 3855 IH ‘‘(4) PROGRAM.—The term ‘Program’ means 1 the program established under section 10402(a). 2 ‘‘(5) RESERVIST.—The term ‘reservist’ means 3 an individual who is a member of the National Dig- 4 ital Reserve Corps. 5 ‘‘§ 10402. Establishment 6 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 7 General Services Administration a program to establish, 8 recruit, manage, and assign a reserve of individuals with 9 relevant skills and credentials, to be known as the ‘Na- 10 tional Digital Reserve Corps’, to help address the digital 11 and cybersecurity needs of covered Executive agencies. 12 ‘‘(b) IMPLEMENTATION.— 13 ‘‘(1) GUIDANCE.—Not later than six months 14 after the date of the enactment of this section, the 15 Administrator, in consultation with the Director of 16 the Office of Personnel Management, shall issue 17 guidance for the National Digital Reserve Corps, 18 which shall include procedures for coordinating with 19 covered Executive agencies to— 20 ‘‘(A) identify digital and cybersecurity 21 needs which may be addressed by the National 22 Digital Reserve Corps; and 23 ‘‘(B) assign active reservists to address 24 such needs. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:42 Jul 01, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3855.IH H3855 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 3855 IH ‘‘(2) RECRUITMENT AND INITIAL ASSIGN- 1 MENTS.—Not later than one year after the date of 2 the enactment of this section, the Administrator 3 shall begin recruiting reservists and assigning active 4 reservists under the Program. 5 ‘‘§ 10403. Organization 6 ‘‘(a) ADMINISTRATION.— 7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The National Digital Re- 8 serve Corps shall be administered by the Adminis- 9 trator. 10 ‘‘(2) RESPONSIBILITIES.—In carrying out the 11 Program, the Administrator shall— 12 ‘‘(A) establish standards for serving as a 13 reservist, including educational attainment, pro- 14 fessional qualifications, and background checks 15 in accordance with existing Federal guidance; 16 ‘‘(B) ensure the standards established 17 under subparagraph (A) are met; 18 ‘‘(C) recruit individuals to the National 19 Digital Reserve Corps; 20 ‘‘(D) activate and deactivate reservists as 21 necessary; 22 ‘‘(E) coordinate with covered Executive 23 agencies to— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:42 Jul 01, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3855.IH H3855 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 3855 IH ‘‘(i) determine the digital and cyberse- 1 curity needs which reservists shall be as- 2 signed to address; 3 ‘‘(ii) ensure active reservists have ac- 4 cess, resources, and equipment required to 5 address digital and cybersecurity needs 6 which such reservists are assigned to ad- 7 dress; and 8 ‘‘(iii) analyze potential assignments 9 for reservists to determine outcomes, de- 10 velop anticipated assignment timelines, and 11 identify covered Executive agency partners; 12 ‘‘(F) ensure reservists acquire and main- 13 tain appropriate security clearances; and 14 ‘‘(G) determine what additional resources, 15 if any, are required to successfully implement 16 the Program. 17 ‘‘(b) NATIONAL DIGITAL RESERVE CORPS PARTICI- 18 PATION.— 19 ‘‘(1) SERVICE OBLIGATION AGREEMENT.— 20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An individual may be- 21 come a reservist only if such individual enters 22 into a written agreement with the Adminis- 23 trator to become a reservist. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:42 Jul 01, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3855.IH H3855 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 3855 IH ‘‘(B) CONTESTS.—The agreement under 1 subparagraph (A) shall— 2 ‘‘(i) require the individual seeking to 3 become a reservist to serve as a reservist 4 for a 3-year period, during which such in- 5 dividual shall serve not less than 30 days 6 per year as an active reservist; and 7 ‘‘(ii) set forth all other the rights and 8 obligations of the individual and the Gen- 9 eral Services Administration. 10 ‘‘(2) COMPENSATION.—The Administrator shall 11 determine the appropriate compensation for service 12 as a reservist, except that the annual pay for such 13 service shall not exceed $10,000. 14 ‘‘(3) EMPLOYMENT PROTECTIONS.—The Sec- 15 retary of Labor shall prescribe such regulations as 16 necessary to ensure the reemployment, continuation 17 of benefits, and nondiscrimination in reemployment 18 of active reservists, provided that such regulations 19 shall include, at a minimum, those rights and obliga- 20 tions set forth under chapter 43 of title 38. 21 ‘‘(4) PENALTIES.— 22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A reservist that fails 23 to accept an appointment under subsection 24 (c)(2) or fails to carry out the duties assigned 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:42 Jul 01, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3855.IH H3855 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 3855 IH to a reservist under such an appointment shall, 1 after notice and an opportunity to be heard— 2 ‘‘(i) cease to be a reservist; and 3 ‘‘(ii) be fined an amount equal to the 4 sum of— 5 ‘‘(I) an amount equal to the 6 amounts, if any, paid under section 7 10405 with respect to such reservist; 8 and 9 ‘‘(II) the difference between the 10 amount of compensation such reserv- 11 ist would have received if the reservist 12 completed the entire term of service 13 as a reservist agreed to in the agree- 14 ment described in paragraph (1) and 15 the amount of compensation such re- 16 servist has received under such agree- 17 ment. 18 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.— 19 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subparagraph (A) 20 shall not apply with respect to a failure of 21 a reservist to accept an appointment under 22 subsection (c)(2) or to carry out the duties 23 assigned to the reservist under such an ap- 24 pointment if— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:42 Jul 01, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3855.IH H3855 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 3855 IH ‘‘(I) the failure was due to the 1 death or disability of such reservist; or 2 ‘‘(II) the Administrator, in con- 3 sultation with the head of the relevant 4 covered Executive agency, determines 5 that subparagraph (A) should not 6 apply with respect to the failure. 7 ‘‘(ii) RELEVANT COVERED EXECUTIVE 8 AGENCY DEFINED.—In this subparagraph, 9 the term ‘relevant covered Executive agen- 10 cy’ means— 11 ‘‘(I) in the case of a reservist 12 failing to accept an appointment 13 under subsection (c)(2), the covered 14 Executive agency to which such re- 15 servist would have been appointed; 16 and 17 ‘‘(II) in the case of a reservist 18 failing to carry out the duties as- 19 signed to such reservist under such an 20 appointment, the covered Executive 21 agency to which such reservist was 22 appointed. 23 ‘‘(c) HIRING AUTHORITY.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:42 Jul 01, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3855.IH H3855 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 3855 IH ‘‘(1) CORPS LEADERSHIP.—The Administrator 1 may appoint qualified candidates to positions in the 2 competitive service in the General Service Adminis- 3 tration for which the primary duties are related to 4 the management or administration of the National 5 Digital Reserve Corps, as determined by the Admin- 6 istrator. 7 ‘‘(2) CORPS RESERVISTS.— 8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 9 may appoint qualified reservists to temporary 10 positions in the competitive service for the pur- 11 pose of assigning such reservists under section 12 10404 and to otherwise carry out the National 13 Digital Reserve Corps. 14 ‘‘(B) APPOINTMENT LIMITS.— 15 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 16 may not appoint an individual under this 17 paragraph if, during the 365-day period 18 ending on the date of such appointment, 19 such individual has been an officer or em- 20 ployee of the executive or legislative branch 21 of the United States Government, of any 22 independent agency of the United States, 23 or of the District of Columbia for not less 24 than 130 days. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:42 Jul 01, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3855.IH H3855 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 3855 IH ‘‘(ii) AUTOMATIC APPOINTMENT TER- 1 MINATION.—The appointment of an indi- 2 vidual under this paragraph shall termi- 3 nate upon such individual being employed 4 as an officer or employee of the executive 5 or legislative branch of the United States 6 Government, of any independent agency of 7 the United States, or of the District of Co- 8 lumbia for 130 days during the previous 9 365 days. 10 ‘‘(C) EMPLOYEE STATUS.—An individual 11 appointed under this paragraph shall be consid- 12 ered a special Government employee (as such 13 term is defined in section 202(a) of title 18). 14 ‘‘(D) CONFLICT OF INTEREST.—Individ- 15 uals appointed under this section shall not, as 16 an active reservist, have access to proprietary or 17 confidential information that is of commercial 18 value to any private entity or individual employ- 19 ing such appointee. 20 ‘‘(E) ADDITIONAL EMPLOYEES.—Individ- 21 uals appointed under this paragraph shall be in 22 addition to any employees of the General Serv- 23 ices Administration whose duties relate to the 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:42 Jul 01, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3855.IH H3855 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 3855 IH digital or cybersecurity needs of the General 1 Services Administration. 2 ‘‘§ 10404. Assignments 3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may assign 4 active reservists to address the digital and cybersecurity 5 needs of covered Executive agencies, including cybersecu- 6 rity services, digital education and training, data triage, 7 acquisition assistance, guidance on digital projects, devel- 8 opment of technical solutions, and bridging public needs 9 and private sector capabilities. 10 ‘‘(b) ASSIGNMENT-SPECIFIC ACCESS, RESOURCES, 11 SUPPLIES, OR EQUIPMENT.—The head of a covered Exec- 12 utive agency shall, to the extent practicable, provide each 13 active reservist assigned to address a digital or cybersecu- 14 rity need of such covered Executive agency under sub- 15 section (a) with any specialized access, resources, supplies, 16 or equipment required to address such digital or cyberse- 17 curity need. 18 ‘‘(c) DURATION.—An assignment of an individual 19 under subsection (a) shall terminate on the earlier of— 20 ‘‘(1) the date determined by the Administrator; 21 ‘‘(2) the date on which the Administrator re- 22 ceives notification of the decision of the head of the 23 covered Executive agency, the digital or cybersecu- 24 rity needs of which such individual is assigned to ad- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:42 Jul 01, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3855.IH H3855 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 3855 IH dress under subsection (a), that such assignment 1 should terminate; or 2 ‘‘(3) the date on which the assigned individual 3 ceases to be an active reservist. 4 ‘‘§ 10405. Reservist continuing education 5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability of ap- 6 propriations, the Administrator may pay for reservists to 7 acquire training and receive continuing education related 8 to the duties assigned to such reservists pursuant to ap- 9 pointments under section 10403(c)(2), including attending 10 conferences and seminars and obtaining certifications, 11 that will enable reservists to more effectively meet the dig- 12 ital and cybersecurity needs of covered Executive agencies. 13 ‘‘(b) APPLICATION.—The Administrator shall estab- 14 lish a process for reservists to apply for the payment of 15 reasonable expenses related to the training or continuing 16 education described in subsection (a). 17 ‘‘(c) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 18 of the enactment of this section, and annually thereafter, 19 the Administrator shall submit to Congress a report on 20 the expenditures under this subsection. 21 ‘‘§ 10406. Congressional reports 22 ‘‘Not later than two years after the date of the enact- 23 ment of this section, and annually thereafter, the Adminis- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:42 Jul 01, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3855.IH H3855 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 13 •HR 3855 IH trator shall submit to Congress a report on the Program, 1 including— 2 ‘‘(1) the n [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]