10 U.S. Code § 4576 - Requirement for consideration of certain matters during acquisition of noncommercial computer software

(a) Consideration Required.—

As part of any negotiation for the acquisition of noncommercial computer software, the Secretary of Defense shall ensure that such negotiations consider, to the maximum extent practicable, acquisition, at the appropriate time in the life cycle of the noncommercial computer software, of all software and related materials necessary—

(1) to reproduce, build, or recompile the software from original source code and required libraries;

(2) to conduct required computer software testing; and

(3) to deploy working computer software system binary files on relevant system hardware.

(b) Delivery of Software and Related Materials.—

Any noncommercial computer software or related materials required to be delivered as a result of considerations in subsection (a) shall, to the extent appropriate as determined by the Secretary—

(1) include computer software delivered in a useable, digital format;

(2) not rely on external or additional software code or data, unless such software code or data is included in the items to be delivered; and

(3) in the case of negotiated terms that do not allow for the inclusion of dependent software code or data, sufficient documentation to support maintenance and understanding of interfaces and software revision history.

(Added Pub. L. 115–91, div. A, title VIII, § 871(a)(1), Dec. 12, 2017, 131 Stat. 1496, § 2322a; renumbered § 4576, Pub. L. 116–283, div. A, title XVIII, § 1857(c), Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 4276.)

Editorial Notes

Prior Provisions

Prior sections 4591 to 4595 were renumbered sections 7591 to 7595 of this title, respectively.

Amendments

2021—Pub. L. 116–283 renumbered section 2322a of this title as this section.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date of 2021 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 116–283 effective Jan. 1, 2022, with additional provisions for delayed implementation and applicability of existing law, see section 1801(d) of Pub. L. 116–283, set out as a note preceding section 3001 of this title.

Guidance

Pub. L. 115–91, div. A, title VIII, § 871(b), Dec. 12, 2017, 131 Stat. 1497, provided that:

“Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act [Dec. 12, 2017], the Secretary of Defense shall issue updated guidance to implement section 2322a of title 10, United States Code [now 10 U.S.C. 4576], as added by subsection (a).”