“(a) In General.—
Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act [Dec. 22, 2023], the Secretary of the Air Force, acting through the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics, shall carry out a pilot program under which the Secretary identifies prototypes under development by the Department of the Air Force that have the potential to be developed into commercial products and provides support to qualified entities to carry out projects to commercialize such prototypes.
“(b) Form of Support.—The support provided to a qualified entity under subsection (a) may include the award of—
“(2)
a contract or other agreement; or
“(3)
such other form of support as the Secretary of the Air Force determines appropriate.
“(c) Amount.—
The total value of support awarded to a qualified entity under this section may not exceed $10,000,000.
“(d) Funding.—
The Secretary of the Air Force shall carry out the pilot program under this section using funds designated as budget activity 6 (RDT&E management support) or budget activity 4 (Advanced Component Development and Prototypes) as those budget activity classifications are set forth in volume 2B, chapter 5 of the Department of Defense Financial Management Regulation (DOD 7000.14-R).
“(e) Application.—
“(1) In general.—
A qualified entity that seeks an award of support under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary of the Air Force at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require.
“(2) Contents.—As part of the application required under paragraph (1), a qualified entity shall—
“(A)
outline measures the entity will implement to give the Department of Defense purchasing priority when supply chain issues are a factor;
“(B) certify that the entity will, with respect to the export of any such product, comply with—
“(i)
International Traffic in Arms Regulations under subchapter M of chapter
I of title 22, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulations); and
“(ii)
any other applicable export restrictions; and
“(C) acknowledge that the entity may seek advice and assistance from the Department of the Air Force and the Department of State in the event that the export restrictions applicable to a commercial product developed with support under this section—
“(i)
are more restrictive than the export restrictions applicable to the component technologies that comprise the product; and
“(ii)
are expected to unnecessarily impede the ability to make the product commercially available outside the United States.
“(f) Briefing.—
Not later than December 31, 2024, the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics shall provide to the congressional defense committees [Committees on Armed Services and Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives] a briefing on the implementation of the pilot program under this section and any related policy issues.
“(g) Notice to Congress.—
Not later than 30 days after each instance in which the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics awards support to a qualified entity under this section, the Assistant Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense committees notice of such award.
“(h) Termination.—
The pilot program under this section shall terminate on the date that is five years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
“(i) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1)
The term ‘commercialize’, when used with respect to a prototype, means to transition a prototype into a commercial product.
“(3)
The term ‘qualified entity’ means an individual or entity the Secretary of the Air Force determines to be qualified to participate in the pilot program under this section.”