§1701b — Title 10 Armed Forces | U.S. Code

Summary

Allows the Secretary of Defense to run a pay program that sets the base pay for certain acquisition and technology jobs so the Department can attract and keep top experts who manage big, costly tech projects. The program can cover jobs that need extremely high-level scientific, technical, professional, or acquisition management skill and that are key to an important acquisition or technology mission. The pay for a covered job can be set up to 150 percent of the basic pay for level I of the Executive Schedule with approval from the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment for Office of the Secretary of Defense jobs, or the service acquisition executive for military department jobs. Any pay above 150 percent needs approval from the Secretary of Defense. The pay tool may be used only as needed to recruit or keep exceptionally qualified people, may not apply to more than five positions at a time in Defense Agencies and Field Activities combined, not more than five in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and not more than five in each military department, and only for jobs with terms under five years.

Title 10, §1701b

Armed Forces — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Secretary of Defense may carry out a program using the pay authority specified in subsection (d) to fix the rate of basic pay for positions described in subsection (c) in order to assist the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the military departments in attracting and retaining high-quality acquisition and technology experts in positions responsible for managing and developing complex, high-cost, technological acquisition efforts of the Department of Defense.

(b)The program may be carried out only with approval as follows:

(1)Approval of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, in the case of positions in the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

(2)Approval of the service acquisition executive of the military department concerned, in the case of positions in a military department.

(c)The positions described in this subsection are positions that—

(1)require expertise of an extremely high level in a scientific, technical, professional, or acquisition management field; and

(2)are critical to the successful accomplishment of an important acquisition or technology development mission.

(d)The pay authority specified in this subsection is authority as follows:

(1)Authority to fix the rate of basic pay for a position at a rate not to exceed 150 percent of the rate of basic pay payable for level I of the Executive Schedule, upon the approval of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment or the service acquisition executive concerned, as applicable.

(2)Authority to fix the rate of basic pay for a position at a rate in excess of 150 percent of the rate of basic pay payable for level I of the Executive Schedule, upon the approval of the Secretary of Defense.

(e)(1)The authority in subsection (a) may be used only to the extent necessary to competitively recruit or retain individuals exceptionally well qualified for positions described in subsection (c).

(2)The authority in subsection (a) may not be used at any one time with respect to—

(A)more than five positions, in total, in Department of Defense Field Activities and Defense Agencies;

(B)more than five positions in the Office of the Secretary of Defense; and

(C)more than five positions in each military department.

(3)The authority in subsection (a) may be used only for positions having terms less than five years.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

Level I of the Executive Schedule, referred to in subsec. (d), is set out in section 5312 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees.

Amendments

2022—Subsec. (e)(2). Pub. L. 117–263 amended par. (2) generally. Prior to amendment, text read as follows: “The authority in subsection (a) may not be used with respect to more than five positions in the Office of the Secretary of Defense and more than five positions in each military department at any one time.”

§1701b Enhanced pay authority for certain acquisition and technology positions