Title 50 — War and National DefenseRelease 119-73not60

§2538f Earned Value Management and Technology Readiness Levels for Life Extension Programs

Title 50 › Chapter 42— ATOMIC ENERGY DEFENSE PROVISIONS › Subchapter II— NUCLEAR WEAPONS STOCKPILE MATTERS › Part A— Stockpile Stewardship and Weapons Production › § 2538f

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

Requires the Administrator to hire an independent organization to check and confirm that contractors’ earned value management systems for life extension programs follow the earned value management national standard. That group must also do regular follow-up reviews so the systems keep meeting the standard until the program ends. Also requires the Administrator to set technology‑readiness level milestones at key decision points and make sure critical technologies meet those milestones. Applies to programs that, as of January 1, 2021, had not reached acquisition phase 3 or life extension phase 6.3. "Earned value management national standard" means the latest EIA‑748 Earned Value Management System Standard from the National Defense Industrial Association.

Full Legal Text

Title 50, §2538f

War and National Defense — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Administrator shall enter into an arrangement with an independent entity under which that entity shall—

(1)review and validate whether the earned value management systems of contractors of the Administration for life extension programs meet the earned value management national standard; and

(2)conduct periodic surveillance reviews of such systems to ensure that such systems maintain compliance with that standard through program completion.

(b)The Administrator shall—

(1)establish specific benchmarks for technology readiness levels of critical technologies for life extension programs at key decision points; and

(2)ensure that critical technologies meet such benchmarks at such decision points.

(c)This section shall apply to programs that, as of January 1, 2021, have not entered phase 3 of the nuclear weapons acquisition process or phase 6.3 of a nuclear weapons life extension program.

(d)In this section, the term “earned value management national standard” means the most recent version of the EIA-748 Earned Value Management System Standard published by the National Defense Industrial Association.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

50 U.S.C. § 2538f

Title 50 — War and National Defense

Last Updated

Apr 5, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60