Defense Communities Assistance Act of 2009 - Expresses the sense of Congress on the necessity of assisting local communities coping with the impact of base closures and realignments and other military actions.
Extends permanently (under current law, terminated at the end of FY2008) the authority of the Secretary of the military department concerned to convey, for certain purposes, real property on a military installation determined to be excess to the needs of the Department of Defense (DOD).
Authorizes the Secretary concerned to contract for the procurement of municipal services for a U.S. military installation from a county, municipal government, or other local governmental unit in the area. Authorizes such Secretary to so contract using procedures other than competitive procedures, under certain conditions and after congressional notification.
Amends the Ronald W. Reagan National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005 to extend through FY2020 a pilot program for the purchase of certain municipal services for military installations.
Amends the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1993 to broaden the indemnification provided to transferees of military properties.
Reinstates provisions of the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 which allow military departments to transfer surplus real and personal property at closed or realigned military installations without consideration to local redevelopment authorities when used for economic development purposes, without the requirement to assess the property's value.
[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2295 Introduced in House (IH)]
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2295
To assist local communities with closed and active military bases, and
for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 7, 2009
Mr. Farr (for himself, Ms. Granger, Ms. Pingree of Maine, and Mr.
Delahunt) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Armed Services
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To assist local communities with closed and active military bases, and
for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Defense Communities Assistance Act
of 2009''.
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of the Congress, that as the Federal Government
implements base closures and realignments, global repositioning, and
grow the force initiatives, it is necessary to assist local communities
coping with the impact of these programs at both closed and active
military installations. To aid communities to either recover quickly
from closures or to accommodate growth associated with troop influxes,
the Federal Government must provide assistance to communities to
effectively implement the various initiatives of the Department of
Defense.
SEC. 3. PERMANENT AUTHORITY TO CONVEY PROPERTY AT MILITARY
INSTALLATIONS TO SUPPORT MILITARY CONSTRUCTION AND
AGREEMENTS TO LIMIT ENCROACHMENT.
Section 2869(a)(3) of title 10, United States Code, is amended by
striking ``shall apply only during the period'' and all that follows
through ``September 30, 2008'' and inserting ``without limitation on
duration''.
SEC. 4. EXTENSION OF AUTHORITY TO PURCHASE MUNICIPAL SERVICES FOR
MILITARY INSTALLATIONS IN THE UNITED STATES.
(a) Permanent Authority.--Chapter 146 of title 10, United States
Code, is amended by inserting after section 2465 the following new
section:
``Sec. 2465a. Contracts for procurement of municipal services for
military installations in the United States
``(a) Contract Authority.--Subject to section 2465 of this title,
the Secretary concerned may enter into a contract for the procurement
of municipal services described in subsection (b) for a military
installation in the United States from a county, municipal government,
or other local governmental unit in the geographic area in which the
installation is located.
``(b) Covered Municipal Services.--The municipal services that may
be procured for a military installation under the authority of this
section are as follows:
``(1) Refuse collection.
``(2) Refuse disposal.
``(3) Library services.
``(4) Recreation services.
``(5) Facility maintenance and repair.
``(6) Utilities.
``(c) Exception From Competitive Procedures.--The Secretary
concerned may enter into a contract under subsection (a) using
procedures other than competitive procedures if--
``(1) the term of the proposed contract does not exceed 5
years;
``(2) the Secretary determines that the price for the
municipal services to be provided under the contract is fair,
reasonable, represents the least cost to the Federal
Government, and, to the maximum extent practicable, takes into
consideration the interests of small business concerns (as that
term is defined in section 3(a) of the Small Business Act (15
U.S.C. 632(a))); and
``(3) the business case supporting the Secretary's
determination under paragraph (2)--
``(A) describes the availability, benefits, and
drawbacks of alternative sources; and
``(B) establishes that performance by the county or
municipal government or other local governmental unit
will not increase costs to the Federal Government, when
compared to the cost of continued performance by the
current provider of the services.
``(d) Limitation on Delegation.--The authority to make the
determination described in subsection (c)(2) may not be delegated to a
level lower than a Deputy Assistant Secretary for Installations and
Environment, or another official of the Department of Defense at an
equivalent level.
``(e) Congressional Notification.--The Secretary concerned may not
enter into a contract under subsection (a) for the procurement of
municipal services until the Secretary notifies the Committees on Armed
Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives of the proposed
contract and a period of 14 days elapses from the date the notification
is received by the committees. The notification shall include a summary
of the business case and an explanation of how the adverse impact, if
any, on civilian employees of the Department of Defense will be
minimized.
``(f) Guidance.--The Secretary of Defense shall issue guidance to
address the implementation of this section.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of
such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section
2465 the following new item:
``2465a. Contracts for purchase of municipal services for military
installations in the United States.''.
(c) Extension of Pilot Program.--Section 325(f) of the Ronald W.
Reagan National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005 (Public
Law 108-375; 10 U.S.C. 2461 note) is amended by striking ``September
30, 2010'' and inserting ``September 30, 2020''.
SEC. 5. REIMBURSABLE ACTIVITIES UNDER THE DEFENSE-STATE MEMORANDUM OF
AGREEMENT PROGRAM.
Section 2701(d)(1) of title 10, United States Code, is amended by
inserting before the period at the end the following: ``and the
processing of property transfers before or after remediation, provided
the Secretary shall not condition funding based on the manner in which
a State exercises its enforcement authority, or its willingness to
enter into dispute resolution prior to exercising that enforcement
authority.''.
SEC. 6. INDEMNIFICATION OF TRANSFEREES OF CLOSING DEFENSE PROPERTIES.
Section 330(a)(1) of the National Defense Authorization Act for
Fiscal Year 1993 (Public Law 102-484; 10 U.S.C. 2687 note), is amended
by striking ``cost or other fee'' and all that follows through
``contaminant,'' and inserting ``cost, statutory or regulatory
requirement or order, or other cost, expense, or fee arising out of any
such requirement or claim for personal injury, environmental
remediation, or property damage (including death, illness, or loss of
or damage to property or economic loss) that results from, or is in any
manner predicated upon, the release or threatened release of any
hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant''.
SEC. 7. REQUIREMENT FOR NO-COST ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CONVEYANCES.
(a) Repeal of Certain Requirements.--Subsection (a) of section 3006
of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2002 (Public
Law 107-107; 115 Stat. 1350), and the amendments made by that
subsection, are hereby repealed. Effective as of the date of the
enactment of this Act, the provisions of section 2905 of the Defense
Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 (part A of title XXIX of
Public Law 101-510; 10 U.S.C. 2687 note) that were amended by section
3006(a) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2002,
as such provisions were in effect on December 27, 2001, are hereby
revived.
(b) Regulations.--Not later than 60 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall prescribe
regulations to implement the provisions of section 2905 of the Defense
Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 revived by subsection (a) to
ensure that the military departments transfer surplus real and personal
property at closed or realigned military installations without
consideration to local redevelopment authorities for economic
development purposes, and without the requirement to value such
property.
(c) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to
Congress a report on the status of current and anticipated economic
development conveyances, projected job creation, community
reinvestment, and progress made as a result of the enactment of this
section.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Readiness.
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