U.S. Code > Title 10 Armed Forces > Subtitle A—General Military Law (§§ 101—2925) > PART I—ORGANIZATION AND GENERAL MILITARY POWERS (§§ 101—490) > CHAPTER 4—OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE (§§ 131—144) > § 139b. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Developmental Test and Evaluation; Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Systems Engineering: joint guidance

§ 139b. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Developmental Test and Evaluation; Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Systems Engineering: joint guidance

(a) Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Developmental Test and Evaluation.—
(1) Appointment.— There is a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Developmental Test and Evaluation, who shall be appointed by the Secretary of Defense from among individuals with an expertise in test and evaluation.
(2) Principal advisor for developmental test and evaluation.— The Deputy Assistant Secretary shall be the principal advisor to the Secretary of Defense and the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics on developmental test and evaluation in the Department of Defense.
(3) Supervision.— The Deputy Assistant Secretary shall be subject to the supervision of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics and shall report to the Under Secretary.
(4) Coordination with deputy assistant secretary of defense for systems engineering.— The Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Developmental Test and Evaluation shall closely coordinate with the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Systems Engineering to ensure that the developmental test and evaluation activities of the Department of Defense are fully integrated into and consistent with the systems engineering and development planning processes of the Department.
(5) Duties.— The Deputy Assistant Secretary shall—
(A) develop policies and guidance for—
(i) the conduct of developmental test and evaluation in the Department of Defense (including integration and developmental testing of software);
(ii) in coordination with the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation, the integration of developmental test and evaluation with operational test and evaluation;
(iii) the conduct of developmental test and evaluation conducted jointly by more than one military department or Defense Agency;
(B) review and approve the developmental test and evaluation plan within the test and evaluation master plan for each major defense acquisition program of the Department of Defense;
(C) monitor and review the developmental test and evaluation activities of the major defense acquisition programs;
(D) provide advocacy, oversight, and guidance to elements of the acquisition workforce responsible for developmental test and evaluation;
(E) periodically review the organizations and capabilities of the military departments with respect to developmental test and evaluation and identify needed changes or improvements to such organizations and capabilities, and provide input regarding needed changes or improvements for the test and evaluation strategic plan developed in accordance with section 196 (d) of this title; and
(F) perform such other activities relating to the developmental test and evaluation activities of the Department of Defense as the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics may prescribe.
(6) Access to records.— The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that the Deputy Assistant Secretary has access to all records and data of the Department of Defense (including the records and data of each military department and including classified and proprietary information, as appropriate) that the Deputy Assistant Secretary considers necessary in order to carry out the Deputy Assistant Secretary’s duties under this subsection.
(7) Concurrent service as director of department of defense test resources management center.— The individual serving as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Developmental Test and Evaluation may also serve concurrently as the Director of the Department of Defense Test Resource Management Center under section 196 of this title.
(b) Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Systems Engineering.—
(1) Appointment.— There is a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Systems Engineering, who shall be appointed by the Secretary of Defense from among individuals with an expertise in systems engineering and development planning.
(2) Principal advisor for systems engineering and development planning.— The Deputy Assistant Secretary shall be the principal advisor to the Secretary of Defense and the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics on systems engineering and development planning in the Department of Defense.
(3) Supervision.— The Deputy Assistant Secretary shall be subject to the supervision of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics and shall report to the Under Secretary.
(4) Coordination with deputy assistant secretary of defense for developmental test and evaluation.— The Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Systems Engineering shall closely coordinate with the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Developmental Test and Evaluation to ensure that the developmental test and evaluation activities of the Department of Defense are fully integrated into and consistent with the systems engineering and development planning processes of the Department.
(5) Duties.— The Deputy Assistant Secretary shall—
(A) develop policies and guidance for—
(i) the use of systems engineering principles and best practices, generally;
(ii) the use of systems engineering approaches to enhance reliability, availability, and maintainability on major defense acquisition programs;
(iii) the development of systems engineering master plans for major defense acquisition programs including systems engineering considerations in support of lifecycle management and sustainability; and
(iv) the inclusion of provisions relating to systems engineering and reliability growth in requests for proposals;
(B) review and approve the systems engineering master plan for each major defense acquisition program;
(C) monitor and review the systems engineering and development planning activities of the major defense acquisition programs;
(D) provide advocacy, oversight, and guidance to elements of the acquisition workforce responsible for systems engineering, development planning, and lifecycle management and sustainability functions;
(E) provide input on the inclusion of systems engineering requirements in the process for consideration of joint military requirements by the Joint Requirements Oversight Council pursuant to section 181 of this title, including specific input relating to each capabilities development document;
(F) periodically review the organizations and capabilities of the military departments with respect to systems engineering, development planning, and lifecycle management and sustainability, and identify needed changes or improvements to such organizations and capabilities; and
(G) perform such other activities relating to the systems engineering and development planning activities of the Department of Defense as the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics may prescribe.
(6) Access to records.— The Deputy Assistant Secretary shall have access to any records or data of the Department of Defense (including the records and data of each military department and including classified and proprietary information as appropriate) that the Deputy Assistant Secretary considers necessary to review in order to carry out the Deputy Assistant Secretary’s duties under this subsection.
(c) Joint Annual Report.— Not later than March 31 each year, beginning in 2010, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Developmental Test and Evaluation and the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Systems Engineering shall jointly submit to the congressional defense committees a report on the activities undertaken pursuant to subsections (a) and (b) during the preceding year. Each report shall include a section on activities relating to the major defense acquisition programs which shall set forth, at a minimum, the following:
(1) A discussion of the extent to which the major defense acquisition programs are fulfilling the objectives of their systems engineering master plans and developmental test and evaluation plans.
(2) A discussion of the waivers of and deviations from requirements in test and evaluation master plans, systems engineering master plans, and other testing requirements that occurred during the preceding year with respect to such programs, any concerns raised by such waivers or deviations, and the actions that have been taken or are planned to be taken to address such concerns.
(3) An assessment of the organization and capabilities of the Department of Defense for systems engineering, development planning, and developmental test and evaluation with respect to such programs.
(4) Any comments on such report that the Secretary of Defense considers appropriate.
(d) Joint Guidance.— The Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Developmental Test and Evaluation and the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Systems Engineering shall jointly, in coordination with the official designated by the Secretary of Defense under section 103 of the Weapon Systems Acquisition Reform Act of 2009, issue guidance on the following:
(1) The development and tracking of detailed measurable performance criteria as part of the systems engineering master plans and the developmental test and evaluation plans within the test and evaluation master plans of major defense acquisition programs.
(2) The use of developmental test and evaluation to measure the achievement of specific performance objectives within a systems engineering master plan.
(3) A system for storing and tracking information relating to the achievement of the performance criteria and objectives specified pursuant to this subsection.
(e) Major Defense Acquisition Program Defined.— In this section, the term “major defense acquisition program” has the meaning given that term in section 2430 of this title.