GENDER-NEUTRAL OCCUPATIONAL PERFORMANCE STANDARDS.

SEC. 543. [10 U.S.C. 113 note] GENDER-NEUTRAL OCCUPATIONAL PERFORMANCE STANDARDS. (a) Gender Neutrality Requirement.—In the case of any military career designator that is open to both male and female members of the Armed Forces, the Secretary of Defense— (1) shall ensure that qualification of members of the Armed Forces for, and continuance of members of the Armed Forces in, that occupational career field is evaluated on the basis of an occupational standard, without differential standards or evaluation on the basis of gender; (2) may not use any gender quota, goal, or ceiling except as specifically authorized by law; and (3) may not change an occupational performance standard for the purpose of increasing or decreasing the number of women in that occupational career field. (b) Requirements Relating To Use of Specific Physical Requirements.—(1) For any military career designator for which the Secretary of Defense determines that specific physical requirements for muscular strength and endurance and cardiovascular capacity are essential to the performance of duties, the Secretary shall prescribe specific physical requirements as part of the gender-neutral occupational standard for members in that career designator and shall ensure (in the case of a career designator that is open to both male and female members of the Armed Forces) that those requirements are applied on a gender-neutral basis. (2) Whenever the Secretary establishes or revises a physical requirement for a military career designator, a member serving in that military career designator when the new requirement becomes effective, who is otherwise considered to be a satisfactory performer, shall be provided a reasonable period, as determined under regulations prescribed by the Secretary, to meet the standard established by the new requirement. During that period, the new physical requirement may not be used to disqualify the member from continued service in that military career designator. (c) Notice to Congress of Changes.—Whenever the Secretary of Defense proposes to implement changes to the gender-neutral occupational standard for a military career designator that are expected to result in an increase, or in a decrease, of at least 10 percent in the number of female members of the Armed Forces who enter, or are assigned to, that military career designator, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to Congress a report providing notice or the change and the justification and rationale for the change. Such changes may then be implemented only after the end of the 60-day period beginning on the date on which such report is submitted. (d) Definitions.—In this section: (1) Gender-neutral occupational standard.—The term “gender-neutral occupational standard”, with respect to a military career designator, means that all members of the Armed Forces serving in or assigned to the military career designator must meet the same performance outcome-based standards for the successful accomplishment of the necessary and required specific tasks associated with the qualifications and duties performed while serving in or assigned to the military career designator. (2) Military career designator.—The term “military career designator” refers to— (A) in the case of enlisted members and warrant officers of the Armed Forces, military occupational specialties, specialty codes, enlisted designators, enlisted classification codes, additional skill identifiers, and special qualification identifiers; and (B) in the case of commissioned officers (other than commissioned warrant officers), officer areas of concentration, occupational specialties, specialty codes, additional skill identifiers, and special qualification identifiers.