U.S. Congressman and Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee Mac Thornberry (R-Clarendon) today introduced the “Agile Acquisition to Retain Technological Edge Act,” H.R. 1597, a bill to reform the Department of Defense’s (DOD) broken acquisition system.
 
“We are releasing this bill one month ahead of the National Defense Authorization Act consideration because we want to get people’s feedback. We listened to a lot of folks as we drafted this bill, and we want to hear from them again as we work to make it law,” Thornberry said. “While this bill won’t fix all that is broken, it is a start.”

Thornberry and other Members of the Armed Services Committee have engaged with experts at the DOD, in the defense industry, and within Congress for more than a year with a focus on reforming the DOD’s acquisition system.
 
Thornberry said part of the motivation to act on this reform is out of budgetary concerns to make sure taxpayer dollars are being spent wisely. He also explained that dysfunction in the acquisition process is sapping America’s technological edge and robbing the U.S. military of agility in the face of multiplying threats.
 
“The broken acquisition system is contributing to the loss of our military’s technological edge. I hope that by streamlining the process, improving accountability, and eliminating outdated regulations, we can start to get some of that edge back,” said Thornberry. “Ultimately, this acquisition reform must make the system more proactive, agile, transparent, and innovative.”

You can find the bill text and more information about the reform effort here: Defense Reform.

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