Working over the weekend to get the conference version of the 2006 defense authorization bill out the door, House legislators passed the bill on a 374-41 vote. The Senate was expected to take up the $441.5 billion measure Monday. One key provision, per Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.), chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, offers protection against civil and criminal prosecution for US service members who “act in good faith.”
The emphasis on speed in the Pentagon’s newly unveiled slate of acquisition reforms may come with increased near-term cost increases, analysts say. But according to U.S. defense officials, the new weapons-buying construct provides the military with enough flexibility to prevent runaway budget overruns in major programs.
