Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) says that the Pentagon has ignored “warnings over the dramatic growth in the cost of military products.” To remedy this, Hunter’s House Armed Services Committee proposes that the Pentagon consider conducting a new competition for any program that significantly breaches its cost estimate. The panel’s version of the 2007 defense authorization bill would force the Pentagon to certify that it had “issued a competitive solicitation but found no promising solutions” other than to continue with the current program.
The $4.26 billion Small Business Innovation Research contracting program widely used by the Air Force went into hibernation as the government shut down Oct. 1, but unless lawmakers strike a deal on reforms, the program could reach an abrupt end.
