The conference report for the 2008 defense authorization bill includes the Acquisition Improvement and Accountability Act of 2008, which Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), chairman of the Armed Service Committee, calls the “most far-reaching acquisition reform measure approved by Congress in more than a decade.” Among other things, the measure would establish a fund, starting at $300 million in Fiscal 2008, to enable DOD to hire and train a suitable acquisition workforce. The fund would grow to $600 million by 2010. The act would prohibit the practice of using Lead Systems Integrators on new programs launched after 2010. The Air Force was considering use of a lead contractor for the next generation GPS program, but Congress early this year began to show signs it opposed such efforts. Under the new act, the Pentagon would face more stringent reporting requirements about former DOD officials headed for defense industry jobs. It would also install restrictions on multiyear contracts and require a Defense Science Board blessing on information technology procurement programs.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.
