Fixing Defense Innovation: Rewriting Acquisition and Security Regulations

▤ Summary

It is true that complex weapons systems like advanced fighters take decades to develop, but the government’s bureaucracy has stifled innovation and made even routine purchases for office furniture difficult and cumbersome. At the height of the Cold War, Congress and the White House permitted processes that allowed the rapid purchase and fielding of industry-developed weapon systems and emphasized user-testing over the lengthy formulation of requirements documents. If Congress and the executive branch want to reduce these hurdles, then they should rewrite acquisition regulations and laws to emphasize speed and flexibility over cost control, increase opportunities for nontraditional contractors to gain clearances to work with the Department of Defense, modernize antiquated cybersecurity practices, and make the Pentagon’s requirements process more iterative and agile by continually integrating user feedback. Collectively, the accumulation of acquisition and security laws and regulations over the past four decades has caused procurement officials and their industry partners to devote increasing amounts of time and resources to compliance rather than acquiring, developing, and buying the best weapons. If the Pentagon wants to take advantage of the private sector’s increasing investments in research and development, and its engineering talent, it needs to provide firms additional opportunities to apply for facility clearances and compete for contracts.

▦ Linked Companies

Synopsys, Inc.

$1B+

Protecode

$1M to $5M