WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton (D-Mo.) and Ranking Member Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R-Calif.) joined the Committee’s Defense Acquisition Reform Panel Chairman Rob Andrews (D-N.J.) and Ranking Member Mike Conaway (R-Texas) to announce the introduction of H.R. 5013 , the IMPROVE Acquisition Act, bipartisan legislation to overhaul defense acquisition spending, potentially saving billions of taxpayer dollars and expediting the process to get the necessary equipment to our warfighters.
The legislation is based on the recommendations outlined in the final report of the Defense Acquisition Panel, which was established in March 2009 to perform a review of the defense acquisition system. The bill would require the Department of Defense to begin to comprehensively manage the defense acquisition and acquisition workforce, would reform the Department’s financial management, and would responsibly expand the defense industrial base to enhance competition and gain access to more innovative technology. As a result of the Panel’s efforts, the IMPROVE Acquisition Act would reform the remaining eighty percent of the defense acquisition system not addressed by last year’s Weapon Systems Acquisition Reform Act.
“Our troops rely on the
acquisition system to buy the equipment they need to keep
them safe on the battlefield and protect our country. When
that system breaks down, they suffer,” said
Chairman Skelton. “This new
legislation will make sure that our brave men and women in
uniform are getting the proper equipment in a more timely
manner while also saving American taxpayers billions of
dollars. Congressmen Andrews and Conaway, and the entire
Panel on Defense Acquisition Reform, could not have done a
better job at scrutinizing our defense acquisition system,
and I thank them for a job well done. I also thank
Congressman McKeon for his close cooperation and commitment
to this effort.”
“Chairman Skelton, Congressman Andrews, Congressman Conaway, and all of the Members who served on the Defense Acquisition Reform Panel deserve recognition for their hard work to understand the complex world of defense acquisition and make recommendations to improve that system. This legislation implements those recommendations,” said Ranking Member McKeon. “When you consider that 60 percent of the Pentagon’s procurement dollars are for services contracts alone, the legislation we are introducing today has the potential to affect major changes at the Department of Defense and save billions of taxpayer dollars. Finally, I want to thank the dedicated men and women of the defense acquisition workforce. Reform will not be possible without them.”
“"American service members and taxpayers deserve 100 cents of value for every dollar we spend,” said Congressman Andrews. This bipartisan bill will reward our agencies that achieve this goal, and require those that do not achieve this goal to take meaningful steps to do so."
“This legislation represents a sustained bipartisan effort to improve the defense acquisition process. I want to thank my respected colleagues, Chairman Skelton, Ranking Member McKeon and Chairman Andrews for their leadership and dedication to this bill and its overarching efforts of facilitating a substantial impact on reducing waste, fraud and abuse,” said Congressman Conaway. “Not only does this bill address the Defense Acquisition System and Workforce, but, if properly implemented, it will play a critical role in assisting the Department of Defense’s improvements upon its financial management practices. We must strengthen the confidence of the American taxpayer that tax dollars are being accounted for and spent wisely in the defense of this great nation.”
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