Sen. Roger Wicker’s new report and corresponding legislation sheds some light on what the defense plans and priorities might be for the next year and in the upcoming defense policy bill once Wicker becomes the next leader of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

The Mississippi Republican has been calling for a “generational investment” in defense and laid out his plans to bring billions of dollars in new military spending in his report released in the spring. The new legislation, called the FORGED Act, or Fostering Reform and Government Efficiency in Defense, builds on the previous document and lays out his roadmap for reforming the acquisition bureaucracy and speeding up innovation within the Defense Department.

“Critics of current defense acquisition practices often suggest that eliminating price gouging will free significant funds for real security needs. Unfortunately, much of the Pentagon’s business inefficiencies do not stem from anything as straightforward as price gouging. The problems are fundamental and are interconnected. DoD operates non-commercial business systems, requires unreasonable qualifications, orders at low production volumes, and lacks leverage on sole source suppliers,” said Wicker.

To drive efficiency into acquisition, the plan proposes repealing certain statutory provisions that “add reporting requirements, create unnecessary pilot programs, or micromanage the executive process.”

“Approvals, thresholds, and limitations should be struck or raised. These moves would open the aperture for the president to retain, revise, or remove regulations. If Congress can streamline the administrative state across the executive and legislative branches, greater efficiencies and mission impact will follow,” said Wicker.

The report recommends cutting red tape by modifying certain sections of Title 10. Section 3070, for example, restricts the Defense Department from keeping more than two years’ worth of supply inventory on hand. The regulation was largely intended to prevent overstocking and reduce storage costs, which makes sense during times of peace. But the lead times have extended to three years for some items, making the regulation too restrictive.

Another type of statute that is “ripe for cutting” is pilot programs, demonstration projects, governance structures, and targets for new technologies within the Defense Department.

“Congress has tried to encourage DoD to embrace technologies such as 5G, quantum, digital engineering, and artificial intelligence. It has done so by layering demonstrations that are already well within executive authorities and roadmaps. These statutes come with their own baggage. They presuppose optimal technology development pathways, create detailed requirements, and pile on excessive reporting. Pilots have their place, but the current practice overwhelms the system,” said Wicker.

As for the increasing innovation area, Wicker said the Software Acquisition and Middle-Tier of Acquisition pathways need additional authorities to roll back some of the regulations that slow down acquisition. Wicker said the pathways should be the preferred methods for all new defense programs.

“A key way to expedite these pathways will be by updating DoD’s acquisition strategies. Today, DoD tends to detail a specific end-item, but it should be focused on a capability portfolio,” said Wicker.

The plan also suggests getting rid of Milestone A from statutory requirements and replacing it with a “buy-before-build” process. 

To enable action, the plan recommends turning the program executive offices to portfolio acquisition executives, which would allow service to shift from a program-centric to portfolio-centric model. And requirements and programming staff should largely be moved to portfolio acquisition executives. 

Lastly, Wicker said all recommendations from the Commission on Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution (PPBE) Reform should be implemented over the fiscal 2026 through 2028.

“The Department of Defense has been doing business the same way for far too long, which has heavily damaged both taxpayer confidence and American national security. We are entering a moment where major reform is possible. My legislation offers an opportunity to maximize the use of public dollars to buy second-to-none weapons systems, adopt new technology faster, and boost competition within the defense industry. I have started a national conversation about making a generational investment. Now we need to discuss how we can spend smarter,” Wicker said in a statement.

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