Congress Sets Guardrails for Pentagon Acquisition Reforms

House and Senate lawmakers say they’re on board with the Pentagon’s latest plan to reform the way it buys new systems, but in a report accompanying the latest draft of fiscal 2026 defense spending bill , they urged more investment in the defense acquisition workforce and expressed skepticism about the Defense Department’s call for more budget flexibility. “While speed of delivery is critical, the agreement cautions that speed must be factored alongside cost, performance, lethality, and scalability,” lawmakers stated in the Jan. 20 report .

“Rapid delivery of ineffective weapon systems at exorbitant cost will not serve the warfighter well. The agreement also notes the importance of a capable acquisition workforce and ensuring stable, annual funding for programs are integral components of su