President Directs Four DOD Acquisition Reform Studies

On April 9, 2025, President Trump issued an Executive Order entitled “Modernizing Defense Acquisitions and Spurring Innovation in the Defense Industrial Base,” directing the Secretary of Defense to study and report on ways to improve the speed, flexibility, and execution of the defense acquisition system. Consistent with the President's other EOs, this effort is focused on reducing unnecessary, inefficient, or duplicative administrative requirements while enhancing the use of existing authorities.

The EO identifies the defense acquisition workforce as a “national strategic asset” and requires the Secretary of Defense to provide four reports or plans that could lead to significant modifications of the defense acquisition system. These reports are due to the Administration over the next six months and will likely require significant administrative effort.  DOD agencies should expect short-suspense information requirements and visits from Service-level leadership teams heading into Spring.

THE FOUR REPORTS

Acquisition Process Reform (60 Days)

The Secretary of Defense must provide a plan that incorporates a tiered acquisition preference system primarily emphasizing commercial item purchases, followed by OTAs and other rapid acquisition authorities. This preference system is effective immediately, applying to all ongoing acquisitions within DOD. This is likely to strengthen DOD’s current precedential approach to commercial item acquisition which requires the purchase of commercial items only if such items were purchased commercially in the past.

The report must also assess the functions performed by program management, contracting, and technical officials within the acquisition workforce and will focus on removing unnecessary and redundant approvals and consolidating acquisition authority. This requirement appears focused on redistributing acquisition authorities within the existing workforce, not making personnel changes. However, recommended modifications to the workforce are required in another report (see below).

This report must also lay out the steps required to stand up a new Configuration Steering Board (CSB) that will oversee and manage defense acquisition risk. CSBs are already required within major systems acquisitions under DODI 5000.85 which may serve as a model for the defense-wide CSB directed in this EO.

Major Defense Acquisition Program (MDAP) Review (90 days)

The Secretary is directed to review and consider cancelling all MDAPs that are 15% over budget or schedule, have failed to meet key performance parameters, or do not align with the Secretary’s mission priorities. Formal strategic defense priorities are still forthcoming from the new Administration, but likely include efforts to deter Chinese aggression, secure America against the importation of illegal drugs, and ensure freedom of navigation for trade in the Middle East. DOD has 69 active MDAPs according to a USD-C report released in March 2024, and this report requires updating that list.

All major defense systems will also receive a comprehensive review as part of this report.  Major systems are defined in 10 USC § 3041 as RDT&E programs exceeding $115 million and system procurement costs exceeding $540 million.

Acquisition Workforce Reform Plan (120 days)

The Secretary must develop and submit to the President a plan to reform the acquisition workforce in four ways:

• Restructuring performance evaluation metrics that assess a workforce member’s commitment to utilizing commercial solutions, the Adaptive Acquisition Framework, and repeatable acquisition strategies;
• Determining the best acquisition workforce structure;
• Creating mobile “tiger teams” to train and assist acquisition officials in performance of their duties; and
• Empowering innovation by acquisition officials through new policies, procedures, and tools.

The plan submitted under this requirement will not immediately effectuate personnel changes or force restructuring measures, but such changes will likely result from future Administration action consistent with the report.

Review of the Joint Capabilities Integration and Development System (JCIDS) (180 days)

The Secretary must work with the Service Secretaries and the Joint Chiefs of Staff to perform and submit a comprehensive review of the JCIDS. The JCIDS has been criticized for years by both industry and intra-governmental groups, including Mitre Corporation, GAO, and the Acquisition Innovation Research Center (AIRC), as being an inefficient way of validating new program requirements across the DOD.

OTHER PROVISIONS

Internal Regulations Review

The Secretary must propose revisions to the DOD acquisitions rules and regulations to eliminate or revise any unnecessary provisions in the Defense Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) or associated guidance such as procedures, guidance, and information (PGIs). Any recommendation for new regulations or guidance are subject to the “10-for-one” rule established in EO 14192, requiring the elimination of ten regulations for each new regulation enacted, with a goal of keeping the cost of implementing all new regulations at “significantly less than zero.”    

IMPACT

This EO represents the Administration’s continued push towards deregulation and efficiency that has characterized its first three months in office. While the only provision of immediate impact pushes DOD towards increased reliance on commercial items and non-traditional and rapid contracting methods, it shows strong disillusionment with the current DOD acquisition system and signals more change ahead.

The EO’s focus on personnel roles and responsibilities should alert DOD acquisition employees that potential job justifications like those stemming from DOGE initiatives may be on the immediate horizon. Also, contractors currently working in support of high-dollar acquisitions such as the 69 ongoing MDAPS should expect additional cost scrutiny from above the programmatic level. 

While DOD has long sought to reach the nontraditional contractor market through the use of OTA Consortia and other non-FAR authorities, true innovation has not significantly decoupled from the FAR despite these efforts. It remains to be seen if contracting personnel, through the coaching of mobile training teams or additional performance criteria prescribed in this EO, will finally abandon the high levels of risk aversion that have typified government acquisition for decades. Whether it does or not, these studies should provide a useful snapshot of the DOD procurement landscape.