Lawmakers focus on DOD procurement

The House and Senate target the Defense Department's procurement strategy in their respective versions of the Defense Authorization bill.

The House passed its version May 20, and the Senate continued its debate through the end of last week with no vote scheduled as of Friday.

Some of the provisions included in the current

versions of the bill include:

Senate — An amendment proposed by Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) and passed by the Senate would increase the number of Defense procurement officials by 5 percent each year for the next three years.

House — Section 814 offers up to $50 million in grants to Defense contractors to develop strategies to avoid outsourcing jobs, including technology development.

Senate — Section 841 calls for the establishment of a Commission on the Future of the National Technology and Industrial Base. The 12 president-appointed members of this group would study the high-tech sector of the global economy, particularly with respect to its effect on national security.

House and Senate — Section 2222 in the House version and Section 1104 in the Senate version order the Defense secretary to develop, by September 2005, an enterprise architecture for the department's business systems and a plan for implementing the architecture. The sections also restrict to $1 million the amount that may be obligated for a Defense business system modernization unless approval is granted by the Defense secretary or another recognized authority.