Defense Department acquisition chief Ellen Lord has said defense policy bills enacted over the past two fiscal years have helped DoD to cut through the “red tape” that affected its acquisition and modernization efforts.The U.S. Air Force reported Thursday she told Senate Armed Services Committee members that NDAAs have “provided the direction and the tools for the department to advance the capabilities required to restore our overmatch, speed the rate in which we field these advanced capabilities and improve the overall affordability of our fighting forces weapons systems.”
Lord added new authorities under the fiscal 2016Â NDAAÂ brought acquisition powers back to the military branches and worked to streamline the contracting system, according to Lord.
Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson also testified before SASC and told the committee that the new authorizations gave the Air Force decision authority over 76 percent of its program, up from 39 percent.
Wilson added that Lord has assigned eight more programs for Air Force management, which cut acquisition time by three months through the delegation of authority.
