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House subcommittee presses for stronger space acquisition workforce, faster procurement
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Summary
Members of the House Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee pressed Defense and intelligence witnesses on the need to rebuild and retain a skilled acquisition workforce and to speed procurement of space systems, citing recent workforce losses and new commercial pathways that could shorten timelines and lower costs.
WASHINGTON — Lawmakers on the House Armed Services Committee’s Strategic Forces Subcommittee said Wednesday that the United States needs a stronger, better-supported space acquisition workforce and faster procurement pathways to deliver systems the military needs to operate and prevail in contested space.
The concern centered on people as much as platforms. "Space Force has already lost over 14% of its civilian acquisition workforce at Space Systems Command," Ranking Member Seth Moulton said during opening remarks, warning that losses of contracting and engineering talent risk program execution and institutional knowledge.
Why it matters: witnesses and members said procurement speed and workforce depth affect the U.S. ability to build resilient constellations, protect warfighters and disrupt rival "kill webs" that enable enemy targeting. Lawmakers argued that acquisition career paths, authorities that permit rapid starts and greater flexibility in constrained funding environments are central to those aims.
Major General Steven Purdy, the acting official overseeing certain Space Force acquisition authorities, described steps the service is taking to adapt. He said Space Force has increased use of other transaction authorities and rapid software pathways—"we've increased our OTAs by 470% and increased our software pathways by 350%"—and that the service is working on workforce career plans for program managers and engineers to provide longer-term billets and experience.
Purdy also described acquisition tradeoffs used in recent programs. On a follow-on to the Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program (GSAP), he said Space Force worked with requirements officials to identify requirements that could be relaxed to enable commercial buses and faster build times: "If we turned off certain requirements, how much faster they could go. That revealed interesting data ... they could shave off about a third of the time and over half the cost." He said the requirements community signed off and the program office is proceeding on a more commercial line.
Members pressed for more concrete steps to stabilize staffing. Several members urged Congress and DOD to prioritize authority and funding flexibility to start programs earlier during continuing resolutions. When asked what single change he would make to speed acquisitions, Purdy said: "Flexibility of funds, particularly in CR environments ... ability to do quick starts ... while we're waiting for the big bill, I think, is probably 1 of the most number 1 things I would poke at."
Ranking Member Moulton and others also emphasized the need to treat acquisition experience as a valued career path within the Space Force so officers do not leave for higher-paying commercial opportunities. Witnesses described cross-service and interagency career movement—about a third of the National Reconnaissance Office workforce is military, and many of those are Space Force guardians embedded for engineering and acquisition roles—but said civilian and contractor expertise remains critical.
The subcommittee held no formal votes during the open session. Members said they expect continued oversight and follow-up as the services implement workforce plans and pursue acquisition reforms.
Looking ahead: lawmakers signaled support for continuing acquisition reforms in this year’s defense authorization process and for monitoring how personnel changes affect program schedules and performance.
