Political Quotes

“I am proud to stand before you today in strong support of H.R. 5013, the IMPROVE Acquisition Act of 2010. As a member of the House Armed Services Defense Acquisition Reform Panel, I commend Chairman Rob Andrews and Ranking Member Mike Conaway for their leadership over the past year as we delved into the complex world of defense acquisition. Recently, based on our panel's detailed study, we released our final report containing recommendations for improvements to defense acquisition. Today's legislation implements our Defense Acquisition Reform Panel's recommendation, and I am proud to cosponsor this very important bill. As a result of the panel's efforts, this legislation reforms the remaining 80 percent of the defense acquisition system not addressed by last year's Weapon Systems Acquisition Reform Act. These measures will potentially save billions of taxpayer dollars. The primary focus of the bill is to reform defense spending by identifying cost-saving techniques at the earliest stages of development. Our goal is to decrease cost overruns exponentially before they spiral out of control. I am pleased that many of my acquisition reform priorities are included in H.R. 5013. There is no doubt that there is a great need for enhanced accountability within the defense acquisition system. Maintaining our Nation's defense industrial base is paramount.”