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Happy Friday!
As of yesterday, we are on the path to a third set of continuing resolutions.
- The Senate passed its latest temporary spending bill, with predictions that it would pass the House and be signed by President Biden swiftly.
DoD announced a new Other Transaction Agreement that also establishes the Defense Industrial Base Consortium.
- The stated goal is to "enable rapid research and allow access to commercial solutions for defense requirements and innovations from industry, academia, and non-traditional contractors."
- The DIB Consortium will focus on previously identified critical sectors including hypersonics, microelectronics, castings and forgings, and small unmanned aerial systems.
The Atlantic Council released their final report on Defense Innovation Adoption, with 10 recommendations and eight vignettes of successful collaborations between DoD and industry to field solutions rapidly an effectively.
- Most of these recommendations were previewed in their interim report released last year, and 6 out of the 10 recommendations have been implemented already to some degree.
- Some of those recommendations: establish a capability portfolio model, consolidate program elements, reset reprogramming authorities, and modernize the requirements process.
- Several of their 10 recommendations resemble suggestions from the Section 809 Panel's 2019 final report. Others, as the authors note, intersect with the ongoing work of the PPBE reform panel.
DoD is meeting with industry members to discuss details of the newly released National Defense Industrial Strategy and to use this input to shape the more nuanced implementation plan expected in March.
Former DoD Acting Comptroller Elaine McKusker analyzes the NDIS and makes her recommendations for what the implementation plan needs.
- Part of her critique falls on defense budgets that don't align with industrial base priorities.
- She suggests a closer look at these numbers from a strategic perspective, consideration of why businesses continue to leave the DIB, and investigation of whether production is increasing or decreasing (a point often hit by Bill LaPlante).
Last week the Navy announced a program called Running Fix to identify cost savings and efficiencies.
- It encourages submissions from officers at the O-5 level or higher, but these may originate from members of the Navy at all levels.
The Sentinel program meant to replace Minuteman missiles has officially filed paperwork for a Nunn-McCurdy breach.
- The complex program, which includes not just the missiles itself but also the siloes and command infrastructure to support the missiles, is projecting a 37% cost increase and a two-year delay.
SECNAV Del Toro has ordered a comprehensive shipbuilding review to be completed within 45 days, in time to inform the next round of budget submissions.
Related, HASC members sent a letter to President Biden supporting the procurement of two Virginia-class submarines per year to support AUKUS agreements and domestic demand.
Our top story brings perspective from an academic researcher on the value research provides to policymakers -- a topic near and dear to our hearts here at ARP and NPS.
- Using data from research on the impact of research—a truly meta project—Professor Scott finds that lawmakers are more likely to propose evidence-based legislation or include technical language in social media posts when they have ready access to the relevant research – and researchers.
As we gear up for our 21st Annual Acquisition Research Symposium, this article serves as a potent reminder of why it's critically important to bring together researchers, policymakers, and senior leaders in an environment informed by data.
- For those who generate this research, thank you and keep plugging away!
- We're excited to hear the conversations that will happen May 8-9 in Monterey. Program details will be coming in the next few weeks.
Finally, in ARP news, we share recent thesis research that conducted a case study of the Navy and Marine Corps Landing Ship Medium acquisition program.
- We also celebrate the nine recent DDM graduates who earned professional certifications in acquisition and/or program management while completing their master degrees.
- Congratulations to these acquisition and research superstars!
This Week's Top Story
Commentary: Connecting researchers and legislators can lead to policies that reflect scientific evidence
Taylor Scott, Nextgov/FCW
Like most kids of the 1990s, I attended a school that used the original DARE program as a cornerstone initiative in the war on drugs. Congressional funding for this Drug Abuse Resistance Education program surged to over US$10 million per year by 2002, despite studies published in the prior decade demonstrating the original program was ineffective at preventing substance use. Following mounting political pressure and declining government investments, the DARE program was retooled.
This scenario exemplifies how a disconnect between research-based information and decision-making can lead to ineffective policies. It also illustrates why scientists often bemoan that it can take over a decade before their work achieves its intended public benefit.
Researchers want the results of their studies to have an impact in the real world. Policymakers want to make effective policies that serve the people. The public wants to benefit from tax-funded research.
But there’s a disconnect between the world of science and the world of policy decision-making that keeps information from flowing freely between them. There are hundreds of evidence-based programs that receive minimal public investment despite their promise to curb social ills and save taxpayer dollars.
At the Penn State Research Translation Platform, I work with a team that studies policymakers’ use of research evidence. Legislators and other decision-makers tend to prioritize certain solutions over others, largely based on the kinds of advice and input they receive from trusted sources. My team is developing ways to connect policymakers with university-based researchers – and studying what happens when these academics become the trusted sources, rather than those with special interests who stand to gain financially from various initiatives.
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