United States General Accounting Office

GAO National Security and International

Affairs Division

April 1995 Acquisition Policy,

Technology, and

Competitiveness Issue

Area Plan

Fiscal Years 1995-97

GAO/IAP-95-10

Foreword

The Acquisition Policy, Technology, and Competitiveness issue area is one

of the General Accounting Office’s 35 issue areas. Relying heavily on input

from congressional committees, as well as industry, academia, agency

officials, and other experts, GAO develops issue area plans to ensure that

our resources are directed towards the most important concerns of the

Congress.

GAO serves as a source of timely, accurate information and unbiased

analysis for decisionmakers in the Congress and executive agencies. For

each issue area, GAO’s strategic plan describes the significance of the

issues, our objectives, and the focus of our work. Our work includes such

products as reports, briefings, and testimonies.

GAO’s work in the Acquisition Policy, Technology, and Competitiveness

issue area focuses on policies and processes of the Department of Defense

(DOD) and civil agencies that are designed to make affordable acquisitions

as well as sustain the health, technological leadership, and international

competitiveness of the industrial base in a period of downsizing.

The principal issues in the issue area are

• ensuring the industrial and technology base is being restructured to best

serve U.S. security interests;

• examining whether defense exports are maintaining critical industrial

capabilities and reducing unit costs of weapons for the Department of

Defense (DOD) while retaining technological leadership and

competitiveness; and

• evaluating progress and new initiatives in federal acquisition reforms and

best/commercial practices for streamlining and improving acquisition

processes and practices while ensuring public funds are properly spent.

In the pages that follow, we describe our objectives and planned work on

these issues.

Page 1 GAO/IAP-95-10
Foreword

Because unanticipated events may affect this plan, GAO’s planning process

allows for updating the plan and responding to emerging issues. If you

have any questions or suggestions about this plan, please call me at

(202) 512-4125.

David E. Cooper

Director

Acquisition Policy, Technology and

 Competitiveness Issues

Page 2 GAO/IAP-95-10
Contents

Foreword 1

Table I: Key Issues 4

Table II: Planned

Major Work

6

Table III: GAO

Contacts

7

Page 3 GAO/IAP-95-10
Contents

Table I: Key Issues

Issue Significance

Industrial base: Is the industrial and

technology base being restructured to best

serve U.S. security interests? 

The defense industrial and technology base is downsizing in response to declines in

DOD and world markets. Mergers and acquisitions in the defense industry continue while

major defense conversion and adjustment programs are funded and implemented.

Concerns remain over maintaining critical production and technology capabilities for

future national security needs. Concerns are also being raised about the value of and

returns on multibillion dollar federal investments in conversion programs.

Technology and competitiveness:

Is defense technology being protected while

promoting competitiveness? 

As the defense industrial and technology base downsizes, pressures increase to export

and transfer more advanced, frontline weapons and technologies to maintain the base

and jobs. The challenge is to promote exports that maintain critical industrial capabilities

and help reduce unit costs of weapons for DOD while retaining technological leadership

and superiority.

Federal acquisition reform: Are DOD and

civil agencies streamlining and improving

their acquisition processes and practices

while ensuring that public funds are properly

spent? 

The Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act requires GAO to evaluate the implementation of

several provisions’ of the act throughout the federal government. In addition, DOD has

numerous reengineering initiatives and pilot programs underway designed to further

acquisition reform. At the same time, defense acquisition and contract management

remain high-risk areas for misuse of billions of dollars in public funds.

Page 4 GAO/IAP-95-10
Contents

Objectives Focus of work

—Evaluate whether DOD is retaining critical technology and production

capabilities needed for national security as downsizing takes place.

—Assess whether defense conversion programs designed to preserve

national security interests are cost-effective and identify opportunities for

savings.

— Extent and progress in defense downsizing

— Oversight and contributions of Federally Funded

Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs)

— Technology reinvestment projects and other defense

conversion programs

— Extent of and need for U.S. government support for

defense exports

— DOD’s defense industrial base initiatives

—Contribute to effective policies and programs designed to maintain,

promote, and protect critical defense technologies while enhancing U.S.

international competitiveness.

— Foreign investments in U.S. defense and key strategic

industries and foreign countries’ laws, policies, and

practices in this area

— DOD’s science and technology plan, priorities, and

spending

— Adequacy of international weapons development and

data exchange agreements and U.S. export controls

— Nature and effects of offsets connected with foreign

military sales

—Evaluate implementation of government-wide acquisition reform

legislation and costs/benefits of new proposals.

—Identify best commercial practices for the acquisition process.

— Mandated government-wide evaluations of Federal

Acquisition Streamlining Act implementation

— Selected DOD initiatives to promote acquisition of

commercial products and apply best practices

— Efforts to streamline DOD acquisition organizations

Page 5 GAO/IAP-95-10
Table II: Planned Major Work

Issue Planned major job starts

Industrial base —Assess technology reinvestment projects

—Review Federally Funded Research and Development Centers

—Assess defense industry downsizing

—Examine DOD’s industrial base planning

Technology and competitiveness —Analyze the changing nature and effects of offsets associated with foreign military sales

—Review foreign countries’ laws, policies, and practices regarding foreign investment in

their defense and key strategic industries 

—Review export controls over stealth and other critical military technologies

—Review international weapons codevelopment/data exchange agreements 

—Review science and technology spending priorities

Federal acquisition reform —Evaluate government-wide Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act regulations

—Assess electronic commerce implementation government-wide and its costs/benefits

—Develop baseline data to assess results of selected acquisition reform initiatives at key

federal buying activities

—Assess government-wide acquisition work force downsizing and efforts to streamline

DOD acquisition organizations

—Review performance-based acquisition management

—Identify and evaluate selected DOD and industry initiatives to use best commercial

practices

Page 6 GAO/IAP-95-10
Table III: GAO Contacts

Director David E. Cooper (202) 512-4125

Assistant Directors C. David Childress

Davi M. D’Agostino

Les Farrington

John K. Harper

Charles F. Rey

Katherine V. Schinasi

Cliff Spruill

Kevin Tansey

Charles W. Thompson

Karen Zuckerstein

Page 7 GAO/IAP-95-10
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