DOD uses three interrelated processes to deliver capabilities to the U.S. military: the Joint Capabilities Integration and Development System (JCIDS), which validates gaps in joint warfighting capabilities and requirements that resolve those gaps; the Defense Acquisition System, which develops and fields weapon systems to meet these requirements; and the Planning, Programming, Budgeting and Execution process, which allocates the funding needed to develop, acquire, and field these weapon systems. The JCIDS process is overseen by the JROC, which supports the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in advising the Secretary of Defense on joint military capability needs. The JROC is chaired by the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and includes one senior leader from each of the military services, such as the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army or the Vice Chief of Naval Operations. The JROC has a number of statutory responsibilities related to the identification, validation, and prioritization of joint military requirements. The JROC assists the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff with a number of tasks, including (1) identifying, assessing, and approving joint military requirements; (2) establishing and assigning priority levels for joint military requirements; and (3) reviewing the estimated level of resources required to fulfill each requirement and ensuring that the resource level is consistent with the requirement’s priority. The JROC also assists acquisition officials in identifying alternatives to any acquisition programs that experience significant cost growth. Since 2008, Congress has added to the JROC’s statutory responsibilities and increased the number of JROC members and advisors who provide input to it. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 amended the U.S. Code to require that the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics (USD AT&L), the Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller), and the Director of the Office of Program Analysis and Evaluation serve as advisors to the JROC on matters within their authority and expertise. In 2009, WSARA expanded the role of the JROC by directing it to assist the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in (1) ensuring that trade-offs among cost, schedule, and performance objectives are considered for joint military requirements; and (2) establishing an objective period of time within which an initial operational capability should be delivered. WSARA also stated that the newly constituted Director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation (CAPE) would advise the JROC. The Ike Skelton National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2011 allowed the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to direct senior leaders from combatant commands to serve as members of the JROC when matters related to the area of responsibility or functions of that command are under consideration. It also added the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation, and other civilian officials designated by the Secretary of Defense as advisors to the JROC on issues within their authority and expertise. The JROC is supported in the JCIDS process by two Joint Capabilities Boards (JCB) and seven Functional Capabilities Boards (FCB), each of which is chaired by a general/flag officer or civilian equivalent. JCBs and FCBs are responsible for specific Joint Capability Areas, such as Force Protection, Logistics, or Battlespace Awareness. The JCBs, FCBs, and associated FCB Working Groups review requirements documents prior to JROC reviews. The JCB also serves as the validation authority for requirements documents that are not associated with major defense acquisition programs (MDAP). In some instances, the JROC will not meet in person to approve requirements documents if there are no outstanding issues to discuss. The JROC and its supporting organizations review requirements documents related to capability gaps and the MDAPs intended to fill those gaps prior to key acquisition milestones. These requirements documents— the Initial Capabilities Documents (ICD), Capability Development Documents (CDD), and Capability Production Documents (CPD)—are submitted by capability sponsors, which are generally the military services, but can also be other DOD agencies or combatant commands. Figure 1 depicts how JCIDS reviews align with the acquisition process. The ICD is the first requirements document reviewed in JCIDS. It is intended to identify a specific capability gap, or set of gaps, in joint military capabilities that are determined to require a materiel solution as a result of a capabilities-based assessment. DOD policy requires that the JROC validate the ICD prior to a Materiel Development Decision, which is the formal entry point into the acquisition process. The ICD does not contain specific cost, schedule, or performance objectives. Once the JROC validates an ICD, the Milestone Decision Authority, working with appropriate stakeholders, shall determine whether to proceed to a Materiel Development Decision. After the Materiel Development Decision, the capability sponsor initiates an AOA to consider alternative solutions to fulfilling the capability need described in an ICD, and possible trade-offs among cost, schedule, and performance for each alternative are considered. The CDD is the second requirements document reviewed in JCIDS. It can address capability gaps presented in one or more ICDs. The CDD is intended to define a proposed program’s Key Performance Parameters (KPP), Key System Attributes (KSA), and other performance attributes. KPPs are the system characteristics that the CDD sponsor considers critical to delivering that military capability, while KSAs are system attributes the CDD sponsor considers essential for an effective military capability, but a lower priority than the KPPs. DOD policy calls for the JROC to validate the CDD to inform the Milestone B decision, which marks the official start of an acquisition program and entry into the engineering and manufacturing development phase. The CDD is the first requirements document that contains cost, schedule, and performance objectives. The CPD is the third and final requirements document reviewed in J It is intended to refine the KPPs, KSAs, and performance attributes validated in the CDD. DOD policy calls for the JROC to validate the CP inform the Milestone C decision, which marks a program’s entry into production. Appendix II identifies the IC the JCB or JROC in fiscal year 2010. CIDS. The JROC considered trade-offs made by the military services before validating requirements for four of the seven proposed programs it reviewed in fiscal year 2010, and provided input to the military services on the cost, schedule, and performance objectives for two of the seven programs. The JROC’s requirements review was the final step in a long requirements vetting process, with most trade-offs being made by the military services earlier in the process. Key stakeholders from the offices of the Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller), USD AT&L, Director of CAPE, and the combatant commands were all satisfied with their opportunities to provide input to the JROC; but they provided limited input on trade-offs among cost, schedule, and performance objectives, and used other means to influence trade-offs. Perhaps most importantly, none of the JROC’s requirements reviews align with the AOA, which is where the military services reported making the most significant trade-offs. As a result, a program can spend significant time in technology development before the JROC gets to formally weigh in on these trade-offs through the JCIDS process. The JROC also reviews MDAP requirements after a program enters development and experiences substantial cost growth. DOD and the JROC stated that requirements were not the primary causes of cost growth for the 15 programs reviewed for this purpose in fiscal year 2010 and the JROC did not change any KPPs to mitigate the reported cost growth. The JROC considered trade-offs made by the military services before validating requirements for four of the seven proposed programs it reviewed in fiscal year 2010. On three programs, the JROC did not receive information on the potential cost and schedule implications of each of the alternatives considered. Table 1 summarizes the JROC’s consideration of cost, schedule, and performance objectives for the seven proposed MDAPs it reviewed in fiscal year 2010. The JROC’s review of the CDD for a proposed program is the final step in a long requirements vetting process, and DOD officials reported that trade- offs typically occur earlier in the process. Each military service conducts its own internal requirements reviews for its proposed programs, which are used to refine requirements documents before they are submitted into JCIDS. Military service officials reported that they make significant trade- offs during these internal reviews, and that KPPs and technical requirements rarely change after requirements documents are submitted into JCIDS because extensive analysis has already been conducted. For the seven proposed MDAPs we reviewed, the military services generally submitted requirements to the JROC that would be fully funded, provide initial capability within 6 years, utilize critical technologies that were nearing maturity, and be acquired using an incremental approach. These characteristics are consistent with provisions in the Weapon Systems Acquisition Reform Act (WSARA) related to how the requirements process should be structured and aspects of GAO’s best practices for weapon system acquisitions. Two of the proposed program requirements presented to the JROC included major trade-offs among cost, schedule, and performance objectives and revisions to their acquisition approaches that had been made after predecessor programs were cancelled over affordability concerns. The Air Force initiated the HH-60 Recapitalization program after the Combat Search and Rescue Replacement Vehicle (CSAR-X) program was cancelled, and the HH-60 Recapitalization program is expected to decrease cost by changing cabin space, velocity, and range from the CSAR- X requirements. In 2007, the Army, with input from a Functional Capabilities Board, decided to use an incremental acquisition approach for the Ground Soldier System in order to reduce costs, meet schedule demands, and avoid some of the mistakes made during the Land Warrior program, which was cancelled because of funding and cost issues.