SPEED vs. FORGED: Two Paths Toward Defense Acquisition Reform

 Two major pieces of defense acquisition reform legislation are now moving through Congress: the Streamlining Procurement for Effective Execution and Delivery (SPEED) Act and the Fostering Reform and Government Efficiency in Defense (FoRGED) Act.

While both bills target long-standing inefficiencies in how the Department of Defense buys, manages, and delivers capabilities, they approach reform from different directions. For small and mid-sized defense contractors, understanding the nuances between the two could shape future opportunities and compliance requirements.

At a Glance

• H.R. 3838 – The SPEED ActIntroduced June 9 by House Armed Services Committee Chair Mike Rogers (R-AL) and Ranking Member Adam Smith (D-WA).

• S. 5618 – The FoRGED ActIntroduced in December by Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Roger Wicker (R-MS).

Both measures will likely be reconciled during the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) process.

Shared Goals, Different Strategies

Both bills target six key reform areas:

1. Acquisition processes

2. Program and portfolio management

3. Innovation and industrial base development

4. Requirements management

5. Data and software modernization

6. Regulatory and workforce reform

Each seeks to accelerate modernization, cut red tape, and strengthen the defense industrial base — but their methods differ.

Acquisition Reform

• SPEED Act: Broadly extends acquisition reform across both traditional and nontraditional companies, emphasizing flexible contracting, alternative pricing models, and expanded transaction authorities. Seen as somewhat more prime-friendly.

• FoRGED Act: Focuses on simplifying the process specifically for commercial and nontraditional contractors, reducing barriers for small, tech-driven suppliers to enter defense markets.

Program and Portfolio Management

Both proposals expand the roles of program executive officers and promote portfolio-based management, aiming to speed up capability delivery and better align programs with operational priorities.

Innovation, Industrial Base, and Supply Chains

• SPEED: Creates new funding structures and programs to address industrial base vulnerabilities and sustainment challenges.

• FoRGED: Focuses on increasing the number of secondary suppliers, encouraging reverse engineering, and building redundancy into critical supply chains.

Requirements Reform

• SPEED: Proposes new processes for faster requirements development and program termination flexibility.

• FoRGED: Restructures existing organizations and eliminates statutory obstacles that prevent adaptive trade-offs between cost, schedule, and performance.

Data and Software

• SPEED: Introduces a “data-as-a-service” concept, allowing the DoD to leverage private-sector data without full acquisition and accelerating technology fielding.

• FoRGED: Mandates modernization of software acquisition pathways and expands flexibility for commercial technology procurement.

Regulatory Burden

Both recognize that the U.S. Code and defense acquisition statutes have become unwieldy:

• SPEED: Targets financial and payment-process bottlenecks that delay contractor reimbursements and slow program execution.

• FoRGED: Takes a more aggressive stance — repealing outdated laws and creating new financial mechanisms to simplify doing business with the DoD.

Acquisition Workforce

Only the SPEED Act includes explicit language to invest in and upskill the acquisition workforce, strengthening the people implementing these reforms — an area not directly addressed in FoRGED.

What This Means for Small Defense Contractors

For small businesses and nontraditional suppliers, both bills suggest a more open, commercially aligned defense acquisition ecosystem.The key takeaway: speed, flexibility, and modernization are coming, but implementation will hinge on how these provisions are merged in the FY2026 NDAA.

3R Strategic Solutions will continue tracking both acts and provide guidance on how resulting changes could reshape small business participation, subcontracting strategies, and compliance frameworks.

3R Strategic Solutions helps small and emerging defense contractors stay informed, compliant, and ready for federal acquisition reform.

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On June 9, House Armed Services Chair Mike Rogers and Ranking Member Adam Smith introduced H.R. 3838, the Streamlining Procurement for Effective Execution and Delivery (SPEED) Act. This is not the first piece of major defense legislation introduced in recent months. In December, Senate Armed Services Chair Roger Wicker introduced S.5618, the Fostering Reform and Government Efficiency in Defense Act (FoRGED) Act. The bills are likely to be reconciled when creating the National Defense Authorization Act.

These two bills encourage reforms in similar areas — the acquisitions system, the program-management model, requirements and regulatory burden, innovation and the industrial base, and software and data — but aim to accomplish these reforms in different ways. Read along for a side-by-side comparison of each plan.

Acquisition Reform

The most noteworthy sections of these bills attempt to address the fundamental issues plaguing acquisition processes. Both bills promote significant commercial solutions reform, including changes to transaction authorities, alternative capability-based pricing, and acquisition thresholds. Whereas the SPEED Act extends these reforms to all companies and is interpreted by some as more prime-friendly, the FoRGED Act places a particular emphasis on streamlining acquisition reform for commercial firms and nontraditional defense contractors.