Senator Jim Banks introduces bill to speed up military procurement

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Jim Banks (R-Ind.) introduced the Buying Faster than the Enemy Act. The bill aims to streamline the Department of Defense’s (DOD) acquisition process, reducing bureaucratic delays to ensure the U.S. military can procure advanced technology faster and more affordably than its adversaries.

Senator Jim Banks

Senator Jim Banks (R-Ind.): “China, Iran, and our other adversaries don’t drown themselves with red tape when arming themselves. To stay ahead, the DOD must move faster. My bill would streamline the purchase of cutting-edge warfighter tech from American companies—making the process faster and cheaper.”

Key Provisions of the Buying Faster than the Enemy Act:

Faster and More Flexible Defense Procurement: Streamlines acquiring commercial products and services, allowing for quicker competitive selection and sole-source follow-on contracts.

Reduced Bureaucratic Hurdles: It limits unnecessary contract clauses for subcontractors and creates multiple consortia to obtain new and groundbreaking weapons from both traditional and nontraditional defense contractors.

Stronger Support for Defense Suppliers: DOD will double advance payments for contractors from 15% to 30%, making commercial buying the standard and ensuring faster approval and procurement.

The full bill text is available here.