Department of Defense's Waiver of Competitive Prototyping Requirement for Enhanced Polar System Program Page: 1 of 11
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G GAO
Accountability * Integrity * Reliability
United States Government Accountability Office
Washington, DC 20548
August 23, 2012
Congressional Committees
Subject: Department of Defense's Waiver of Competitive Prototyping Requirement for
Enhanced Polar System Program
The Weapon Systems Acquisition Reform Act of 2009, as amended (WSARA), requires that the
acquisition strategy for each major defense acquisition program provides for competitive
prototypes before Milestone B approval-which authorizes entry into system development-
unless the Milestone Decision Authority waives the requirement.1 Competitive prototyping,
which involves commercial, government, or academic sources producing early prototypes of
weapon systems or critical subsystems, can help Department of Defense (DOD) programs
reduce technical risk, refine requirements, validate designs and cost estimates, and evaluate
manufacturing processes prior to making major commitments of resources. WSARA states that
the Milestone Decision Authority may waive the competitive prototyping requirement only on the
basis that (1) the cost of producing competitive prototypes exceeds the expected life-cycle
benefits (in constant dollars) of producing such prototypes, including the benefits of improved
performance and increased technological and design maturity that may be achieved through
competitive prototyping; or (2) but for such a waiver, DOD would be unable to meet critical
national security objectives. WSARA also directed us to review and assess DOD's rationale for
competitive prototyping waivers.2
On June 18, 2012, DOD notified us that it had waived the competitive prototyping requirement
for the Control and Planning Segment (CAPS), a subsystem of the Air Force's Enhanced Polar
1Pub. L. No. 111-23, 203(a), as amended by the Ike Skelton National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year
2011, Pub. L. No. 111-383, 813. Specifically, WSARA required DOD to modify its guidance relating to the operation
of its acquisition system to incorporate these competitive prototyping provisions. DOD did so through Directive-Type
Memorandum (DTM) 09-027, "Implementation of Weapon System Acquisition Reform Act of 2009 (Dec. 4, 2009,
incorporating Change 3, Dec. 9, 2011). Major defense acquisition programs are those estimated by DOD to require
an eventual total expenditure for research, development, test, and evaluation of more than $365 million, or for
procurement, including all planned increments or spirals, of more than $2.19 billion in fiscal year 2000 constant
dollars. The Milestone Decision Authority for major defense acquisition programs is the Under Secretary of Defense
for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, the head of a DOD component, or if delegated the component acquisition
executive.
2Pub. L. No. 111-23 203(b)(2). Specifically, WSARA provides that whenever a Milestone Decision Authority
authorizes a waiver of the competitive prototyping requirement on the basis of what WSARA describes as "excessive
cost," the Milestone Decision Authority is required to submit notification of the waiver, together with the rationale, to
the Comptroller General of the United States at the same time it is submitted to the congressional defense
committees. WSARA further provides that we are to review the rationale for the waiver and submit a written
assessment of that rationale to the congressional defense committees.GAO-12-983R EPS Prototyping Waiver
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United States. Government Accountability Office. Department of Defense's Waiver of Competitive Prototyping Requirement for Enhanced Polar System Program, text, August 23, 2012; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc301396/m1/1/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.