House Defense Modernization Caucus touts key reforms it helped secure in 2026 NDAA

Multiple provisions put forward by the House Defense Modernization Caucus made it into Congress’ compromise version of the annual defense policy bill for fiscal 2026 — including proposals that are intended to advance the U.S. military’s counter-drone arsenal, empower the defense innovation ecosystem and spark more seamless opportunities for collaboration between industry and the Pentagon.

Reps. Pat Ryan, D-N.Y., and Rob Wittman , R-Va., co-founded that caucus in 2024 with aims to strategically inform legislation that could refine and accelerate the Defense Department’s adoption of modern software and warfighting assets.

Earlier this year, after its relaunch in this congressional session, the HDMC opened up a submissions portal, soliciting from industry and academia issues and ideas related to defense reforms for the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2026. In November, Ryan and Wittman, who currently co-chair the caucus, sent an HDMC conference letter to House Armed Services Committee leadership urging them to prioritize issues related to modernization — and to specifically include several key mandates — in the conferenced bill.

“Congress is giving the Pentagon the tools it needs to succeed — now we need leaders in the department to embrace the change and lead from the front with the urgency this moment requires,” Ryan told DefenseScoop late Thursday.

According to a press release the HDMC will publish Friday afternoon, provisions that Wittman and Ryan secured in the bill include measures that would:

• Streamline and expedite the Authorization to Operate (ATO) process.
• Accelerate access and accreditation to sensitive compartmented information facilities (SCIF) for industry.
• Expand the Defense Innovation Unit’s regional presence and outreach. 
• Leverage commercial sensor networks to support Air Force counter-drone base protection capabilities.
• Accelerate the DOD’s counter-unmanned aerial system capabilities and authorities to protect military operations and sensitive defense installations in the United States.
• Require DOD to develop and maintain a virtual sandbox environment for operational testing and development. 
• Integrate modern software practices at the department by establishing a pilot program to leverage commercial software innovations for testing and evaluation.
• Review the department’s approach to commercial purchasing and compliance with the commercial services acquisition approach.
• Facilitate AI and machine learning security in the department.
• Require a comptroller review and report on the department’s use of other transaction authorities.

“This NDAA made significant strides to modernize our defense acquisition system and industrial base. By streamlining processes that enable better collaboration with innovative defense firms and prioritizing a software-first approach to developing new systems, we are expanding the field for innovative ideas and solutions that give our forces the capabilities they need, when they need them,” Wittman said in the release.

Ryan said he was “damn proud to be an American today” due to those approved NDAA inclusions.

“Our mission is simple: develop the tools our warfighters need to succeed, and deliver them at the speed of combat. I want to thank Congressman Wittman for his continued partnership,” he noted in the release. “Stay tuned — the push for making the FY27 NDAA the most disruptive in history starts now.”

Notably, this legislation was approved at the same time that the Pentagon is pursuing a large-scale shakeup of its procurement processes and industry engagement. Questions about whether Congress will enable regulatory and policy reforms to enable the DOD’s new Acquisition Transformation Strategy have swirled since it was unveiled in November.

Among other defense modernization priorities HDMC supported that made it into the massive defense policy bill for 2026 include ones that would establish the Bridging Operational Objectives and Support for Transition (BOOST) program within DIU to align promising technologies with operational needs, and separately, codify the Joint Interagency Task Force 401 as the entity with primary responsibility for counter-small unmanned aircraft systems.

Ryan told DefenseScoop that, building on this momentum, the caucus is also keen to see two other pieces of legislation that seek to radically revamp the military’s acquisition approach.

“The next few months are going to be pivotal. Between [the] SPEED, FoRGED [bill proposals], and a variety of [executive orders and memorandums], I’m very closely watching what the implementation phase looks like,” he said.