GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2025

Status

Accepted

Abstract

Public procurement regimes may be constrained by rules, but people - procurement professionals - animate the process. Despite spending over $750 billion last year on federal contracts, the U.S. Government continues to deprioritize the professional capacity of its acquisition workforce. This article bemoans and critiques the persistent failure to recruit, develop, and retain procurement personnel, a failure exacerbated by politically driven downsizing, inadequate investments in workforce development, and misplaced reliance on procedural reform—most recently evidenced by the so-called “Revolutionary FAR Overhaul.” Drawing on historical data, case studies, and recent Government Accountability Office reports, the authors document how decades of underinvestment have produced a fragile procurement infrastructure, incapable of effectively managing increasingly complex acquisitions. The article calls for a sustained, strategic, and statutory commitment to and investment in workforce capacity as the cornerstone of procurement reform.

GW Paper Series

2025-40

Download

Included in

Law Commons

Share

COinS