The end of the Cold War and its impact on defense spending has created a strong need to reform the Department of Defense's (DoD) acquisition system. With procurement spending down, DoD expects to depend on savings from acquisition reform to help finance future force modernization. Policy makers believe that DoD should use more commercial products because, in many instances, they cost less and their quality is comparable to products built according to DoD military specifications. Many such reform proposals are based on the recognition that DoD regulatory barriers and a Cold War acquisition "culture" have inhibited the introduction of commercial products. The need to encourage greater interaction between the defense and commercial industries is considered vital to keeping U.S. military technology the best in the world -- a major objective of U.S. defense policy. Many high-technology commercial products (e.g., electronics) are state-of-the-art and changing so fast that DoD's military specifications, or "milspecs," system cannot keep pace. Congress has passed several important reforms, among them the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act of 1994, Federal Acquisition Reform Act of 1996, Defense Reform Act of 1997, and the Federal Activities Inventory Reform Act of 1998. DoD has lowered or abolished regulatory barriers; experts agree, however, that more work is required to make the system responsive to U.S. defense needs. Enacted reforms will mean greater freedom to innovate, make quicker decisions, and improve DoD program development -- running DoD more like a private sector operation. At issue is just how to change DoD personnel management policies, and introduce DoD's acquisition reform initiatives to the private sector. Although DoD has begun outsourcing some functions, expanding its use has been a major goal. Congress will continue to exercise a strong oversight role because of its longtime interest in streamlining DoD's acquisition processes.