Senator James Lankford and Congressman Blake Moore are leading a bipartisan, bicameral push to speed up hiring across military depots, shipyards, and arsenals. In a letter to the Secretaries of the Air Force, Army, and Navy, the lawmakers highlighted a policy secured in the FY26 National Defense Authorization Act that expands the government’s use of “direct hire authority,” a mechanism designed to bypass the more leisurely pace of traditional federal hiring.

The letter asks each military branch to provide a detailed plan for using the expanded authority, including how many positions have been filled so far, how hiring compares to previous years, and how they intend to address ongoing staffing shortages. Lawmakers are also seeking clarity on how the services plan to manage workforce attrition and recruit for critical maintenance and support roles. The broader definition of the “defense industrial base” now includes positions well beyond engineers, such as software technicians, safety personnel, and program analysts. Jobs that, until now, were stuck waiting in line.

Supporters say the change could have an immediate impact at facilities like Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma and Hill Air Force Base in Utah, where thousands of positions have gone unfilled. The expanded authority is expected to cover roughly 8,000 additional jobs across key installations, while also easing restrictions like the so-called “180 Day Rule,” which has historically forced veterans to sit on the sidelines before transitioning into civilian defense roles. The hope is that fewer delays will mean more workers on the job and slightly fewer reasons to wonder why “urgent hiring” sometimes takes the better part of a fiscal year.