[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 125 (Wednesday, July 24, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E981-E982]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




RETIREMENT OF MR. MICHAEL J. SULLIVAN, GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JOE COURTNEY

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 24, 2019

  Mr. COURTNEY. Madam Speaker, I rise today, on behalf of myself and 
the members of the House Committee on Armed Services, to congratulate 
and celebrate Mr. Michael J. Sullivan, the Director of Defense Weapon 
System Acquisitions for the Government Accountability Office (GAO), on 
the occasion of his retirement after 34 years of distinguished federal 
service.
  Mr. Sullivan's dedication to his profession, his selfless public 
service, and his role helping GAO meet its mission have exceeded 
everyone's expectations. During his time at GAO, Mr. Sullivan has been 
an effective thought-leader, most notably in GAO's work to expertly 
identify and apply best acquisition practices for product development, 
production, testing, and fielding for many of DOD's most complex, 
expensive, and critical weapon system acquisitions. Over the years, Mr. 
Sullivan's efforts resulted in numerous modifications and alterations 
to DOD's acquisition policies, processes and implementation. Mr. 
Sullivan significantly contribute to the development and enactment of 
the Weapon System Acquisition Reform Act of 2009 (P.L. 111-23), which 
lead to improved acquisition outcomes and effective returns on 
investment of billions of dollars on behalf of the Congress and the 
American taxpayer.
  Mr. Sullivan testified numerous times before the House Armed Services 
Committee,

[[Page E982]]

expertly representing GAO's work on high profile, complex, and 
sensitive DOD acquisition programs including the F-22 Raptor, the F-35 
Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter, among other high-profile programs 
such as the B-2 Spirit, the KC-46A tanker, the B-21 Raider, the Next 
Generation Air Dominance concept, and numerous unmanned aircraft 
programs such as the MQ-1, MQ-9, RQ-4, UCAV, UCLASS, and MQ-25. He 
consistently delivered insightful, independent, and fact-based analyses 
that informed the decision-making of the Armed Services Committee made 
regarding many of DOD's largest and most complex acquisition programs 
during many cycles of the Committee during formulation of annual 
National Defense Authorization Acts. He has been a constant voice for 
good government and a force for positive change. In addition to his 
program oversight noted above, Mr. Sullivan has also been greatly 
involved in reviewing issues related to science and technology 
portfolio management, technology maturation and requirements 
development efforts, and Department of Defense tactical aircraft force 
structure planning and execution.
  We all are eternally grateful for Mr. Sullivan's contributions to 
oversight of national security issues and fiscal resources of the most 
importance to Congress and the American taxpayer. Mr. Sullivan's 
exceptional work and many accomplishments over more than three decades 
are deeply valued by me, the committee, and the Congress. We sincerely 
thank Mr. Sullivan and wish him the best success in all of his future 
endeavors after retirement.

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