Changes Are Coming

Last week was a big week for military moves, with the PCS Joint Task Force submitting its recommendations to the Department of War, the GAO releasing its much anticipated report on the GHC, and the House floating new directional language in the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act. While the picture of what the future of military moving looks like is still emerging, it’s clear that decision makers are listening and change is coming.

MFA was on the Hill this week, and is hearing that apparently lots of things are on the table – from continuing the current DP3 program with enhancements to improve the service member experience to dividing up the program to make the mission more manageable for a number of service providers to making a run at a new GHC with more realistic expectations.

While we don’t know which direction the DOW will choose, it’s likely that this finding of the GAO will be heeded: The DOW needs better information about capacity, performance, and cost to improve oversight and make better future decisions about the moving and storage program. We are here to support the service members who rely on our industry and provide the information the DOW needs to build a competitive, market-leveling economic model that drives quality.

It’s important to build for success because, as the GAO pointed out, the government spent $100 million on the failed GHC before Secretary Hegseth wisely pulled the plug.

Here is some of the reporting on the GAO report by Stars and Stripes.

If you have questions, recommendations, or want help connecting with your elected officials, please email [email protected].

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Coming Soon!

New Movers for America video series: SHORT FUSE

MFA’s new video series, Short Fuse, anchored by our executive director Katie McMichael will launch Thursday with a conversation with Cheryl Garcia, Senior VP of US Bank. Watch a teaser here and tune in for the full episode soon.

Industry Survey

Thank you for participating in our post-GHC industry survey! Results are in, and we will be sharing them with you later this week. Be on the look out for a send from us later this week.

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NDAA Update

Congress has been busy this week working on finalizing the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). After a very eventful past year of military moving changes Congress has addressed the future of the program in these bills.

The House passed its NDAA bill Wednesday with a final vote of 231-196. Included in the House bill was SEC. 661. PROVISION OF INFORMATION REGARDING RELOCATION ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS FOR MEMBERS RECEIVING ORDERS FOR A CHANGE OF PERMANENT STATION. This section strengthens PCS relocation support by mandating earlier, broader, and clearer communication to families—especially around education, housing, mental health, and legal/financial resources.

The Senate meanwhile is still debating and working through its NDAA bill on the Senate floor and has sections directly related to the future of military moving;

Under SEC. 343 – REQUIREMENTS FOR CONTRACTS RELATING TO PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION MOVING PROCESS. It encourages, in the development of future contracts, continuing fixed-price overhead separation. Using FAR-based contracts for high-volume lanes (over 1% of PCS moves) and tender-of-service contracts for smaller ones and Tiered incentives to reward higher capacity commitments. It also Requests that Subcontractors must certify compliance and provide training records on request, Processes for selecting, monitoring, and enforcing compliance and risk management plans addressing disruptions like financial failure, disasters, or labor issues.

Notably, in SECTION 327 ESTABLISHMENT OF DEFENSE PERSONAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT OFFICE UNDER OFFICE OF THE UNDER SECRETARY OF DEFENSE FOR PERSONNEL AND READINESS it establishes the Defense Personal Property Management Office of the Department of Defense within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness; and (2) the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness shall assume responsibility for all functions, personnel, and other matters of the Defense Personal Property Management Office. Meaning all DP3 functions would no longer be under USTC’s purview but the DOD Personnel Offices.

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Recent Industry News

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