As lawmakers are poised to agree to massive commissary reform, they've also sent a message to defense officials that they don't believe senior commissary agency management is capable of carrying out those reforms.

Congressional negotiators stated they are concerned that the Defense Commissary Agency's current senior management "may lack the necessary talent and skills to transform the commissary system into an efficient, high-performing purveyor of grocery products and services," according to the explanatory statement with Congress' annual defense spending bill, released Wednesday.

The bill represents the compromise reached between the House and Senate versions of the bills authorizing defense spending for fiscal 2017. Lawmakers are expected to vote on the measure in the next few days.

Thus, the lawmakers "strongly urge" DoD to "engage experts in the commercial grocery industry" to help the Defense Commissary Agency carry out the reform.

The compromise bill authorizes the defense secretary to contract with an entity to get that expert commercial advice, assistance or other services.

"The changes the commissary agency is being asked to make are different from anything DeCA has ever been asked to do. We echo their concern," said Eileen Huck, deputy director of government relations for the National Military Family Association. "It’s something we’ve been saying for months."

The reforms being implemented are aimed at reducing the reliance of the commissary and exchange systems on taxpayer dollars, without reducing the benefit for commissary customers, or adversely affect MWR  programs for service members. The commissary is the biggest spender, with an annual budget of about $1.4 billion in taxpayer dollars in order to sell groceries at a discount. That $1.4 billion pays for salaries and other operating expenses, so that groceries don't have to be marked up.

But that's about to change, as some prices will increase. Among other things, the reforms -- which were requested by defense officials -- will allow the commissary system to implement a "variable pricing" program in response to market conditions and customer demand. This will be a change from a system that sells groceries at cost plus a 5 percent surcharge.

If the new pricing system meets established benchmarks for success for at least six months, DoD is authorized to convert the commissary system to a nonappropriated fund system, the same type as that under which military exchanges and MWR programs operate.

Huck said family advocates are pleased that oversight of the reform will be required to ensure the benefit is not adversely affected, but that advocates also hope that it will be enough to be able to reverse course on the reforms if they are affecting the benefit.

Sources in industry have also echoed lawmakers' concerns about the commissary agency leadership's ability to manage this massive reform.

"No one at DeCA has any experience in the grocery business. They are bureaucrats. They manage a benefit," said one source in the industry which sells items to commissaries and exchanges -- as well as to commercial stores.

He said DeCA leaders' actions have contributed to lawmakers' concerns, such as failing to produce the baseline of savings information, which will be used as a benchmark to make sure the commissary benefit is not reduced in the future.

Defense policy officials who oversee the commissary agency have been driving the reform movement. This follows several years of DoD's unsuccessful attempts to drastically cut the commissary's budget.

Karen Jowers covers military families, quality of life and consumer issues for Military Times. She can be reached at

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Karen has covered military families, quality of life and consumer issues for Military Times for more than 30 years, and is co-author of a chapter on media coverage of military families in the book "A Battle Plan for Supporting Military Families." She previously worked for newspapers in Guam, Norfolk, Jacksonville, Fla., and Athens, Ga.

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