The Policy & Budget Desk

Policy & Budget

Appropriations, continuing resolutions, DOGE, and agency strategic plans — what actually moves at the program-office level.

Policy & Budget · Analysis

The $1.2T Infrastructure Pivot: Why Mid-Market Firms Are Losing the Phase III Race

Three program elements in the FY27 Defense IT request quietly redirect $14.8B toward a narrower vendor pool. Here is what an operator below $50M actually needs to know.

By Shahid Shah · 12 min

Policy & Budget · Reporting

What DOGE Actually Changed at the Program-Office Level

We talked to fourteen program managers across five civilian agencies. The picture is more boring, and more consequential, than the headlines suggest.

By Shahid Shah · 9 min

Policy & Budget · Explainer

The Color of Money in Government Contracting, Decoded

An evergreen explainer on RDT&E, O&M, and procurement appropriations — and the operator-level decisions that follow from each.

By Shahid Shah · 14 min