Former Defense Department contract negotiator Shay Assad said he decided in October 2018 that he would retire after he was blamed for the Pentagon's failed effort to pay defense companies less money to cover large costs that they incur at the start of their contracts, according to Yahoo News.

The Defense Department decided on Oct. 26 to transfer Assad to a new position within the Defense Contract Management Agency, according to a memo viewed by Task & Purpose. He retained the same pay and his status in the civilian promotion system.

Assad told Task & Purpose that the Defense Department's top weapons buyer Ellen Lord did not let him brief Congress before the proposal to slow payments to contractors was formally announced in August 2018. The Pentagon withdrew the plan the following month amid an outcry from both lawmakers and defense industry, he said.

"The reason why they were objecting was because their staffs knew nothing about it," Assad said on Tuesday. "All they were hearing was the industry side of this thing. They had never heard from the department."