The bigger question is whether we really have any input at all.
We DO have input. These prizes emerged because we made it too costly, prestige-wise, for the bureaucrats NOT to offer them. And bureaucrats here in Washington NEED prestige to justify the salary increases and other perks that they think they deserve.
DARPA made this race so challenging because many feds wanted contestants (and the potential paradigm shift) to fail. But Burt Rutan helped inspire prizes contestants and the prizes approach achieved what years of DARPA contracts couldn't. Now it's up to us...