During a House Armed Services Committee markup meeting before the Congressional recess, Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE) spoke about the FY26 National Defense Authorization Act.
00:00The chair recognizes the chair of the subcommittee, the gentleman from Nebraska, Mr. Bacon, for any comments he would like to make.
00:06Thank you, Chairman Rogers. I want to begin by thanking all the members of the subcommittee for their dedication and thoughtful work
00:11at creating a strong, bipartisan, cyber, IT, and innovative subcommittee print.
00:17The subcommittee's package advances departments, cyber, and innovation ecosystems, and conducts critical oversight.
00:23I also want to thank our great subcommittee staff led by Sarah Moxley.
00:26Every member of the staff are professional experts on both sides of the aisle.
00:31The subcommittee's mission is to ensure that warfighters are armed with the most innovative technologies that improve lethality and increase U.S. capabilities.
00:38Modern technology is fast-paced, so ensuring the Department of Defense is at the leading edge of technology is imperative to deterring adversaries.
00:46Warfighters must have the tools to fight across all domains on the battlefield in cyberspace now and in the future.
00:52I'm looking forward to continuing to optimize these efforts as the committee considers the FY26 NDAA.
00:59The FY26 CITI subcommittee print prioritizes the continued improvement of testing and evaluation through digital processes,
01:09supports the research and development of novel technologies, and improves the Department's cyber practices.
01:14This package brings flexibility for research and development across the Department to ensure rapid innovation.
01:19The print achieves this through the empowering of the Undersecretary Defense for Research and Engineering,
01:25and improving the ability to do developmental prototyping, creating a bridge over the valley of death.
01:31It also directs the use of digital engineering and modern software practices to create a more agile and accurate testing and evaluation process.
01:38Additionally, the subcommittee print directs the Department to use modern technology to improve processes and cyber practices.
01:44Provisions leverage AI to bolster cybersecurity skills, create new lines of efforts for using generative AI,
01:51and continue to lay out the framework for the Department's adoption of AI.
01:56The subcommittee print supports the continued research and development of hypersonic programs
02:00and modernization and expansion of hypersonic testing and evaluation.
02:04Finally, the print includes several recommendations from the National Security Commission on emerging biotechnology.
02:10These provisions give the Department tools to optimize the military use of biotechnology to guarantee
02:16that the U.S. remains the world's leader in biotechnology innovation.
02:20Overall, the subcommittee print ensures the U.S. remains in status, remains status as the most lethal warfighting force in the world.
02:28Lastly, I want to thank Reiki Member Khanna for his bipartisanship and dedication in producing the subcommittee print.
02:34We believe this package will continue to give the Department the flexibility and tools needed
02:39to deliver the most modern technology to the hand of the warfighters.
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