Rep. Bridenstine urges President on defense

Rep. Jim Bridenstine

Today, the House passed the defense authorization bill for FY2016 with overwhelming, bipartisan, veto-proof support.  Congressman Jim Bridenstine voted for the adjusted authorization bill saying, “The bill contains critically important provisions for national security and our warfighters. I call on the Senate to pass and the President to sign this bill into law by Veterans Day.”

Congressman Bridenstine has become a recognized leader on military space issues.

The adjusted FY16 defense authorization act continues numerous provisions and amendments authored by Congressman Bridenstine including the following:

Rep. Jim Bridenstine

Includes Rep. Bridenstine’s bill, H.R. 1864, which would streamline the DOD process of acquiring satellite communications (SATCOM) services.

•  Includes Rep. Bridenstine’s bill, H.R. 1864, which would streamline the DOD process of acquiring satellite communications (SATCOM) services.

• Reallocates funding to fully fund the Air Force’s SATCOM Pathfinder program, an innovative SATCOM acquisition test bed.

• Mandates a new SATCOM Pilot Program to field new SATCOM systems offering order-of-magnitude capability enhancements over legacy systems.

• Reallocates funding toward the Air Force Office of Operationally Responsive Space.

• Requires DOD (Department of Defense) to meet certain weather satellite requirements without reliance on China and Russia.

• Requires DOD to develop a plan to incorporate commercial space-based weather data into military weather forecasting.

The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2016 is the comprehensive legislation to authorize the budget authority of the Department of Defense and the national security programs of the Department of Energy. Click here to read the bill.