Debt Ceiling Agreement Passes, with NDAA Markups & Appropriations Impacted
Over the Memorial Day weekend, President Biden and Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy reached a deal on the debt ceiling called the Fiscal Responsibility Act.  The deal, which comes after weeks of tense negotiations, suspends the $31.4 trillion debt ceiling through January 1, 2025 and in exchange, will cap discretionary spending at Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 levels for FY 2024, apart from defense spending which will see a slight three percent increase, consistent with the President’s budget request.  The prolonged debate and negotiation of the deal has, however, impacted the timeline of the appropriations process in the House and Senate, as well as other legislation such as the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Read more here.

Senate Appropriators Convene Hearing on Funding American Innovation
Chairwoman of the Senate Appropriations Committee Patty Murray (D-WA) and Ranking Member Susan Collins (R-ME) invited the Secretaries of Defense, State, and Commerce to testify on the U.S.-China Relationship before the full Senate Appropriations Committee on May 16.  During the hearing, Chairwoman Murray stressed the importance of funding research and development (R&D), advanced manufacturing, clean energy, biomedical technologies, and artificial intelligence (AI) to maintain our competitive edge against near peer competitors.  
 
Many of the questions focused on the roles and responsibilities of Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin as tension with China increases over situations in both Taiwan and Ukraine.  Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo used the hearing as an opportunity to underscore the importance of remaining competitive with China by investing in U.S. research and workforce to tap into domestic scientific talent. 
 
This was one of five hearings Congress held during the week of May 15 that narrowed in on competition with China, and one of only two in the Senate, as lawmakers from both chambers and parties continue to hammer the bipartisan message of aspiring Chinese ambitions.  Read more here.

Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee Convenes Hearing on the Department of Defense’s Budget Request
Defense Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman John Tester (D-MT) and Ranking Member Susan Collins (R-ME) hosted senior leaders of the Department of Defense (DOD) on May 11 to provide testimony on the President’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 Budget Request.  Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and outgoing Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley stressed the importance of the FY 2024 request levels in allowing the Department to maintain a ready, lethal, and combat-credible joint force.  DOD leaders focused their testimony on the various threats posed by China and Russia and the importance of an on-time appropriation.  Members of the Committee agreed that a CR would negatively affect the readiness and modernization of the military.
 

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NATIONAL SECURITY NEWS

DOD Releases National Defense Science and Technology Strategy
On May 9, 2023, the Department of Defense (DOD) released its long awaited 2023 National Defense Science and Technology Strategy (NDSTS).  The strategy emphasizes the 14 critical technology areas originally designated last year by the Under Secretary of Defense for Research & Engineering (USD R&E), Heidi Shyu, while underscoring the importance of proactive engagements with partners in academia, research centers, laboratories, non-profit entities, commercial industry, and other government departments and agencies.  Read more here.

Biden Administration Releases National Standards Strategy for Critical and Emerging Technologies
The White House released the awaited National Standards Strategy for Critical and Emerging Technology (CET) which aims to fortify economic and national security, as well ensure leadership in future technology industries. 
 
The Strategy identifies four objectives along with subsequent “lines of effort” for each objective for CET standard development to improve private and public sector engagement with standard developing organizations (SDOs): Investment, Participation, Workforce, and Integrity and Inclusivity. Read more here.

DOD Transmits 2023 Cyber Strategy
In May, the Department of Defense (DOD) submitted to Congress a classified version of the 2023 DOD Cyber Strategy.  While an unclassified version of the document is not yet available, the Department did release a Fact Sheet, which can be found here.  Last updated in 2018, this version closely aligns with the latest National Cybersecurity Strategy also released earlier this year, and sets the parameters for our defense personnel and their cyber priorities going forward.   DOD also stresses the need to better prepare the military for our cyber needs of the future by investing in science and technology to generate asymmetric advantages, safeguard our networks, and build resiliency.  In doing so, the Department intends to lead campaigns to improve integrated deterrence, offensive disruptions, and strengthened ties with global allies and partners. Read more here.

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Opportunity	Agency Name	Program Description	Poste Date	Close Date
HR001123S0028  Compartmentalization and Privilege Management (CPM)	DARPA - Information Innovation Office	Seeks proposals to develop tools, hardware, and software to restructure legacy software to ultimately prevent successful cyber-attacks.	4/04/2023	6/06/2023;  4/18/2023 (Abstracts)
FOA-AFRL-AFOSR-2023-0008   FY23 Defense Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (DEPSCoR) - Research Collaboration (RC)	Air Force Office of Scientific Research	Seeks to increase the research capabilities of higher education institutions in territories that conduct basic research in science and engineering that benefits DOD’s mission.  The Research Collaboration (RC) award aims to foster basic research collaborations between a pair of researchers.	3/7/2023	6/12/2023
FOA-AFRL-AFOSR-2023-0007   FY23 Defense Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (DEPSCoR) - Capacity Building (CB)	Air Force Office of Scientific Research	Seeks to significantly improve the existing basic research capabilities or initiatives of the applicant institution.	3/7/2023	6/12/2023
OLDCC-23-F-0002  Defense Manufacturing Communities Support Program (DMCSP)	Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation	Seeks public/private consortia proposals to spearhead long-term investments in “critical skills, facilities, research and development, and small business support” to strengthen manufacturing capabilities and national security in designated defense manufacturing communities.	4/24/2023	6/26/2023
HR001123S0027 Tellus	DARPA - Biological Technologies Office	Seeks to develop methodologies for microbial sense-and-respond devices to ultimately assess the utilization of such devices in environmental monitoring.	4/21/2023	7/6/2023;  5/18/2023 (Abstracts)
N00014-23-S-F004  FY24 Young Investigator Program (YIP)	Office of Naval Research	Provides funding to promising young tenure-track faculty who demonstrate the ability to deliver innovative research aligned with ONR’s research priorities.	3/29/2023	7/07/2023
HR001123S0044 Principles of Undersea Magnetohydrodynamic Pumps (PUMP)	DARPA – Defense Sciences Office	Seeks to develop and demonstrate MHD pumps that match the efficiency, reduce the noise generation, and exceed the reliability of conventional impeller-based pumps.	5/30/2023	7/31/2023
FOA-AFRL-AFOSR-2023-0011  FY24 Young Investigator Program (YIP)	Air Force Office of Scientific Research	Provides funding to promising young tenure-track faculty, scientists, and engineers who demonstrate the ability to further AFOSR’s research and development mission.	05/02/2023	8/14/2023; 6/12/2023 (Abstracts)
HR001123S0036 High Operational Temperature Sensors (HOTS)	DARPA – Microsystems Technology Office	Seeks to develop high-bandwidth, high-dynamic-range analog sensor microelectronics technologies that operate at high-temperature.	05/16/2023	8/15/2023; 6/22/2023 (Abstracts)
W912HZ-23-BAA-01 ERDC Broad Agency Announcement	Dept. of the Army -- Corps of Engineers	Solicits research proposals of interest to ERDC.  Successful proposals require frequent engagement with ERDC program managers and congressional involvement.	3/31/2023	1/1/2024
N00014-23-S-F005  The Office of Naval Research (ONR) Science, Technology, Engineering And Mathematic (STEM) Program	Office of Naval Research	Develops efforts that correlate with ONR science and technology areas and that provide solutions that establish, build, and/or maintain STEM educational pathways and workforce opportunities.	4/03/2023	4/02/2024
W911NF-23-S-0010  United States Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences (ARI) Broad Agency Announcement	Dept. of the Army – Materiel Command	Solicits research proposals of interest to ARI to improve human performance and Army Readiness.  Prospective awardees must meet certain standards pertaining to financial resources and responsibility, among others.	05/01/2023	4/30/2028

Tentative Dates and Location Set for 2023 Military Health System Research Symposium
The tentative dates and location for the 2023 Military Health System Research Symposium (MHSRS) have been set.  The meeting is tentatively scheduled to be from August 14-17 at the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center in Kissimmee, Florida.  The MHSRS is DOD’s premier medical research meeting and offers an opportunity to engage with program managers and DOD officials, who are often hard to reach, on military biomedical and health-related research topics.
 
Confirmed dates and location will be available when meeting registration opens in late June.  More information on the 2023 MHSRS, including breakout session descriptions and topics of interest, can be found here.

CDMRP Releases Additional FY 2023 Research Topic Solicitations
The Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) are currently accepting proposals for the following FY 2023 topics:

• Autism
• Bone Marrow Failure
• Breast Cancer
• Combat Readiness-Medical
• Hearing Restoration
• Joint Warfighter Medical
• Lung Cancer
• Lupus
• Melanoma
• Military Burn
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Orthotics and Prosthetics Outcomes
• Ovarian Cancer
• Pancreatic Cancer
• Parkinson's
• Peer Reviewed Alzheimer's
• Peer Reviewed Cancer
• Peer Reviewed Orthopaedic
• Prostate Cancer
• Rare Cancers
• Spinal Cord Injury
• Traumatic Brain Injury and Psychological Health
• Tick-Borne Disease
• Tuberous Sclerosis Complex
• Vision 

Additional research program solicitations are expected to be released in the coming months.  All open funding opportunities and pre-announcements are available here.  Interested applicants can subscribe for real-time updates, including forthcoming solicitations here. WHAT WE'RE READING

Pentagon Seeks to Ease China’s Green Tech Chokehold Amid GOP Criticism
As reported by Defense News, China has made significant investments in clean energy technologies, such as solar panels, electric vehicles, and battery storage, allowing it to establish a strong position in the global green tech industry.  This has raised concerns in the Pentagon about potential vulnerabilities and risks associated with relying on Chinese technology.  In 2022, to counter China's green tech dominance, the Department of Defense (DOD) released its “Securing Defense Critical Supply Chains” report that highlights the initiatives undertaken by DOD.  However, the Pentagon's efforts have faced criticism from some members of the GOP for concerns regarding the role of government in the economy and potential market distortions.  Despite the criticism, the Pentagon's objective is to create a more resilient and competitive domestic green tech industry.  By reducing dependence on Chinese technology, the United States aims to strengthen its national security, protect critical infrastructure, and promote economic growth.

Space Force Will Look at How to Hack Targets from Space
The United States Space Force (USSF) is analyzing how to utilize offensive space operations.  U.S. Cyber Command already maintains offensive cyber capability and now the cyber-Guardians are looking at how they can leverage those capabilities in space.  In an interview with Defense One, Lt. Gen. Stephen Whiting, the leader of USSF Space Operations Command, described how the USSF will establish a U.S. Cyber Command for space.  Whiting described cyber as “the soft underbelly of the U.S. Space Force and the space enterprise.”  The new Cyber Command will be on the forefront of our cyber national security and will secure our critical assets in the space domain.

Too Much Focus on Weapons Reserves Could Slow Hypersonics Production
As the Department begins to transition hypersonics programs from development to production, Defense News reports that concerns continue to rise over the strain regarding demand for munitions for Ukraine and the subsequent need to refill U.S. weapon stockpiles.  Hypersonic weapons are seen as revolutionary for future conflicts and are classified as a critical technology focus area by the DOD.  Currently, the Department has ten unclassified hypersonic programs in development, one of which could field this year (the Army’s Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon).  A recent report from the National Defense Industrial Association indicated that to transition from developing and testing hypersonic technology to fielding weapons, more funding will need to be focused on increasing supplies.  Industry officials, like Jason Fischer, market lead for high-speed tactical boosters at Northrop Grumman, stated that “in addition to ramping up for the hypersonic mission, you still need to ramp up your facilities and supply chains for just backfilling the conventional products.”  As the demand for missiles and weapons continues to grow as the U.S. supports Ukraine, more strain is placed on industry, supply chains, and the workforce.  If demand continues to ramp up, more targeted funding to shore up weapons stockpiles is required.