S.Amdt. 3612

SA 3612. Mr. ROUNDS submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by
him to the bill S. 2296, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year
2026 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy,
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

At the appropriate place in title II, insert the following:

SEC. ___. ACCELERATING RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, TESTING, AND
EVALUATION OF HIGH-ALTITUDE BALLOON AND HIGH-
ALTITUDE LONG-ENDURANCE AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS.

(a) Capability Coordinator to Oversee Integration of High-
altitude Balloon and High-altitude Long-endurance Aircraft
Systems Into Operational Plans.--
(1) Designation by air force chief of staff.--The Chief of
Staff of the Air Force shall designate a capability
coordinator to oversee the integration of high-altitude
balloon (HAB) and high-altitude long-endurance (HALE)
aircraft systems into Air Force operational plans, including
mission planning and live operational exercises, not later
than December 1, 2026.
(2) Establishment of program office.--The Assistant
Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology, and
Logistics (SAF/AQ), as the Service Acquisition Executive,
shall assign a program office to manage the acquisition of
high-altitude balloon and high-altitude long-endurance
systems. The program office shall--
(A) develop interoperable architectures for data sharing
between high-altitude balloon, high-altitude long-endurance,
and other intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance
(ISR) platforms, in consultation with the Air Force Research
Laboratory (AFRL);
(B) implement resilience measures to counter electronic
warfare (EW), cyber threats, and environmental challenges;
and
(C) ensure deployment of high-altitude balloon and high-
altitude long-endurance systems in live operational exercises
by fiscal year 2027, in coordination with combatant commands
and operational units.
(b) Rapid Acquisition Authority.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of the Air Force may use
rapid acquisition authority provided under section 3601 of
title 10, United States Code, to expedite the procurement and
integration of high-altitude balloon and high-altitude long-
endurance systems to meet urgent operational needs.
(2) Designation of execution authority.--The Secretary of
Defense may designate the Secretary of the Air Force to
execute rapid acquisition authorities for high-altitude
balloon and high-altitude long-endurance systems, in
accordance with Department of Defense policies and
procedures.
(3) Streamlined processes.--The Secretary of the Air Force
shall ensure that the program office established under
subsection (a) leverages rapid acquisition authorities to
reduce bureaucratic delays, streamline contracting, and
prioritize cost-effective solutions.
(c) Industry and Academic Partnerships.--
(1) Collaboration.--The Secretary of the Air Force shall,
acting through the program office established under
subsection (a), foster

[[Page S5376]]

partnerships with industry, academic institutions, and other
Federal agencies to advance high-altitude balloon and high-
altitude long-endurance technologies, and establish
mechanisms to transition successful prototypes from research
to operational use with industry partners.
(2) Grants and cooperative agreements.--The Secretary may
award grants or enter into cooperative agreements to support
public-private collaboration programs that demonstrate dual-
use applications of high-altitude balloon and high-altitude
long-endurance technologies, prioritizing cost-sharing and
innovation.
(d) Alignment With National Defense Strategy and Combatant
Command Needs.--
(1) Strategic alignment.--The Secretary of defense shall
ensure that the development and integration of high-altitude
balloon and high-altitude long-endurance systems align with
the National Defense Strategy, focusing on addressing pacing
threats, enhancing resilience in contested environments, and
supporting multi-domain operations.
(2) Coordination with combatant commands.--The capability
coordinator and program office shall engage with combatant
commands, including United States Indo-Pacific Command and
United States Special Operations Command, to identify
operational gaps where high-altitude balloon and high-
altitude long-endurance systems can provide immediate impact.
(e) Annual Report.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the
Secretary of the Air Force shall, in coordination with the
capability coordinator and the program office, submit to the
Committee on Armed Services of the Senate and the Committee
on Armed Services of the House of Representatives an annual
report on the administration of this section.
(2) Contents.--Each report submitted pursuant to paragraph
(1) shall include, for the period covered by the report, the
following:
(A) An assessment of progress in developing, testing, and
deploying high-altitude balloon and high-altitude long-
endurance systems, including timelines, results of
operational testing, and integration into live exercises.
(B) An analysis of cost savings, operational advantages,
and scalability compared to traditional intelligence,
surveillance, and reconnaissance platforms.
(C) Recommendations for future investments to enhance
capability, resilience, and multi-domain integration.
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