
Final FY20 Appropriations: DOD Science and Technology
With the enactment of fiscal year 2020 appropriations, the budget for the Department of Defense’s Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation activities is increasing 10% to $109 billion. The boost continues a run of major increases that has attracted little attention but has led DOD’s annual RDT&E spending to grow by $42 billion over the last five years. These figures include DOD’s main RDT&E budget as well as other, smaller RDT&E accounts.
This growth trend reflects strong congressional support for DOD’s recent efforts to speed the maturation and fielding of advanced technological systems. Accordingly, most of the additional funding has gone to late-stage prototyping and testing work. By comparison, spending on early-stage R&D has increased more moderately, with DOD’s Basic Research, Applied Research, and Advanced Technology Development accounts collectively growing about 30% in the last five years, including a 1% increase this year to $16.1 billion.

DOD’s appropriation was included in a package bill
Basic research and STEM education

Through its Basic Research account, DOD supports in-house and extramural research and an array of STEM fellowships and education programs. This year, funding for the account’s topline is increasing 3% to $2.6 billion.
University initiatives and centers. Across the Army, Navy, and Air Force, funding for University Research Initiatives is increasing 11% to $435 million. These accounts fund the Multidisciplinary University Research Initiatives (MURI) program, the Defense University Research Instrumentation Program (DURIP), the National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowships, and DOD’s awardees in the multi-agency Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers program. The budget for the Army’s University and Industry Research Centers account is also increasing by 11%, to $127 million.
Basic Research Initiatives. Funding for Basic Research Initiatives is increasing 25% to $71 million. The account funds the Vannevar Bush Faculty Fellowship program and the Minerva Research Initiative, as well as a series of pilot programs. These include the recently reconfigured
STEM education. The budget for the National Defense Education Program is increasing 6% to $144 million. The program aims to develop STEM talent through scholarships and fellowships as well as by supporting STEM engagement opportunities at schools where children of military families are enrolled.
Historically Black Colleges and Universities. After a year of level funding, DOD’s support for HBCUs and other minority serving institutions is resuming a string of recent increases with a 30% boost to $53 million.
Technology priorities
Hypersonics. This year’s appropriation includes large funding increases for hypersonics projects, including $100 million for DOD to set up a Joint Hypersonics Transition Office. The statement explains that the office will address appropriators’ concerns that rapid growth in hypersonic research could lead to “stove-piped, proprietary systems that duplicate capabilities and increase costs.” DOD is further instructed to “develop and implement an integrated science and technology roadmap for hypersonics and to establish a university consortium for hypersonics research and workforce development.”
Congress is also providing $404 million, or $176 million more than requested, for a new Army program
Missile warning satellites. Funding for the Air Force’s Next-Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared (Next-Gen OPIR) program is increasing from $643 billion to almost $1.5 billion. The space-based missile early warning system is part of DOD’s efforts to develop a successor architecture to its Space-Based Infrared System (SBIRS) and is being administered through special rapid acquisition authorities. Senate appropriators proposed funding the project at over $1.9 billion, expressing concern that the Air Force is not committing adequate resources to the program and that, if it fails, it could decrease Congress’ willingness to continue using rapid acquisition for new space systems.
The final statement asserts that, while Next-Gen OPIR constitutes an “important near-term step,” DOD should also take a more comprehensive, long-term view of space-based missile detection. It expresses dismay that various agencies have plans to “spend tens of billions of dollars” on various technologies but that DOD “has yet to synchronize or harmonize these proposals into a clearly articulated executable and affordable integrated enterprise space architecture.” The statement therefore directs the department to develop a detailed strategy within 270 days.

A notional illustration of a Next-Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared missile warning satellite.
(Image credit – Lockheed Martin)
Weather satellites. Funding for the Air Force’s next-generation environmental satellite system, the Weather System Follow-On, is increasing from $138 million to $206 million, which is $20 million less than requested. A separate budget for the development of electro-optical weather systems is increasing from $8 million to $126 million. The Air Force has been scrambling
5G telecommunications. Congress is providing $200 million for the new Next Generation Information Communications Technology program. DOD set up
Strategic Capabilities Office. The office, which reports to the deputy secretary of defense, is a relatively new creation that is principally concerned with exploring novel uses for existing or near-term technologies. After a period of rapid growth, its overall budget is receding this year from $1.4 billion to $1.2 billion. Within the office, Congress is allocating $70 million for Project Dilithium
National Security Innovation Capital. Congress has declined to fund a proposed program
Research security. Congress is providing $3 million for implementing the Securing American Science and Technology Act