Opening Statements

Today, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Intelligence, Emerging Threats and Capabilities, made the following remarks, as prepared for delivery, on the Subcommittee's hearing titled "Fiscal Year 2020 Budget Request for Department of Defense Science and Technology Programs:Maintaining a Robust Ecosystem for Our Technological Edge"

"Thank you, Jim. And thank you to the witnesses for being here today.

"I want to stress how important our investment in science and technology and the innovation ecosystem is to our national and economic security. The National Defense Strategy framed the current security environment as one of 'rapid technological advancements that is changing the character of war.' Now, more than any time in recent history, our military superiority is determined by our technological superiority. We are entering a new era of strategic competition where our ability to harness the power of our innovation ecosystem is being challenged by our adversaries.

"I am concerned that our S&T investments represent an alarmingly small percentage of our overall defense budget, and a shrinking percentage of our total RDT&E budget – at the same time that our adversaries are significantly increasing their S&T spending. While I am encouraged by the Department's investment in near-term Advanced Component Development and Prototyping, this cannot come at the expense of DOD's investment in our future. A properly resourced S&T enterprise reduces risk and technological surprise and –when properly executed – can generate disruptive new technologies that transform the way the Department does business, deters conflict, and wages war.

"I also want to highlight the importance of basic research to our future military capabilities. In fact, at a hearing I chaired in December on Artificial Intelligence, Dr. Lisa Porter cited DOD's forty years of funding of AI basic research as the single most important factor for why we still maintain a slight lead over China's AI capabilities. As the pressure grows to accelerate and apply new technologies to today's problems, we must continue to balance this with the investment in future R&D. Any degradation in our 'future R&D' will put the U.S. at a competitive disadvantage 10-20 years from now and weaken the bench of domestic science and technology expertise, which is already in short supply.

"Now, more than ever, our Science and Technology enterprise plays a strategic role that is fundamental to our national and economic security. We must invest in it, and we also must protect it. Industrial espionage, cyber theft on a massive scale, illicit technology transfer, and foreign influence on our campuses are just a few of the malicious practices that our adversaries, most notably China, are using to undermine our national and economic security. Our universities, service laboratories, research and development centers, and pioneering small businesses are particularly vulnerable in our democratic and open society. We must do more to educate, inform, and protect our defense innovation ecosystem from these threats, or we run the risk of arming our adversaries with technologies they will use against us in future conflicts.

"Finally, we cannot allow our own bureaucracy to constrain the Services from acquiring new technologies or the talent needed to implement these breakthroughs. Congress has made strides over the last several years to provide flexibility to the Department in hiring, funding, and sustaining our science and technology enterprise. I am particularly interested in understanding how these authorities are being utilized, and what more can be done to improve our defense innovation ecosystem.

"Thank you again to our witnesses, and I yield back to the Chairman."