U.S. Chamber Letter on Funding for the Advanced Defense Capabilities Pilot Program

Dear Chairmen Tester and Calvert and Ranking Members Collins and McCollum:

As the Senate and House Committees on Appropriations Subcommittees on Defense consider the Fiscal Year 2024 Defense Appropriations bills, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce urges you to fully fund the Advanced Defense Capabilities Pilot Program. The Chamber remains concerned about the state of the domestic Defense Industrial Base, particularly given difficult market dynamics and the supply chain challenges related to the unprovoked war in Ukraine, and believe an investment in this program could help address some of these concerns.

Specifically, the Chamber supports a $50 million appropriation to fund the Advanced Defense Capabilities Pilot Program under the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment within the Industrial Base Policy office. Funding, as well as passage of the authorization authority to establish this program, would increase the resilience and robustness of the domestic Defense Industrial Base and accelerate the scaling, production, manufacturing, and acquisition of defense-centric advanced capabilities through empowering the private sector. This public-private partnership program would incentivize, stimulate, and increase desired supply chain capacity and resilience through supporting and investing in Defense Industrial Base businesses – including at the small business and nontraditional enterprise level – producing advanced defense products to outpace existing and potential adversaries.

We strongly support American defense production and manufacturing and must create an environment that enables business and job growth and advanced warfighting capability. We are eager to work with Congress as the appropriations and legislative process advance to ensure the Advanced Defense Capabilities Pilot Program gets the level of funding it needs.

Sincerely,                           

Neil L. Bradley

Executive Vice President, Chief Policy Officer and Head of Strategic Advocacy

U.S. Chamber of Commerce

cc:       Members of the Senate and House Committees on Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense

Members of the Senate and House Armed Services Committees