2018 Federal Issues Book

2018 Federal Issues Book

2018 Federal Issues Book

U.S ARMY FUTURES MODERNIZATION COMMAND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 BUDGET INPUT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 U.S. HUMAN SPACE FLIGHT & EXPLORATION POLICY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 TACTICAL SYSTEMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 High Energy Laser Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 MISSILES, SPACE, AND MISSILE DEFENSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Homeland Defense/Strategic Defense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Redesigned Kill Vehicle (RKV) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Multi-Object Kill Vehicle (MOKV) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Missile Defense Engineering Team – Industry (MET-I) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Long Range Discrimination Radar (LRDR) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Homeland Defense Radar (HDR) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent (GBSD) Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Theater Defense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Integrated Air & Missile Defense (IAMD) Mission Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Patriot Air & Missile Defense International & Domestic Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

ARMY AVIATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Apache Helicopters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Utility Helicopters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Cargo Helicopters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Improved Turbine Engine (ITE) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Future Vertical Lift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Fixed Wing Aircraft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Operations in the National Airspace System (NAS) Ground-Based Sense and Avoid (GBSAA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Aviation Systems Project Office . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Aviation S&T . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 BIOSCIENCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

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2018 Federal Issues Book

INFRASTRUCTURE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Roads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Support for the City of Huntsville’s TIGER Grant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 TVA Board Representation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Municipal Bonds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Regional Energy Innovation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Enhancing Local Air Service through Deregulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Fully Fund the Airport Improvement Fund (AIP) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Reduce Federal Regulations and Unfunded Mandates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Support Legislation to Increase the Cap on Local Passenger Facility Charges (PFC) . . . . . . 17 Support for UAS Integration Pilot Program Site Selection in Huntsville . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Oppose Privatization of Our Nation’s Air Traffic Control System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Support Dream Chaser® Project at Huntsville International Airport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 MISSILE AND SPACE INTELLIGENCE CENTER (MSIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 SMALL SATELLITE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 CYBER SECURITY: Expanding the Tennessee Valley’s Excellence in Cyber Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 SUPPORT FBI MASTER PLAN FOR REDSTONE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 FEDERAL MEETING APPROVAL PROCESS AND LIMITED ROOM AVAILABILITY AT PER DIEM HITS WORKERS, BUSINESSES HARD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 BASE REALIGNMENT AND CLOSURE (BRAC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 CONTRACTING AT REDSTONE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 EDUCATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Workforce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Pell Grants for Two-Year Schools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Workforce & Higher Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 SUPPORT FOR CENSUS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

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2018 Federal Issues Book

U.S. ARMY FUTURES MODERNIZATION COMMAND In October 2017, Acting Secretary of the Army Ryan McCarthy and the Army Chief of Staff Milley announced the creation of a new Army major command – U.S. Army Modernization Command – which is scheduled to become operational

by June 1, 2018. At about the same time as the Army’s announcement, Congress included a requirement to develop an Army modernization strategy, due to Congress by April 30, 2018, in the conference report for the defense policy bill for fiscal year (FY) 2018. Renamed the U.S. Army Futures Command (Futures Command or “Command”), it was introduced to the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) by Secretary of the Army Dr. Mark T. Esper during testimony on December 7, 2017. The mission of the new command is to streamline Army acquisition policies, processes, and practices and replace the current, decades-old incremental upgrade strategy with a faster, more agile and more modern approach to fielding weapon systems, combat and combat support assets to the warfighter. The new command will consist of six (6) cross-functional teams (CFTs) to provide the unity of effort and command needed to reduce the requirements development process from 60 months to around 12.

The CFTs will align with the Army’s current six (6) modernization priorities: 1) long-range precision fires; 2) next generation combat vehicle; 3) future vertical lift platforms; 4) mobile and expeditionary Army networks; 5) air and missile defense capabilities; and 6) soldier lethality and will report regularly to the Undersecretary of the Army and the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army. Highlighting the importance being placed on Futures Command by the Army is allocation of approximately $1B – 80 percent of the Army’s Science & Technology funding – to the modernization priorities assigned to the CFTs. The Army Modernization Task Force has been established to stand up Futures Command under the leadership of the Director of U.S. Army Business Transformation. The Task Force recommendations for organizing and operationalizing Futures Command are due to the Secretary of the Army and Army Chief of Staff for decision not later than February 6, 2018.

Requested Outcome: Redstone Arsenal should be identified as the location for the Command Headquarters and three of the six CFTs should likewise be located at Redstone.

••• BUDGET INPUT Our Federally focused business community functions best with predictable and dependable funding for federal programs. The Budget Control Act sequestration clause, along with the continual threat of year-long Continuing Resolutions,

has resulted in reduced dependability and timeliness of Federal funding. The nation is falling behind friends and adversaries in advanced research and development across many areas resulting in an erosion of U.S. technological lead. Also, the combination of sequestration and unpredictable funding timelines has created significant challenges for industry planning: New contracts cannot move forward, and costs and schedules are driven up and out. Small businesses are particularly at risk when delays deprive them of necessary revenue to maintain operations. We request that our members vigorously support efforts to eliminate sequestration, return to regular order for formulating and producing a Federal Budget and appropriations of funds. We ask that Congress continue its efforts to increase, across the board, overall funding for science and technology, and advanced research and development for defense and aerospace programs. We believe that implementing a responsible and transparent method of Congressionally directed appropriations, or earmarks, would restore the Constitutional “power of the purse,” bring more lawmakers to the negotiating table, and make federal spending more responsive to the taxpayers’ needs.

••• U.S. HUMAN SPACE FLIGHT & EXPLORATION POLICY NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) continues to generate significant economic impact to the state, region, and nation. Programs managed and supported by MSFC have national significance and represent the most technically diverse portfolio of any NASA Center, providing excellence in engineering and science. More than 3,600 local jobs currently support the Space Launch System (SLS) and International Space Station (ISS) programs at MSFC, with 22,000 jobs and $3.8B economic impact statewide. As well as development of historically significant space transportation systems, MSFC continues its decades-long legacy in high-impact Earth and Space Science research. Continued support of MSFC, its propulsion and science programs, and sustenance of its critical skills and expertise are crucial to the Huntsville region, Alabama, and the nation.

Requested Actions: • Ensure SLS funding at a level to complete development for in-service date no later than 2019 with core and upper stages in parallel, ultimately capable of delivering 130 MT to low-Earth orbit, consistent with The NASA Transition Authorization Act of 2017; • Ensure funding of the SLS Exploration Upper Stage at levels required to support the EM-2 flight planned in 2022; • Ensure utilization of MSFC expertise with significant roles in development of long-duration, deep-space habitation,

2018 Federal Issues Book including design and development of advanced life support systems (including oxygen generation and water recovery); • Support continued funding of the ISS to realize full potential with utilization of MSFC ISS Payload Operations; • Support MSFC’s leadership role in design and development of next-generation propulsion systems, in-space transportation systems, and planetary descent/ ascent vehicles; • Sustain MSFC critical core technical capabilities by augmenting FY19 funding requested for the NASA Center Management and Operations activity within the Safety, Security, and Mission Services account, which is at the FY08 enacted level; • Support and fund MSFC’s leadership role in design and development of nuclear-thermal propulsion systems and stage for deep-space, long-duration exploration missions; • Support utilization of MSFC engineering and management expertise by commercial interests in their development of liquid and solid rocket propulsion systems, engines, motors, and space vehicles, ensuring the industry has vibrant and competitive suppliers; • Maintain and enhance MSFC’s critically important roles in Earth, Space and Planetary Science research, applications, and missions such as the Lynx X-Ray Observatory and the Europa Clipper and lander; • Support robust funding for NASA’s SERVIR and SPoRT Earth Science programs, providing data for agriculture and disaster mitigation; • Support continued funding for operation of NASA’s Fermi and Chandra Observatories, as well as research and analysis utilizing these national assets; • Support funding for the Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer, IXPE, chosen to observe black holes, neutron stars and pulsars; • Support full funding for the Parker Solar Probe mission, and a substantive role for MSFC in the National Space Weather Action Plan; • Support development of new propulsion systems and local launch vehicle systems to reduce national dependence on foreign assets and protect the U.S. industrial base.

••• TACTICAL SYSTEMS High Energy Laser Development National Impact: Evolving threat trends have made it difficult to adequately defend both area formations and provide

page 5 Maneuver-Short Range Air Defense (M-SHORAD) defense for maneuver formations and other joint formations from low-altitude air attack Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) threats. The future Joint Force faces adversaries that have observed U.S. operations/technologies, and have adapted to counter U.S. strengths to exploit actual or perceived weaknesses. High Energy Laser (HEL) weapon systems will be able to counter low altitude air attacks and ISR threats.

Redstone Arsenal, Alabama organizations, along with The University of Alabama in Huntsville and industry in northern Alabama, have made significant contributions for the advancement of Army Directed Energy and HEL Technology programs. Redstone organizations that lead developmental and threat intelligence efforts in High Energy Lasers include the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command (USASMDC/ARSTRAT), the Missile Defense Agency, and the Missile and Space Intelligence Center. Redstone has been the Army’s lead in High Energy Lasers since the demonstration of the first laser, and USASMDC/ARSTRAT is the Army’s designated lead for High Energy Laser Science and Technology Research and Development.

A U.S Army Center of Excellence for High Energy Laser Research, Development and Acquisition located at Redstone Arsenal will facilitate the coordination and dissemination of Army High Energy Laser operational capabilities with appropriate Warfighter Centers of Excellence and newly designated Army Cross Functional Teams (CFTs). As the Army’s lead for HEL Science and Technology Development, USASMDC/ ARSTRAT is developing the Army’s High Energy Laser Tactical Vehicle Demonstrator (HEL TVD). The design and development of the HEL TVD began 2017.

HEL TVD will offer attributes that will revolutionize tactical battlefield operations and counter evolving threat trends. A fielded HEL TVD will consist of a ruggedized and supportable solid state, high energy laser, and subsystems installed on a tactical military vehicle capable of providing area joint force protection to forward operating bases, naval installations, air bases, and other facilities. One of the subsystems – a mature and ruggedized Beam Control System (BCS) – will be capable of providing the pointing accuracy necessary for a laser to provide force protection capabilities against rockets, artillery, mortars, unmanned aircraft systems, some cruise missiles, as well as standoff negation of some types of improvised explosive devices and ISR threats.

Additionally, USASMDC/ARSTRAT will conduct a Multi-Mission High Energy Laser Technology Maturation Initiative (MMHEL TMI) to integrate and demonstrate a HEL weapon system on a ground combat platform to counter the M-SHORAD threat set as well as provide an ISR, Counter-ISR and targeting capability.

USASMDC/ARSTRAT has successfully developed and demon-

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2018 Federal Issues Book strated HEL capabilities to include a 10kW laser system in the Army’s High Energy Laser Mobile Test Truck (HELMTT), which was first demonstrated in late 2013 at White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) in New Mexico. Data collections continued through 2016 with HELMTT as risk reduction for the HEL TVD. High Energy Laser propagation data was collected by the HELMTT during 2014 in maritime conditions, successfully targeting a variety of aerial targets at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida. In 2016, the HELMTT successfully participated in the Fires Center of Excellence-sponsored Maneuver Fires Integrated Experiment (MFIX 2016) at Ft Sill, OK – destroying multiple Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) and ground targets. Currently, the HELMTT is being upgraded with a 50kW-class laser as additional risk reduction for HEL TVD with additional data collections and demonstrations during 2018. A full system demonstration against rockets, artillery, mortars, and unmanned aircraft systems will be in 2022. Additional capabilities in support of MMHEL include the Mobile Expeditionary HEL consisting of a 5kW laser on a Stryker Combat Platform that successfully participated in MFIX 2016, MFIX 2017, and MFIX 2018 destroying multiple UAS and ground targets. Both HELMTT and MEHEL participated in the Joint Improvised-Thread Defeat Organization (JIDO) Hard-Kill Challenge with both systems defeating a variety of fixed wing and rotorcraft UAS targets. MEHEL will participate in a Joint Warfighter Assessment in Germany during 2018. MEHEL will also be upgraded to a more lethal 10kW laser in 2018. A HEL System Integration Lab (HEL SIL) is being developed on Redstone Arsenal, which will be an essential tool for establishing and testing complex and highly interoperable HEL systems within a system engineering disciplined setting. The HEL SIL will provide the synthetic environment for exercising the HEL weapon system/subsystems and its associated components.

Community Impact: Industry, universities, and government agencies in the northern Alabama area continue to develop, verify capabilities, and eventually field key components of USASMDC/ARSTRAT’s HEL efforts. As the technology matures further, economic benefits derived from laser development will be realized in the local community. Currently the HEL efforts provide more than 200 government and industry jobs in the Huntsville area with job growth expected to be above 1,000 jobs within the next five years.

Requested Actions: • Fully support the Army’s funding request for laser development so a capability can be fielded in the near term. The first transition opportunities for HEL technology will be to the M-SHORAD and Indirect Fire Protection Capability Increment 2-1 Intercept (IFPC Inc 2-1) programs; • Fully support authorizing the Secretary of the Army to designate Redstone Arsenal as the U.S. Army Center of

Excellence for High Energy Laser Research, Development and Acquisition which will provide management, oversight and execution for all activities affecting Army High Energy Laser research, development and acquisition, to include command guidance, investment strategies and the development, implementation and execution of the materiel development processes to support the Army in meeting its missions.

••• MISSILES, SPACE, AND MISSILE DEFENSE America requires a robust space and air/missile defense architecture composed of highly integrated, sophisticated capabilities that are networked and integrated from earth to space. Systems include: Space-based Sensors/Communications, Ground-based Ballistic Missile Defense Systems (BMDS), Ground-based Air Defenses, Counter-Rocket, and Artillery and Mortar (CRAM) defenses. As potential adversaries improve their strategic strike capabilities, both qualitatively and quantitatively, the nation requires a combination of defensive and offensive capabilities. Continued investment in hypersonic weapons development will provide the nation with a complementary capability to our air/missile defenses and complicate an adversary’s concepts for employing their strategic strike systems. The Huntsville aerospace and defense industry provides the core of the intellectual, technical, and production capabilities necessary to meet our nation’s needs today and well into the future. Combat experience over the past decade, combined with rapidly evolving threats, reinforce the need for a fully integrated space and air/missile defense architecture that is responsive, resilient, and lethal against current and future enemy threats. Supporting our National Defense and interests at home and overseas requires a strong space, air/missile defense posture, and prompt strike capability. Meeting these obligations requires a strong aerospace and defense industry that is agile, robust, and visionary. Space, Air and Missile Defense Mission Areas include: 1) Homeland Defense/Strategic Defense and 2) Theater Defense.

Homeland Defense/Strategic Defense e Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) Program National Impact: GMD is the only system capable of defending the U.S. homeland against a long range ballistic missile attack. Due to the growing threat, the Department of Defense has a total of 44 Ground-Based Interceptors (GBI) as directed by 2013 SECDEF mandate. GMD is defending the nation 24/7/365 from rogue nation Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs), and is a critical element of the Missile De-

2018 Federal Issues Book fense Agency’s (MDA) layered missile defense architecture.

The GMD system must meet the advancing threats to the U.S. homeland. The Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) must remain on schedule to keep up with growing missile threats. This includes continued progress in the development of the redesigned Kill Vehicle as well as technology development supporting the future Multi-Object Kill Vehicle.

The GMD system – along with GBIs, sensor network, and global command and control – provides the President and the Combatant Commanders (COCOMs) the only operational capability to intercept and destroy long-range ballistic missiles launched at the U.S. Due to increased ballistic missile proliferation, especially from Iran and North Korea, strong consideration should be given to a third GMD interceptor site in the U.S and/or a transportable version of the GBI. Community Impact: GMD supports more than 3,000 government and industry jobs in the Huntsville area, which is the main center for management and technical oversight of the system. Without adequate funding, the Huntsville area is vulnerable to losing a knowledge base of extremely highly skilled workers who support what has been called one of the most technically challenging efforts the government has ever undertaken.

Requested Actions: • Support full baseline and supplemental funding for the program in order to continue critical upgrades and modernization efforts; • Support funding for additional GBIs and advocate for a third GMD interceptor site and/or transportable in the U.S. to defeat advancing threats to the homeland and give the Warfighter increased flexibility.

e Redesigned Kill Vehicle (RKV) National Impact: The Redesigned Kill Vehicle is an enhancement to the GMD program, intended to field a more reliable, manufacturable, and producible kill vehicle for the GMD Ground-Based Interceptor. With an initial flight test planned for FY19, the RKV program will gain strong momentum over the next several years and is critical to MDA’s plans to stay ahead of growing adversary missile threats. The warfighter will also benefit from the enhanced reliability of the system created by RKV fielding.

Community Impact: The RKV program supports a substantial number of government and industry jobs in the north Alabama area, including program management, engineering and manufacturing.

Requested Action: Full funding of RKV in the FY19 budget on the path established by MDA, and vigilance against any effort to reduce or stretch out the program over what is currently planned.

e Multi-Object Kill Vehicle (MOKV) National Impact: A next-generation improvement to the capability of GMD is the Multi-object Kill Vehicle (MOKV) pro-

page 7 gram. The MOKV payload is capable of destroying several objects in a target cluster, mitigating the need to identify and kill a single lethal object. In the future, this is strongly needed to address the growing number and complexity of long-range ballistic missile threats to the U.S. homeland. In 2017, MDA awarded Technology Risk Reduction contracts to develop this highly complex system. A proof of concept demonstration will occur in 2020 or 2021 with prototype testing in 2025.

Community Impact: The MOKV program holds promise of a substantial number of government and industry jobs in the north Alabama area, including program management, engineering, and manufacturing.

Requested Action: Support funding for MOKV in future budgets on the path established by MDA.

e Missile Defense Engineering Team – Industry (MET-I) National Impact: Private industry has teamed together to support the U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) in its evolution of the Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) to keep pace with the missile threat to our homeland, deployed forces, and allies. The industry Missile Defense Engineering Team does this through sophisticated modeling and simulation, system engineering, and technical evaluations and assessments for MDA, its various programs, and associated tests. The Missile Defense Engineering Team is designed to provide independent technical support outside the purview of any particular program element of the BMDS. The current National Team employs a trusted, proven collaboration mechanism among all MDA communities that protects industry proprietary and competition sensitive data allowing rapid development and access to emerging industry technologies and concepts.

Community Impact: Significant National Team work share is done in the north Alabama area across several major and small business employers, supporting about 250 employees.

Requested Action: Support the President’s FY19 Budget Request for MDA National Team funding.

e Long Range Discrimination Radar (LRDR) National Impact: Due to an evolving threat, the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) is continuing to quickly field a landbased Long Range Discrimination Radar (LRDR), with an Initial Operational Capability (IOC) planned in 2020 in Clear, Alaska. The Long Range Discrimination Radar (LRDR) program is the backbone of the Missile Defense Agency’s layered defense strategy to protect the U.S. homeland from ballistic missile attack. LRDR will provide a persistent 24/7/365 midcourse acquisition, precision tracking, and discrimination capability to counter evolving threats in the Pacific Region.

The program scope includes facilities construction, radar development, installation, initial operations, and sustainment.

MDA is taking a long-term view of LRDR, with planned deployment for the next 40-50 years.

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2018 Federal Issues Book Community Impact: Positive impact to the Huntsville community through the creation of new jobs in Modeling and Simulation, Algorithm Development, Software, and Hardware.

Requested Action: Fully fund the FY19 President’s budget level in RDT&E, defense-wide for development of the LRDR and the associated LRDR FY19 President’s MILCON budget.

e Homeland Defense Radar (HDR) National Impact: Due to an increasing Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) threat, the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) is working to quickly field a series of land-based Homeland Defense Radars (HDR). These radars are additional components of MDA’s layered defense strategy to protect the U.S. homeland from ballistic missile attack. The first radar will be the Homeland Defense Radar-Hawaii (HDR-H) which is planned to have an Initial Operating Capability (IOC) in 2023, and the agency may procure up to three additional radars.

The HDR sensors provide a persistent 24/7/365 midcourse acquisition, precision tracking, and discrimination to counter evolving threats to the homeland. The program scope includes facilities construction, radar development and production, installation, initial operations, and sustainment. MDA plans deployment of the HDR for the next 40-50 years.

Community Impact: Positive impact to the Huntsville community through the creation of new jobs in Modeling and Simulation, Algorithm Development, Software, and Hardware.

Requested Action: Fully fund the FY19 President’s budget level in RDT&E, defense-wide for development of the HDR, and the associated MILCON Budgets for the initial and future sites.

e Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent (GBSD) Program National Impact: The GBSD program is the replacement system for Minuteman III (MMIII) that has been in the field and protecting the U.S. for over 50 years. The program is divided into three phases: Technical Maturation and Risk Reduction (TMRR) – a three-year contract to mature the design to Preliminary Design Review (PDR); Engineering Manufacturing and Development (EMD)/Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP) where the team will complete the design and qualification testing; and Production where the team will transition from the MMIII system to GBSD. This is a $60B plus franchise opportunity which will provide the nation with a system that can protect us from our adversaries for the next 75 years.

Our ICBM mission is to deter threats to the U.S. and allies 24x7x365.

Community Impact: The GBSD program holds promise of a substantial number of industry (prime and subcontractor) jobs in the north Alabama area, including program management, engineering and manufacturing. Without continued support of the nuclear triad and adequate funding, the mission and workforce could be impacted in Huntsville.

Requested Action: Support the nuclear triad, specifically the ground ICBM segment, and supplemental funding for the program in order to continue critical funding and acceleration efforts to get capability to the Warfighters to meet mission needs.

Theater Defense e Integrated Air & Missile Defense (IAMD) Mission Command National Impact: Integrated Air and Missile Defense is a command and control (mission command) solution for the Combatant Commanders and supporting Services. It is a commander-centric capability that will integrate current and future air and missile defense weapons and systems. Commanders will be able to use any sensor and any weapon to achieve mission objectives in a true, open architecture environment that will increase our opportunities to engage targets, and provide improved protection for our nation and our forward-deployed military forces. IAMD addresses known deficiencies in air and missile defense systems for protecting friendly forces, providing situational awareness, and controlling our air/missile defense soldiers. IAMD programs, such as Missile Defense Agency’s (MDA) Command and Control, Battle Management, and Communications (C2BMC) System, and the Army’s Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS) represent major evolutions in software and hardware development, and are foundational for future integrated air and missile defense systems.

Community Impact: With the government and industry program offices located in Huntsville, these programs support well over 1,000 government and industry jobs in the Huntsville area. Labor and/or parts for one of the programs are provided by 220 subcontractors/suppliers, of which 110 (50 percent) are small businesses.

Requested Actions: • Continue to advocate for full and predictable funding for the IAMD programs; • Sustain Congressional oversight to allow continued development and fielding.

e Patriot Air & Missile Defense International & Domestic Programs National Impact: Patriot is the world’s most successful and effective air and missile defense capability and is employed

by U.S. forces and 13 allied military partners. More than 50 percent of the total U.S. Patriot force is forward deployed, performing defense missions in support of our warfighters and allies. U.S. Government estimates show that Patriot will be fielded in the U.S. combat force beyond 2040. The system employs every fielded and emerging version of the Patriot Missile to include PAC-3 and PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) missiles as well as the combat-proven Patriot Guidance Enhanced Missile (GEM-T) allowing the system to deploy a more affordable missile mix – fully coalition

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2018 Federal Issues Book compatible and matched to the emerging spectrum of threats. The Lower Tier Air Missile Defense Sensor (LTAMDS) is the Army’s acquisition of a next generation radar capability against evolving air and missile defense threats and PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) battlespace, and acts as a sensor node on the Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) network to address critical capability gaps and modernize technology.

Community Impact: Huntsville, Alabama and Redstone Arsenal are Patriot’s birthplace and home. Approximately 1,200 civilian and government jobs in the Huntsville area are critical to the Patriot Program. All Patriot program actions for the U.S. Military and foreign military sales are processed through USG offices on Redstone Arsenal.

Requested Actions: • Support full funding of the Army’s Patriot Improvement and Modifications efforts in accordance with the President’s 2019 Budget Request to maintain Patriot’s capability against new and emerging threats. These include the PAC-3 MSE interceptor, the Patriot ground equipment (radars, C2, communications, and software) and the Lower Tier Air Missile Defense Sensor (LTAMDS).

• Advocate for continued efforts to support international sales which maintain Patriot’s foreign military interoperability, cost sharing and development of new foreign partner customers.

e Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) National Impact: THAAD is a key element of the U.S. Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS), capable of intercepting ballistic missiles in both the endo- and exoatmospheres. THAAD is interoperable with the other joint BMDS components, defends large areas, and uses “Hit-toKill” technology to destroy threat warheads. THAAD’s high firepower, exceptional radar, and superb battle manager provide capability to defend against mass missile raids.

THAAD units remain operationally deployed in Guam and South Korea today, defending against ballistic missile threats and enhancing regional security. THAAD’s unique ballistic missile defense capabilities and demonstrated success continue to increase U.S. and international demand for THAAD. Congress has been notified of Qatar’s interest in procuring the THAAD system, and there is considerable interest in THAAD from other countries in the Middle East, Asia Pacific, and European regions.

Community Impact: This program provides more than 450 government and industry jobs in the Huntsville area.

Requested Actions: • Support the President’s FY19 Budget Request for THAAD; • Support funding for THAAD Follow-On to provide enhanced capabilities to the warfighter and sustain critical engineering jobs in the Huntsville area; • Advocate for additional THAAD International sales in support of U.S. Cooperative Defense Initiatives.

••• ARMY AVIATION Apache Helicopters The AH-64E Apache is the Army’s newest attack helicopter and the Apache Project Office has completed fielding of seven units as of December 2017. The latest unit to be fielded at Ft. Carson, CO received Version 4 technology insertions which includes UAS interoperability, improved targeting, and increased situational awareness. In March 2017, the first AH-64E Multi-Year production contract was awarded to The Boeing Company. The five-year contract for up to 450 aircraft and additional Foreign Military Sales aircraft has a base value of $3.1B with a potential value of $10B. The multiyear contract will save the Army $350M compared to single-year contracts and provides stability to the program and industry partners. The Apache has an active Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program, with 15 countries and approximately 500 Apache aircraft across the globe with an additional nine countries potentially adding FMS cases in the near future.

Current modernization actions include the developmental program of Version 6 technology insertions, which will add Cognitive Decision Aiding, Link 16, Soldier Radio Waveform, Tactical Air Navigation System (TACAN), Modernized Day Side Assembly, and Cyber Security. These advanced tools will provide commanders greater situational awareness, lethality, and flexibility across the battlefield.

National Impact: The AH-64E brings substantially improved operational capability to the commander. The Apache multiyear contract saves more than $350M across the life of the contract, ensuring program stability and providing predictability for the Apache industry team.

Community Impact: All of the life cycle management and many of the support modifications, spares, or services are performed/managed by government and industry partners in Alabama. This directly impacts more than 600 government and contractor positions.

Requested Action: Continue to support the Army’s Apache Helicopter modernization and procurement objectives, including the multi-year contract and Apache modernization.

Utility Helicopters The Utility Helicopters Project Office provides life cycle management for the Army Utility Helicopter and common engine fleets. These products include more than 2135 UH/ HH-60, “BLACK HAWKs”; the T700 Turbine Engine Fleet (supporting all BLACK HAWKs and Apaches; and 412 UH- 72A “LAKOTA” Light Utility Helicopters, the designated rotary wing trainer for the Army. We are also divesting the Kiowa Warrior, UH-1 and TH-67. The Project Office supports the Navy, Air

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2018 Federal Issues Book Force, Coast Guard, Special Operations, Other Government Agencies, and our Allies. Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers maintain a fleet of more than 1,200 aircraft. The Project Office manages more than $11B in contracts yearly. In full production, the Army’s UH/HH-60M helicopter incorporates a digitized cockpit and improved space, weight, power, survivability, and durability. The UH-60M product line continues to bring revolutionary components and structures to the Army, including battlefield graphics and digital links. When complete, the new UH-60M/ HH-60M BLACK HAWK fleet will comprise 1,375 aircraft, which when combined with 760 UH-60V aircraft creates a total Army fleet of 2,135 aircraft.

For sustainment, the Army recapitalizes 40 UH-60L aircraft each year at Corpus Christi Army Depot (CCAD). The UH60V is near first flight; when complete, production will utilize the recapitalization program at CCAD. With UH-60V, the Army’s aviation branch will be able to synchronize training and reduce life cycle costs while digitizing the last analog aircraft in the fleet.

National Impact: The Black Hawk fleet is the world’s most powerful Utility Helicopter fleet, providing combat, combat support, and combat service support. The force provides commanders with the mobility and agility to act decisively inside the enemy’s decision cycle.

Community Impact: All of the life cycle management and many of the support modifications, spares, or services are performed/managed by government and industry partners in Alabama. This directly impacts more than 500 government and contractor positions.

Requested Action: Support the Army’s Utility Helicopter modernization and procurement objectives, including H-60M multi-year production contracts and the UH-60V.

Cargo Helicopters The 421st CH-47F was delivered in December 2017. The CH-47F aircraft incorporates key reliability and maintainability improvement modifications such as a machined airframe designed to reduce vibration and maintenance, corrosion protection, T55-GA-714A engine, Common Avionics Architecture System (CAAS), enhanced air transportability, Digital Advanced Flight Control System (DAFCS), Extended Range Fuel System II for self-deployment missions, and complies with joint digital connectivity requirements. The aircraft proves itself every day performing a multitude of different missions throughout the world and is the aircraft of choice in high/hot environments. International interest in the aircraft continues to grow and expectations are that at least 19 international partners will operate almost 400 CH-47s in the coming years.

The Project Office continues to focus on the long-term relevance of the Chinook fleet. The Army approved the CH-47F Block II Chinook Program of Record in July 2017. The Block

II upgrade, which is the first step of a potential multi-block upgrade strategy, is designed to affordably maintain platform relevance through the planned service life. The cornerstone of the Block II effort is the introduction of a new rotor blade design, the Advanced Chinook Rotor Blade (ACRB), which will significantly improve the helicopter’s performance in high-hot atmospheric conditions and improve reliability.

In April 2017, the ACRB underwent successful technology flight demonstration in Mesa, AZ. Block II also includes airframe modifications that will increase aircraft maximum gross weight up to 54,000 lbs. There are currently three CH-47F Block I aircraft that are undergoing conversion to the Block II configuration.

National Impact: The Chinook fleet provides the Army with the only heavy lift combat, combat support, and combat service aviation support.

Community Impact: All of the life cycle management and many of the support modifications, spares, or services are performed/managed by firms in Alabama. This directly impacts more than 450 government and contractor positions.

Requested Action: Support the Army’s Cargo Helicopter modernization and procurement objectives, moving forward to Block II, supporting the Army’s only 100-year airframe.

Improved Turbine Engine (ITE) The Improved Turbine Engine (ITE), the Army’s next generation engine, will be a new 3,000 shaft horsepower (SHP) turbo shaft engine that replaces the T700 family of engines for the Black Hawk and Apache fleets, comprising 75 percent of the total Army helicopter fleet. As increasing demands add weight to the aircraft, the T700 engine no longer possesses power growth potential necessary to meet mission requirements.

ITE was initiated through a Materiel Development Decision (MDD) in 2012. Two competitive proposals for the Technology Maturation and Risk Reduction phase were awarded in fourth quarter, FY16, as a result of a successful Milestone A decision in June 2016. Milestone B decision is planned for FY18. The ITE provides significantly increased operational capability, fuel efficiency, range, and payload. It will provide critically needed operational improvement in hot conditions at high altitudes, a capability required to operate in a worldwide environment, and posture Army Aviation for the future.

The ITE is aligned with the Army’s efforts in Operational Power and Energy Strategy, the DoD Operational Energy Strategy, and the National Defense Strategy.

National Impact: The ITE Program is Army Aviation’s #1 modernization program. Besides being the next generation engine for Black Hawk and Apache helicopters, it is the baseline engine to reduce risk in a future vertical lift aircraft. It will feed the development of new technology for future fleets

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2018 Federal Issues Book and allow us to support future expeditionary operations.

Community Impact: All of the development and life cycle management efforts are performed in Alabama.

Requested Action: Continue to support the Army’s ITE program.

Future Vertical Lift Army Aviation’s inherent speed, mobility, lethality, and agility enables our land forces to operate across the entire spectrum of military operations; however, the current Army Aviation fleet lacks the ability to adequately accomplish required missions of future conflicts. Future Vertical Lift (FVL) is one of the Army’s six modernization priorities. FVL is an Army led, multi-service initiative, focused on restoring the U.S. asymmetric vertical lift dominance with radical improvements in speed, range, agility, and endurance to provide capability and flexibility to an unknown and unknowable 2030 and beyond. FVL is focused on the development of agile, adaptable, vertical lift platforms that enable self-deployment, and insertion of tactical capabilities from operational and strategic distances. FVL uses a common systems, open architecture approach, informed by government and industry science and technology development and the Army’s Joint Multi Role (JMR) Technology Demonstration (TD) Program.

The Defense Acquisition Executive signed the FVL Capability Set Three (CS3) Material Development Decision (MDD) Acquisition Decision Memorandum (ADM) on 28 October 2016, which authorized program entry into the Material Solution Analysis (MSA) phase and initiation of the Analysis of Alternatives (AoA). This will characterize trade space, risks, and mission interdependencies in the DoD/USCG Aviation portfolio. Building new aircraft from the ground up is part of the strategic effort to harness the best new technologies, allowing platforms to be upgraded as new technologies emerge; integrating systems into a common architecture and reducing costs. Fielding the first variant is expected to begin in the late 2020s. The DoD must invest in the next generation of aircraft to provide leap ahead capabilities and allow future Army forces to overmatch enemies and win.

National Impact: Emerging peer/near peer Anti Access/ Anti Denial, Integrated Air Defense, and long range effects threaten advantage Army Aviation has enjoyed more than 50 years. In order to regain vertical lift dominance, we must innovate new capabilities, and invest in FVL. The ability to design and integrate the technological advancements not only increases the DoD’s combat power but also maintains our nation’s position of leadership.

Community Impact: Alabama is the epicenter of Army Aviation with the full lifecycle of Army Aviation assets managed at Redstone Arsenal. The collocation of PEO Aviation, Redstone Test Center, the Aviation and Missile Research, Development,

and Engineering Center, and the Aviation and Missile Command, and supporting industry account for thousands of jobs.

Requested Action: Increase and support Future Vertical Lift funding to develop and build the next generation aircraft.

The FVL investment requires sufficient and predictable funding commensurate with our requirements to prepare our Army for the future fight.

Fixed Wing Aircraft The Fixed Wing Project Office is the Army Acquisition Executive to centrally manage the Army’s fleet of manned fixed wing aircraft. The fleet consists of more than 300 aircraft comprised of four missions, 11 designs, and 28 series deployed to all 50 states and 12 countries. All Army fixed wing aircraft are commercial derivative aircraft and are divided into three categories: Special Electronic Mission Aircraft (intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance aircraft); Transport Aircraft; and Mission Support Aircraft.

The Army has an ongoing requirement for an organic Fixed Wing Utility aircraft (FUA) to perform Operational Support Airlift (OSA) missions to provide Army Forces Commanders flexibility in meeting time-sensitive movements of key personnel and equipment. The FUA is a commercial derivative/ non-developmental item (NDI) and a replacement platform for a range limited fleet (C-12 and C-26 transport aircraft) that is approaching the end of its economic useful life (25–35 years old). The FUA will provide improved passenger and payload capability coupled with greater unrefueled range.

The current procurement requirement is 92 aircraft.

National Impact: The Fixed Wing Utility Aircraft will enable the Army to replace attritted or retired OSA aircraft with a more technologically advanced aircraft to meet commanders’ needs in current and future operations. The FUA will reduce the amount of resources needed to train pilots and sustain. Aircraft contractors such as King Aerospace, Northrop Grumman Technical Services, Gulfstream, L3, M7, and Beechcraft could potentially work on the FUA program.

Community Impact: The Fixed Wing Utility Aircraft fleet will include training aircraft based at Ft. Rucker, Alabama. Program life cycle management is accomplished at Redstone Arsenal.

Requested Action: Continue to support the funding efforts to replace aging airframes and standardize the Army’s Operational Airlift fleet; also request continued support for the funding of Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance aircraft programs of record.

Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) The Army’s Project Management Office for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (PM UAS) is made up of roughly 900 soldiers, DA civilians, and contractors providing our nation and its

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2018 Federal Issues Book allies with world-class, interoperable unmanned aircraft systems and integrated payloads. The Army’s UAS fleet, comprised of small, medium, and large tactical airframes, has flown more than 2.2 million flight hours in direct support of combat operations. Unmanned aircraft support has become an increasingly integral instrument in modern warfare. Army UAS perform myriad functions including: Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR); battle damage assessment, around-the-clock lethal and non-lethal operations; convoy protection; and anti-ambush/anti- Improvised Explosive Device (IED) emplacement.

e Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Operations in the National Airspace System (NAS) GroundBased Sense and Avoid (GBSAA) Over the past decade, UAS have become an integral part of the U.S. military. However, the inability to comply with the Federal Aviation Agency regulation to “see and avoid” other aircraft (by definition, UAS do not have an onboard pilot) significantly hinders the ability to routinely operate, test, and train UAS in the U.S. National Airspace System (NAS). UAS access to the NAS, and ultimately to international airspace, is necessary to maintain strategic watch through worldwide force protection of our UAS. UAS continues developing and validating alternative technological capabilities to “sense and avoid” in order to comply with regulations.

Army PM UAS’s solution is the Ground-Based Sense And Avoid (GBSAA) System that will allow initial access to the NAS. GBSAA uses an incremental block strategy; Block 0 and Block 1 capabilities are fully funded. Block 0 became operational in spring of 2016, and Block 1 will follow in early 2018. Block 0 and Block 1 will be operated by contractors to expedite support of UAS testing activities; this will facilitate quicker integration of the UAS into the NAS, increasing and improving Warfighter training and testing.

National Impact: The GBSAA System effort will lead to the safe operation of UAS in the NAS and allow safe flights in conjunction with manned airspace operations.

The Army’s GBSAA System efforts continue to inform other Service’s SAA work.

Community Impact: This joint effort between the PEO Aviation and the Aviation Engineering Directorate has resulted in the addition of 15 jobs for the organization as well as the outsourcing of another 10-14 support jobs.

UAS activities currently have an estimated $15M per year impact on the northern Alabama economy.

Requested Action: Continue to support the funding efforts to research, develop, acquire, field, and sustain the Army’s Unmanned Aircraft Fleet; while continuing to support future UAS commonality and interoperability advancements.

Aviation Systems Project Office The Aviation Systems Project Office is responsible for all acquisition life cycle functions, including research, development, testing, procurement, fielding, logistics, readiness, and foreign military sales of 49 distinct product lines. Five Product Offices manage the 49 products. The Air Traffic Control Product Office manages tactical and fixed-base air traffic control equipment to function in both the national and military airspace. The Aviation Ground Support Equipment Product Office manages all common ground support equipment utilized within Army aviation. The Aviation Mission Equipment Product Office manages the complete suite of mission essential communications, navigation, surveillance, and tracking capabilities across all aviation platforms. The Aviation Networks and Mission Planning Product Office manages mission planning, situational awareness, and interoperability capabilities. The Degraded Visual Environment Product Office is developing the capability to enable approaches, landing, and takeoff for single rotary-wing aircraft operations in degraded visual environments. Aviation Systems leads and directs the efforts of more than 500 military and civilian personnel with an annual budget of more than $532M. Current modernization actions include the development of a Multi-core Improved Data Modem for rotary-wing aircraft, the Next Generation Aviation Ground Power Unit, upgrades to the Air Traffic Navigation, Integration, Coordination System, upgrades to the Aviation Mission Planning System, and development of the Degraded Visual Environment System.

National Impact: Aviation Systems’ products affect every U.S. Army Aviation platform, and Aviation Soldier allowing them to move, shoot, and communicate on the modern battlefield. The Aircraft Notebook, a decision support and battle synchronization system, will be fielded to all aviation platforms over the next two years. Initially, the Degraded Visual Environment System is being developed for a limited number Black Hawk Helicopters. This will inform the Degraded Visual Environment Increment I program for application on additional Combat Aviation Brigade aircraft.

Community Impact: The life cycle management and many of the support modifications, spares, or services are performed and managed by Aviation Systems government, contactor, and industry partners in the Huntsville/Redstone Arsenal, Alabama area. This directly affects more than 500 government and contractor positions. Along with these positions, Aviation Systems has a direct impact on other key stakeholders in Alabama. These include U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center Software Engineering Directorate, Aviation Engineering Directorate, Prototyping Integration Facility; and U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command Aviation Logistics Center and Logistics Support Facility.

Requested Action: Continue to support Aviation Systems

2018 Federal Issues Book modernization and procurement efforts across all U.S. Army Aviation platforms, including Multi-core Improved Data Modem and Degraded Visual Environment System.

Aviation S&T Army Aviators executed more than 7,000,000 flight hours in multiple theaters of operation performing critical missions for combat commanders in the last 14 years. Army Aviation is recognized as an indispensable capability across the spectrum of warfare, from major combat operations to Homeland Defense. It enjoys an unparalleled reputation world-wide due to courageous deeds of crews from medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) of wounded to close combat support of Soldiers, day or night, in the toughest and most remote terrain on earth. Army Aviation is the decisive factor that ground commanders not only demand, but rely upon to provide unmatched speed, mobility, and flexibility.

Fourteen years of increased usage has shortened aircraft lifespans and increased support costs, yet no new combat helicopter has entered service in nearly 30 years, and all three active-production lines are scheduled to shut down within 15 years. Working with the Aviation Materiel Enterprise, including industry partners, Program Executive Office (PEO) Aviation is procuring replacement aircraft for those lost in combat and modernizing the current existing platforms, while supporting the Warfighter on the ground around the world.

Simultaneously, it is endeavoring to stay ahead of evolving requirements to transform and meet the Soldier’s needs to fight terrorism, perform peace keeping missions, or fight a comparable foe within a fiscally constrained environment.

Reduced budgets, exacerbated by the Budget Control Act, have reduced Army Aviation’s total obligation authority for modernization and acquisition by more than $3B per year through FY19. Due to an uncertain international security environment, we must act deliberately and rapidly to meet Army and Aviation requirements.

Our U.S. Army aviation fleet will continue to be streamlined as U.S. budget sequestration increases pressure to reduce costs. While there was investment in new technologies following the Vietnam War, and the Gulf Wars brought an increase in digitization, the Army’s budget for science and technology is now at its lowest ebb. If new technology is expected to be fielded by 2030, a major development effort would have to have begun this year. It is more important than ever to invest today in the science and technology required to develop the future fleet.

The Army’s #1 modernization program is development of the Improved Turbine Engine (ITE). ITE is the next generation engine for Black Hawk and Apache helicopters and is the baseline engine to reduce risk in a future light helicopter. The ITE brings increased fuel efficiency, range, and payload with decreased maintenance actions, and will feed into develop-

page 13 ing new technology for our fleets to support expeditionary operations.

Future Vertical Lift (FVL) will produce our next generation of vertical lift aircraft; it is critical that we support the Joint Multi Role program to ensure mature technologies feed into capabilities of our future fleet. FVL will maximize use of common technology and parts to minimize training, logistics, and acquisition costs. It will leverage Joint Common Architecture and modular mission equipment to reduce modification and modernization time and costs while enabling technology insertion. The JMR Technology Demonstration (TD) is the primary Science and Technology initiative that will inform FVL. JMR is well underway and has received funding through FY19 necessary to execute the next milestone for an air vehicle demonstration and flight tests.

The Army’s future tactical unmanned aerial system fleet will need to support complex operations facing sophisticated threats. Revolutionary new configurations and capabilities are needed to operate effectively and survive on the future battlefield. The Next Generation Tactical Unmanned Aerial System Technology Demonstrator Science and Technology Program (NGTUAS TD) will mature technologies and inform procurement decisions that will enable TUAS to operate congruently with the future aviation fleet with a wide spectrum of missions. The NGTUAS S&T program helps develop and validate future operational concepts, identifies, matures, and demonstrates critical technologies that enable those concepts and develops an industrial base that can deliver the systems necessary for future operations.

An Aviation Compound Test Bed is required to address the capability gap in high speed (beyond 170 knots) single main rotor compound flight test. Understanding and operating in this flight regime and configuration is crucial to developing future rotary wing aircraft and informing decisions to upgrade the current fleet. A single main rotor compound test bed aircraft, which is not being developed in the Joint MultiRole Technology Demonstrator (JMR-TD) program, is essential to demonstrate the complex flight control laws, aerodynamic efficiencies and limitations, and refinement of current performance models in order to rapidly transition emerging propulsion, drive systems, and drag reduction technologies to the Soldier.

The complexity of aviation problems is extremely challenging and demands the full attention and cooperation of senior leaders throughout the Army, DoD, and Congress. Solutions are equally complex and interdependent; we do not have the luxury of picking and choosing partial solutions which increase risk or ignore fiscal constraints. Your continued leadership in support of solving Total Army challenges has never been more necessary or essential.

Requested Actions: • Increase and support Aviation S&T funding at a level that

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2018 Federal Issues Book allows the Army to keep the current fleet technologically relevant as well as invest in future capabilities that maintain the nation’s position as a leader in Aviation technology and capabilities.

Science Foundation. Increases in topline federal funding within these organizations speeds medical, agricultural, and technical progress, which directly and indirectly impacts the positive economic health of the Huntsville/Madison County area.

• Accelerate funding for the Next Generation Tactical Unmanned Aerial System Science and Technology Program, leading to the Future Tactical Unmanned Aerial System.

•••

••• BIOSCIENCES As the established leader of innovation in biosciences across the globe, the U.S. must continue to prioritize and support research and development. Numerous countries significantly invest in initiatives to gain ground in this highly competitive landscape. A crucial way to keep the nation’s advantage is through increased research budgets within the National Institutes of Health, Department of Energy, Department of Agriculture, Department of Defense, the National Science Foundation and others.

With past investments in these agencies, transformational advancements have been made with drug development, diagnostics, medical devices, crop improvement, water resource management and information technology, to cite only a few. These advancements have saved lives, improved overall quality of life, and spurred private sector innovation.

Further benefits include growing our nation’s economy and maintaining our global edge in innovation.

Alabama has a strong and growing global presence in the biosciences. The research institutes, colleges and universities, and brilliant minds powering those entities are making significant contributions to the national success of our innovation in biosciences. Anchored by the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, outstanding companies such Eurofins, ConversantBio, Aviagen, CFDRC, and Nektar; and two-year institutions such as Calhoun Community College and four-year colleges and universities such as The University of Alabama in Huntsville, Alabama A&M University, and Oakwood University; north Alabama continues to drive innovation in the biosciences.

Within Cummings Research Park, the second largest research park in the U.S. and fourth largest in the world, resides the 152-acre CRP Biotech Campus. Home to the HudsonAlpha Institute as well as dozens of life science companies employing hundreds of Alabamians, HudsonAlpha and the companies residing on the CRP Biotech campus have generated more than $1.85B in economic impact over the past 10 years.

Requested Action: The Chamber strongly supports increasing scientific research funding levels for the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Energy, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Defense, and the National

INFRASTRUCTURE Roads Our community has made tremendous progress funding infrastructure projects utilizing innovative partnerships with the State, specifically the 2014 agreement with the State of Alabama and the City of Huntsville to match funding to initiate $250M road construction projects as well as the ATRIP road program. The prospect of future rounds of Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) make infrastructure improvements a top priority for the region. Robust transportation networks that can efficiently move commuters, freight, and services are vital for continued growth of the Tennessee Valley, inclusive of Redstone Arsenal, and is a top priority for the elected leaders of north Alabama. We understand an infrastructure bill could be introduced in 2018 by Congress. The following projects are ready for immediate development should such as package gain approval. Support for the following projects will go a long way toward maintaining north Alabama’s economic vitality: • I-565 to I-65 – Add additional lanes along I-565 from SR 255 to I-65 to ease traffic congestion from increased passenger and cargo traffic moving along this important economic corridor.

• I-565/Research Park Blvd. Interchange Modification – Fund these needed interchange modifications to support exponential growth in traffic at Redstone Arsenal and the adjacent Redstone Gateway development.

• Improvements to I-565 Interchange with Hwy. 231 – This interchange is increasingly becoming more congested and dangerous.

• US Hwy. 72 W from Providence Main to County Line Rd. – This project improves overall traffic flow and provides critical capacity and safety improvements along this urban principal east-west arterial with average daily traffic volumes ranging from 32,000 to 45,000 vehicles per day.

• I-565 and Madison Blvd. (Exit 13) Interchange Modification for Resolute Way access at Redstone Arsenal – Improvements through the commercial corridor to address major traffic issues on a route critical to Redstone Arsenal and Research Park commuters.

• Research Park Blvd. from I-565 to North of US Hwy. 72 – Provide funding to begin the design and construction

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2018 Federal Issues Book of additional lanes to State Road 255 to support the recent exponential growth in traffic at Redstone Arsenal and Cummings Research Park.

• Arsenal Eastern Connector – Provide support and funding for implementing a final Corridor Study and Preliminary Engineering.

• US Hwy. 72 East / ARC Corridor V from Shields Rd. Eastward to the County Line – Funding be allocated and appropriated through any remaining ARC dedicated monies and any eligible MAP-21 funds as soon as possible to improve this much needed corridor.

• Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. / Northern Bypass Interchange at Memorial Parkway and extending the Northern Bypass from US 231 to US Hwy. 72 – Request support and funding for this project to provide more capacity and accessibility as a result of regional workforce traffic demand.

• Memorial Parkway at Mastin Lake Rd. – This project completes the next phase of non-stop traffic along US 231. Completing this project will allow non-stop traffic flow from Mastin Lake Drive in north Huntsville to Weatherly Road in south Huntsville.

Support for the City of Huntsville’s TIGER Grant The City of Huntsville has identified a project that will build better connectivity for its citizens to jobs, healthcare, and cultural amenities as well as flood mitigation. The City of Huntsville will propose a project for DoT’s TIGER Grant program known as the Pedestrian Access and Redevelopment Corridor. The project will include a 1.5-mile pedestrian and bikeway trail system in the urban core and will fund the design and replacement of the 1940s-era Fagan Class III Trestle Bridge to Class I standard.

TVA Board Representation The Tennesee Valley Authority (TVA) serves 500,601 households and 101,973 commercial and industrial customers through their distributors in 17 Alabama counties. TVA’s contribution in economic development and stewardship of the Tennessee River has made a huge impact in Alabama. The value of depreciated TVA assets in Alabama are 16.8 percent of TVA’s total assets – second only to Tennessee – and more than double the assets of any of the remaining states.

Impact: Alabama has had only three board members in TVA’s history and is thankful for the recent investiture of James R. “Skip” Thompson.

Requested Action: Based on TVA’s Alabama investment, number of customers served, and revenues relative to the other states served, the chamber respectfully requests consideration of a second Alabama representative on the TVA Board.

Municipal Bonds State and local governments are continually updating their infrastructure, using the tax-free status to attract borrowers.

While the Tax Reform Act of 2017 did not repeal the tax exempt status of these bonds, it did repeal the bond issuers ability to refund and re-issue these bonds at a lower interest outside of a 90-day window, prior to maturity.

Community Impact: While preventing refunding and re-issuing tax-free municipal bond generates very little revenues to the U.S. government, it will prevent considerable savings to the issuers over the life of the bond. Therefore, the borrowed money funds less infrastructure.

Requested Action: Congress should repeal this section of the Tax Reform Act of 2017, allowing one bond refund and re-issue over the life of the bond as it was prior to the Act.

Regional Energy Innovation The Huntsville community continues to invest considerable time and effort to promote energy market economic development, and continues to assess emerging opportunities in the area with DoD, DoE and the commercial market in support of the Mayor’s Energy Huntsville initiative. The Mayor’s office, Huntsville/Madison County Chamber, HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH), Redstone Arsenal, Army Corps of Engineers, NASA’s MSFC, U.S. Army Materiel Command, AMRDEC, Nexus Energy Center, Oak Ridge-Huntsville Partnership, the TVC, TechRich, BizTech, Huntsville Utilities, the U.S. Space and Rocket Center (USSRC), the Alabama Center for Sustainable Energy, and TVA are working to frame candidate energy projects and activities that would reduce community and DoD energy consumption, reduce logistics requirements in the field and provide low cost renewable power production capabilities at installations including Redstone, the USSRC and BizTech and communities in the region. Several proposals have been submitted and accepted that will continue for several years to support DoE’s Better Buildings Program and the Georgetown University Energy Prize (GUEP). Also, a significant ongoing activity is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Huntsville Center continuing to execute significant contracting for renewable energy generation and energy management and control systems.

Community Impact: Emerging energy technology companies and their solution systems, their DoD and commercial applications, represent a promising opportunity to diversify and grow the regions’ economy in the energy sector.

The Energy Huntsville organization acquired its 501(c)(6) nonprofit certification and has gained significant industry support, enabling energy market economic growth in the area. The Huntsville Community sees this as an opportunity to apply critical systems R&T and testing skills to new

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2018 Federal Issues Book Huntsville projects, such as the use of fuel cells in UAVs, biofuels in the Army fleet, the validation of renewable energy power production systems, and field new portable power systems for the warfighter in support of the U.S. Army. The community also sees this as a way to spawn new commercial applications, and to further solidify Huntsville’s image and reputation as a provider of innovative and leading edge energy technical solutions.

Requested Actions: • Support an innovative energy pilot project at Redstone and the USSRC that is aligned with the area’s power generation and monitoring requirements to include feasibility analysis.

• Support the provisions of the Military Energy Security Act in establishing collaborative DoD and DoE Pilot Programs such as Small Modular Reactors (SMR).

• Support Energy Huntsville’s planning and execution of its Annual Energy Summit that takes place in the fall at the USSRC, involving key DoD, DoE, TVA, DLA, NETL, and other notable participants that bring energy focus to Huntsville and the region supporting the energy economic development objectives through representation and/or engagement.

• Support other DoD and DoE energy initiatives and proposals that enable technologies, such as SMRs, developed in the broader Tennessee Valley region to compete for funding via budget measures.

• Support policy and community initiatives that reduce barriers and enable businesses to take advantage of cost-effective energy efficiency and renewable energy programs.

Enhancing Local Air Service through Deregulation A majority of consumers recognize the importance of airports to the community, yet even with widespread support only a small percentage of the population is aware that Airport Improvement Program (AIP) federal funds are spent at the local level. Even less realize that while Congress deregulated the airline industry in 1978 – allowing airlines to set airfares based on market-conditions – community airports remain burdened with federal economic regulations and, for the most part, are powerless to address airlines airfare pricing in their community.

National Impact: Small airports have been and are being severely impacted by airline consolidations (mergers), capacity reductions, increased airfares and pilot shortage. All of these issues intertwined result in reduced or eliminated air service. Airport infrastructure and economic deregulation of airports is a community and economic development

issue. Airports need the ability to maintain effective modern infrastructure, as well as attract competitive airfares to their community, in order to meet the needs of commerce, industry and the general public within their region.

Requested Action: Deregulate airports economically, similar to airline deregulation in 1978, in order to achieve greater flexibility for small airports to meet the specific air service development needs of their local community. This would allow small airports the ability to spend local airport revenues, without Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) limitations, to implement programs and policies at the local level which could enhance air service for their community.

Fully Fund the Airport Improvement Fund (AIP) Referenced above is the Airport Improvement Program (AIP).

This fund, which is supported entirely by aviation system users, finances critical airport safety, security, and capacity projects at airports of all sizes across the country. Congress has provided $3.35B annually for AIP in the last three fiscal years. Moving forward, we urge Congress to support S.1655 which will increase AIP funding to $3.6B for FY18. In addition, supporting S.1655 will increase the PFC cap, which when implemented by large airports, will allow more of the AIP discretionary funds to be available to smaller airports. The AIP and the request related to the PFC go hand in hand in allowing more opportunity for critical growth and fulfillment of needs at small community airports.

Requested Action: Airports urge Congress to support proposed Senate appropriations bill S.1655 which will provide increased AIP funding to $3.6B as well as potentially increase AIP discretionary funds for small community airports.

Reduce Federal Regulations and Unfunded Mandates The FAA currently provides for less than 25 percent of the funding for airport capital improvements on an annual basis, but yet controls 100 percent of the airport’s activity. The FAA does not provide airports with general fund dollars, but rather all airport funding comes from users of the airport/ aviation system – the FAA merely handles these funds for redistribution to airports based on an archaic formula system.

The FAA would serve the airport/aviation community better by allowing airports to set rates, fees, and charges, including the Passenger Facility Charge (PFC) based on individual airport needs and solely at the local level without any FAA interference.

Airports face redundancy and overly burdensome compliance and regulations: The 20-page Grant Assurance document that Sponsors (airports) “must” accept in conjunction with

2018 Federal Issues Book accepting an Airport Improvement Program (AIP) Grant currently requires airports to comply with more than 56 different Federal Regulations, Executive Orders, and Federal Legislation. The majority of the Grant Assurance provisions are an overreach by the FAA to control airport activities for a small grant contribution. In addition, Public Sponsors have more stringent requirements than Private Sponsors.

Sponsors must also meet the requirements of a 691-page FAA Compliance Manual, a 318-page AIP Handbook, and a 183-page PFC Order, which are just a few examples that further support the fact that the FAA overregulates airports.

Requested Actions: • Reduce burdens by changing AIP grant application for entitlement funds to a ‘receive and report process’ and remove redundant law requirements in grant assurances; • Regarding land acquisition and sales for property purchased without federal funding, the FAA should be removed from having any say in disposal, use, or leasing of such property. The FAA should have no say in the leases, business practices or fund usage of an airport so long as the funds are used for the betterment of the airport, aviation system, or air service in their community, and there is no diversion of revenue for a non-airport related purpose; • Federal, State and Local agencies should pay for airport space, and the FAA should have no role in approval of non-airfield facilities. The FAA Compliance Manual, a 691-page document that is far overreaching in its requirements of airports, should be reviewed with an airport industry-working group to eliminate unnecessary and burdensome requirements.

Support Legislation to Increase the Cap on Local Passenger Facility Charges (PFC) The PFC cap has not been raised since 2000, when Congress raised the cap to $4.50. Since then, construction costs have risen more than 50 percent and severely eroded the purchasing power of PFCs. Past requests have implored that the cap be eliminated or increased. Now a proposed Senate appropriations bill, S.1655, would increase the cap on the airport PFC from $4.50 per flight segment to $8.50 for origin and destination passengers (O&D) only. This would restore the PFC’s lost purchasing power and allow airports to set their own levels based on locally-determined needs to ensure the continued safety, security, and modernization of their facilities. This bill provides greater flexibilities for airports to make much needed capacity improvements.

Airports Council International-North America (ACI-NA) stated that the increase is essential if airports are going to keep up with needed rehabilitation projects and with growth in passenger and cargo traffic. In north Alabama, at HSV specifically, raising the cap would allow completion of our

page 17 Group VI airfield improvements which would make both the east and west runways Group VI compliant.

Requested Action: Small communities around the country urge Congress to support S.1655 which would increase the federal cap on local Passenger Facility Charges from $4.50 to $8.50 for O&D passengers only. At a time when there is increasing pressure to reduce federal spending, eliminating the PFC cap would provide airports with the self-help they need to finance and complete critical infrastructure projects without relying on scarce federal funds.

Support for UAS Integration Pilot Program Site Selection in Huntsville The FAA is putting together a program called the UAS Integration Pilot Program. This is an opportunity for state, local, and tribal governments to partner with private sector entities, such as UAS operators or manufacturers, to accelerate safe UAS integration. HSV has submitted a proposal to the FAA to be selected as a lead applicant to this program. If selected, HSV will be a part of this program that is expected to provide immediate opportunities for new and expanded commercial UAS operations, foster a meaningful dialogue on the balance between local and national interests related to UAS integration, and provide actionable information to the Department of Transportation (DoT) on expanded and universal integration of UAS into the National Airspace System (NAS).

Requested Action: Provide immediate support for Huntsville International Airport’s application to be selected by the FAA as a site for the UAS Integration Pilot Program by contacting the FAA to request that HSV be selected as a site.

Oppose Privatization of Our Nation’s Air Traffic Control System If our nation’s air traffic control system is privatized, it will remove Congressional oversight of this system and put it under the control of a board of private stakeholders.

Congressional oversight ensures that a network of 5,000 airports and communities of all sizes across the country have access to the transportation system. Under a privatized system, a powerful few would undoubtedly direct resources and investments to the largest hub airports and urban areas, at the expense of smaller airports and other regions of the country. They could also shape and influence the system in many other ways like leveraging many new fees and taxes, reducing access to airports for lower cost competitors and impeding access to particular airports.

Requested Action: We urge you to oppose any form of air traffic control privatization.

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2018 Federal Issues Book

Support Dream Chaser® Project at Huntsville International Airport Huntsville/Madison County is another step closer to landing a space vehicle at the Huntsville International Airport, which would make it the first commercial airport to accommodate Dream Chaser® spacecraft landings. Huntsville International Airport is in the process of applying for licensing through the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to land the Sierra Nevada Corporation’s (SNC) Dream Chaser® spacecraft on one of its commercial runways. This Phase II contract follows a Phase I contract completed in 2015 that examined the compatibility of SNC’s Dream Chaser® with the existing runway and taxiway environments at the Airport. Landing the Dream Chaser® spacecraft in Huntsville keeps our community at the forefront of economic development opportunities in the emerging commercial space industry. It is a logical fit for Huntsville considering proximity to industry, resources and unmatched related experience.

Requested Action: Continue to support the Dream Chaser® project at Huntsville International Airport.

••• MISSILE AND SPACE INTELLIGENCE CENTER (MSIC) National Impact: Located at the Richard C. Shelby Center for Missile and Space Intelligence on Redstone Arsenal, MSIC is one of the nation’s premier scientific intelligence organizations. Charged with analyzing and understanding the characteristics and vulnerabilities of foreign threat air defense, short range ballistic missiles (SRBMs), and counter space analysis, MSIC also addresses the impacts of worldwide emerging technologies on the predicted capabilities of threat weapons, including support of U.S. cyber operations.

MSIC’s efforts are vital elements of the nation’s defense, especially as U.S. and allied defense systems become more complex. Building upon the outstanding scientific and engineering skills and capabilities within the Huntsville region, MSIC has been a pioneer in the development of innovative solutions to significant national intelligence analysis problems.

These in-depth and innovative skills should be leveraged to address additional national priorities such as the rapidly growing cyber and supply chain threats. The MSIC-AMRDEC offense-defense interaction research and analysis program should be sustained and expanded. The program is vital to understanding cyber threat characteristics and the development of knowledge-based responses to mitigate the emerging cyber security and supply chain risk management threats.

As worldwide missile and air breathing threats increase in technical capabilities and inventory levels, the threats become more challenging to the U.S. and allied warfighters.

MSIC must have the critical human, financial, and physical resources necessary to sustain and expand its mission to support the acquisition community, national policy makers, and the air-sea-land and cyberspace operations of the combatant commands.

Community Impact: Employing about 400 government personnel and about 150 contractors, MSIC will continue to significantly contribute to the nation’s defense. The local economic impact from MSIC will be enhanced by insuring that MSIC funding supports robust analysis of the growing air defense systems, SRBMs, cyber threats, and counter space.

Requested Action: Increase FY19 MSIC funding over the President’s budget request to provide increased support for MSIC intelligence analysis program, including the cyber security offense–defense integration program.

••• SMALL SATELLITE The operational use of nano-satellites and micro-satellites has the potential to transform the battlefield by delivering unprecedented levels of situational awareness to the lowest echelons of the Multi-Domain Task Force. Our Army must develop new innovative technologies in order to regain our overmatch against emerging threats and the ever-increasing capability of our adversaries. Constellations of small satellites have the potential to deliver robust and resilient communications, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), and other critical information in austere or denied and degraded environments ensuring overmatch and increased lethality for our Warfighters.

The U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command (USASMDC/ARSTRAT) continues to pursue space-based and high altitude technologies to enhance the Army’s ability to shoot, move, communicate, and seize the initiative. ASASMDC/ARSTRAT’s efforts are grounded in the Army’s modernization priorities to better enable Long Range Precision Fires, Networks/Command, Control, Communications, and Intelligence, Air and Missile Defense, and Soldier Lethality. To fight and win our nation’s wars, the Army must have access to unprecedented levels of information in order to shape and control the battlefield.

USASMDA/ARSTRAT believes small satellites are a critical enabler to providing this level of information as a resilient and robust compliment to more traditional means.

Requested Action: Continue to support funding for Army Small Satellite programs and establish an Army Space Laboratory Capability at USASMDC/ARSTRAT to serve as the focal point and tactical application for how the Army fights in space.

2018 Federal Issues Book

••• CYBER SECURITY: EXPANDING THE TENNESSEE VALLEY’S EXCELLENCE IN CYBER SECURITY National Impact: The most critical National Strategic Defense Systems are designed/developed at Redstone Arsenal and require a rapid, integrated, agile framework, and processes to mitigate and prevent the substantial increase in known/unknown cyberattacks posing a destructive impact to critical National/State/Public infrastructure, industry, education, and financial resources. The convergence of Federal, State, local governments and industry located in Huntsville provides an ideal place to assess cyber vulnerabilities, identify scenarios, and available response resources (funding sources, personnel, equipment, facilities, policy, law). These exceptionally capable organizations use these assessments to develop cyber defense solutions and share cyber forensics lessons learned from previous attacks to achieve the best cyber threat posture and create a cyber-safe, secure, resilient, and sustainable community.

Community Impact: Team Redstone, comprised of all federal agencies located on Redstone Arsenal, will continue to pioneer the way to properly defend our aviation and missile system-of-system level demonstrations, battlefield systems, and soldiers against these invasive threat actors and their efforts. The workforce of these organizations that combats this sophisticated cyber threat requires multi-faceted cyber experts who understand system and network administration and analysis, intelligence analysis, proficiency in programming, and the ability to think outside the box. Demand for these cybersecurity workers is far outstripping the available workforce.

The first step to alleviate this workforce disparity has been to capitalize on another unique relationship between U.S. Space and Rocket Center (USSRC) Space Camp® model and local cyber security experts to create a world-renowned Cyber Camp that promotes the cyber and STEM education necessary to fill the cyber-workforce needs of the future.

USSRC has completed two cyber camps with several additional camps scheduled for Alabama students exclusively in CY18. The Camp promotes much needed diversity in cyber students, who through hands-on application of cyber skills will join those already interested in or pursuing cyber career opportunities in industry or government. Additional resources (funding, personnel, equipment, facilities, etc.) beyond the initial investment are required to fully execute a system-of-systems cyber approach, and leverage lessons learned to develop and promote a nationally available program that supports the critical workforce requirements.

Funding support from Congress will sustain the development

page 19 of cyber defense solutions at Redstone Arsenal and defend against the cyberattacks of our critical National/State/Public infrastructure, industry, education, and financial resources.

The funding will also provide STEM-Outreach to further develop U.S. Cyber Camp’s STEM education and establish a multi-use cyber range to enhance today’s cyber training, and a multi-use Cyber Range that will enable a more robust development of a much under-sourced cyber workforce.

Requested Actions: • Increase PEO Missiles & Space and PEO Aviation funding for cyber security, cyber electromagnetic affects (CEMA), and supply chain security analyses in support of missile systems, aviation and unmanned aerial systems.

• Increase funding to enhance the FBI’s Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory network, including the recently opened interim Tennessee Valley Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory at Redstone Arsenal. Support the FBI’s National Defense Cyber Alliance, a partnership with the Huntsville area cleared defense contractor community and Redstone defense and government agencies. The Alliance focuses on network attacks and intrusions.

• Provide STEM-Outreach funding to the USSRC to further develop the U.S. Cyber Camp launch of the future National Cyber workforce.

• Add research and development funding to the Aviation and Missile RD&E Center for aviation and missile technology development, and a Redstone “cyber campus” to support all Team Redstone members.

• Provide research funding for The University of Alabama in Huntsville, Southeast Region Cyber Research Center (SERCRC) to establish an expanded facility for educational collaborations; resource it with state-of-theart equipment; hire additional national experts to staff the facility for the first two years.

• Provide funding to Redstone Test Center to develop a distributed environment for systems-of-systems cybersecurity testing that can be utilized by all team Redstone organizations to perform cybersecurity testing on critical mission systems.

• Sustain and increase the funding to SMDC/ARSTRAT to support Cyber M&S environment, conduct advanced cyber analytics, ID vulnerabilities, train operators, test systems against threats that cannot be deployed on operational or R&D systems, and tune defensive tools to these threats.

• Sustain the FY19; increase the FY20 AMRDEC Advanced Scientific Research Program funding.

• Sustain and increase funding for the AMRDEC-MSIC offense/defense interaction in the cyber, electronic warfare and Air and Missile domain (AMD).

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••• SUPPORT FBI MASTER PLAN FOR REDSTONE The FBI continues to grow its presence at Redstone through the execution of its Master Plan for Redstone Arsenal. The plan seeks to leverage synergies with existing Redstone tenants, especially those in the science, technology and logistics arenas. Several new facilities opened in 2017, while others will remain under construction throughout 2018.

These new facilities not only brought additional FBI staff to Redstone but also brought employees from its partner agencies. An interim training center to execute training that could not be accommodated at the FBI’s Quantico Campus became operational in the summer of 2017, and attendance is expected to increase during 2018. Under the new FBI Headquarters strategy, Redstone has been identified as one of the sites targeted for relocating functions not required to remain in the Washington D.C. area.

National Impact: The FBI’s Master Plan for Redstone focuses on providing increased capabilities and capacities needed to meet current and future national security and criminal threats. The Redstone area offers a secure place to conduct FBI operations, a lower business cost, opportunities to leverage existing science and technology capabilities and knowledge, proximity to leading universities and colleges, and a favorable quality of life for employees.

Community Impact: The growth of the FBI will have a positive impact on Redstone and the Huntsville-Madison County metropolitan area. In addition to bringing new government jobs, the plan will also create opportunities for local service suppliers and vendors and create job opportunities.

Requested Action: Continued funding for the FBI’s Master Plan for Redstone Arsenal.

••• FEDERAL MEETING APPROVAL PROCESS AND LIMITED ROOM AVAILABILITY AT PER DIEM HITS WORKERS, BUSINESSES HARD National Impact: Communities across the nation continue to experience a significant decline in attendance at Federal meetings, conferences and trade shows, compared to levels of previous years. The desire to cut wasteful spending has severely impacted the ability of government employees to attend meetings and conferences which ultimately results in increased cost to taxpayers. Hotel and convention center attrition clauses drive up the cost per attendee, and

economies of scale available at larger symposiums and conferences are more limited.

Community Impact: Government travel and meetings are the largest market segment, accounting for more than $10M in economic impact to Huntsville/Madison County. The government per diem is the prevailing rate for tens of thousands of government room nights annually as well as the base rate upon which hundreds of thousands of contractor rates are determined. It has become extremely difficult to secure a sufficient number of rooms at government per diem to meet the demand by individual travelers as well as conference attendees. This limited availability has forced several government meeting planners to look elsewhere when determining conference and symposium locations. Additionally, the current per diem rate is negatively affecting our ability to attract new hotels and even the ability of our existing hotels to provide the services and amenities our government per diem guests require. The business lost due to the low government per diem rate has a huge financial impact on our community.

Requested Actions: • Support the funding of Federal meetings, conferences and trade shows as well as a streamlined approval process by which federal employees can quickly gain approval to attend; • Advocate an increased government per diem rate for Madison County, so government travelers can continue to enjoy the clean, comfortable, and safe accommodations we all demand at an equitable rate for the hotel owner, management and staff. When planned and executed correctly, government meetings most certainly benefit citizens by making government more effective.

••• BASE REALIGNMENT AND CLOSURE (BRAC) An additional round of BRAC may be required to help the services cut unneeded infrastructure. Five previous rounds of BRAC have produced significant base downsizing which has led to significant cost savings.

National Importance: Maintaining unneeded defense infrastructure diverts precious resources from the warfighting readiness of our military. In his 6 October 2017 letter to Congressional Defense Committees, Secretary of Defense James Mattis stated that the Department maintains approximately 19 percent excess capacity. He emphasizes that “every unnecessary facility we maintain requires us to cut capabilities elsewhere. I must be able to eliminate excess infrastructure in order to shift resources to readiness and modernization.” Defense proposes Congress authorize a 2021 BRAC round.

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2018 Federal Issues Book Community Importance: Redstone is well positioned to realize growth as a result of future rounds of BRAC as in previous BRACs. Redstone is now home to the Army’s most senior logistics headquarters, DoD and Army missile defense leadership, and is evolving into a Federal Center of Excellence. While nothing is guaranteed in the BRAC process, Redstone’s proven track record of successfully handling significant military consolidations and the community’s attractiveness make the region’s prospects for growth in a BRAC round very likely.

these vehicles substantially reduces prime contracting opportunities for much of the small business community, challenging the long-term vibrancy and viability of a major segment of Alabama’s economic engine.

Requested Action: We urge the delegation to remain openminded regarding requests for BRAC from the Department of Defense and military services.

• Require a competitive refresh and on-ramp opportunities on limited-source GWAC vehicles such as OASIS every three to five years. This will allow contracting offices to prune non-performing or non-participating prime contractors and simultaneously create room for new entrants. While this requires agencies to recompete more frequently, it also ensures that the prime contractor base is fully reset and provides fair opportunities for new entrants as well as existing firms.

••• CONTRACTING AT REDSTONE Procuring agency use of limited-source Government-Wide Acquisition Contracts (GWACS), such as the General Services Administration (GSA) One Acquisition Solution for Integrated Services (OASIS), is proliferating. As these vehicles grow in popularity, firms that traditionally have served one market or one geographic region – common for many small firms – are increasingly unable to compete for new work or finding their existing work moving to a contract vehicle that is not accessible.

National Significance: Limited source GWAC vehicles concentrate substantial work into a limited competitive field.

OASIS alone has awarded more than 1,000 task orders with a combined value of $5.93B to a field consisting of 129 smalland 76 large-business concerns. While 205 firms seems like a large number, the growing popularity of these contracts is having a significant impact on hundreds of other companies that simply can no longer compete for an ever-growing number of procurements.

Viewed as a long-term phenomenon, use of limitedsource GWAC vehicles will encourage additional rounds of industry consolidation at all levels of the service sector with the accompanying loss of competitive depth. The most significant impact, however, will fall on those small- and midsized firms that would otherwise be viable competitors for prime contracts procured as standalone acquisitions.

In the case of OASIS, GSA has planned periodic on-ramps during the 10-year life of the contracts; however, if GSA intends to limit the number of primes, opportunities for new entrants will be vanishingly small.

Community Impact: The impact of limited-source GWAC vehicles is particularly significant for small business concerns.

Alabama alone is home to more than 300 small companies that primarily serve federal government customers, yet only 15 of them hold OASIS prime contracts. Increased use of

Suggested Courses of Action: • Encourage continued use of agency- or program-specific standalone acquisitions as a first option rather than reliance on limited source GWAC vehicles, particularly for procurements with requirements suitable for small business prime contractors.

••• EDUCATION Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act The Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act is a proven process to help secondary and post-secondary students become high value employees in industry by providing access to federal dollars to offset the cost of Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs.

National Impact: Employers nationwide are reporting a shortage of skilled workers to fill in-demand positions. CTE programs throughout the country are central to overcoming this skills gap. STEM professions and skilled trades represent the highest demand occupations in the U.S., and the age of the workforce is higher than that of other occupations.

Unless the supply of students is increased, the inability of the nation to meet workforce demands will drive up costs, reduce productivity, and constrain our global competitiveness.

Community Impact: The economy of Huntsville/Madison County is diversifying into more advanced manufacturing in support of federal and commercial markets. We have seized remarkable opportunities with Remington, Polaris, and GE Aviation, but we must be able to supply the workforce for these and related projects or risk not only the failure of existing businesses but the cessation of further economic development activity.

Requested Action: We ask that the Perkins Act be reauthorized with a focus on high-growth, high-demand industry.

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2018 Federal Issues Book

Workforce Our economy is supported by a highly innovative, creative, productive, and industrious workforce. To keep the economy vibrant and to continue to create opportunity for workers, we must ensure that new businesses can continue to be launched and existing industry can be expanded. The Huntsville/Madison County Chamber promotes workforce policies that will enhance, not inhibit, economic growth and job creation. Previous actions by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), the Department of Labor (DoL) and the Administrative Branch, have had a negative impact on these efforts.

National Impact: Providing a workplace that supports employee needs, including appropriate compensation, is critical to any company’s long term success. Therefore, it is important that any collective bargaining process be informative, transparent, and timely for the benefit of both employees and employers. The NLRB “Ambush Election” Rule significantly shortens the time between a union filing a request for an election and the date the election is actually held. Additionally, the decision to overturn the NLRB’S long-standing “joint employee” standard is likely to have a significant impact on companies that rely on staffing agencies and contractors, and these effects may ripple into the world of franchised businesses.

Huntsville/Madison County serve as a national asset to support the federal missions of Redstone Arsenal and the corporate presence in Cummings Research Park. As such, established and proven federal contractors are a critical part of successfully fulfilling the missions of Team Redstone.

Community Impact: Communication between employee and employer is critical for employee engagement and successful business operations. Accelerating the union election process deprives employers of their right to communicate with their employees about the impacts of unionizing – in turn, depriving employees of information they need to make informed decisions. Additionally, the removal of the “joint employer” standard facilitates unionization efforts, needlessly upends existing law and undermines a clear-cut standard that has increased businesses’ flexibility/competitiveness and created employment opportunities for millions of Americans for 30 years.

Requested Action: Given the critical work that takes place daily on Redstone Arsenal, we oppose efforts to rewrite labor and employment laws in ways that will prevent wellestablished and proven federal contractors from being able to continue providing the federal government with vital goods and services.

Pell Grants for Two-Year Schools Pell Grants are a subsidy the U.S. federal government

provides for students who need it to pay for college. Federal Pell Grants are limited to students with financial need, who have not earned their first bachelor’s degree, or who are enrolled in certain post-baccalaureate programs, through participating institutions. At times, Pell Grants have been limited to fall and spring terms, leaving students without funding for summer classes.

National Impact: Students that wish to complete their postsecondary education as quickly as possible in order to enter the workforce are negatively impacted by a lack of year-round Pell Grant funding. Many students, especially in skilled trades that are in high demand in manufacturing, do not return to school if their education is interrupted.

Community Impact: Huntsville/Madison County is experiencing significant growth in manufacturing, increasing the demand for skilled trades. Calhoun Community College is the largest two-year school in Alabama and has experienced a decrease in students returning to school after taking summers off because of lack of Pell Grants.

Requested Action: Maintain year-round funding for Pell Grants.

Workforce & Higher Education National Impact: The Huntsville metro area boasts one of the smartest workforces in America today, and the area has a critical mass of highly educated technological capabilities that exist in few places on Earth. This talented workforce serves as a national asset to support the federal missions of Redstone Arsenal and the corporate presence in Cummings Research Park, the second largest university-related research park in the U.S. Community Impact: Today, workers with advanced degrees have made Redstone Arsenal a strategically important installation for the U.S. Army – crucial to the nation’s defense and security. Marshall Space Flight Center is one of NASA’s largest field centers and supports America’s space science and exploration missions. Federal agencies that provide research funds for research universities, such as The University of Alabama in Huntsville and Alabama A&M University, promote advanced workforce development, help advance technologies for the nation, and create spinoff technologies that enhance local job and wealth creation.

Requested Action: We request enhanced support for federal research activities across a broad spectrum of technological fields, with an emphasis on national defense, biotechnology, cybersecurity, homeland defense, as well as space exploration and science.

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2018 Federal Issues Book

SUPPORT FOR CENSUS A decennial United States Census is mandated by the U.S. Constitution, and its accuracy is essential to informing private and public decision-making. Businesses use data derived from the Census to measure demand for a product in a new market, understand where to find qualified workers, or determine the location of a new facility or service. Similarly, the federal government uses Census data to direct billions of dollars to state and local programs that strengthen our future workforce. In particular, Census data guides federal investment in high-quality early education and care programs, such as Head Start and the Child Care and Development Block Grant, that help children arrive at school ready to learn.

The U.S. Census Bureau is responsible for executing an accurate Census, but throughout the 2020 Census lifecycle – which runs from FY2012 through FY2021 – Congress has allocated less funding than the Census Bureau has requested to complete its work. This lack of funding has resulted in delays and uncertainty surrounding the development and implementation of new technologies and testing. Without this testing and additional measures to ensure an accurate count, the Census may fail to yield the high-quality data needed to inform decision-making over the next 10 years.

Requested Action: Support robust federal Census funding to help ensure necessary preparations for and execution of an accurate 2020 Census.

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