María Elvira Salazar: “The budget authority for the Air Force is equally robust, putting additional money behind some of our key space and…”

“The budget authority for the Air Force is equally robust, putting additional money behind some of our key space and missile defense programs. Many of our communications, intelligence, and missile detection satellites--a large number of which are flown by the 50th Space Wing out of Buckley--are reaching the end of their lifespan. Every day, though, they grow more and more central to troops on the ground. The bill provides important investments in our space assets, including $126.7 million for the Space-Based Infrared Satellite System to replace outdated missile detection satellites, and another $300 million to improve our space situational awareness, to help address concerns raised as a result of the Chinese antisatellite test earlier this year. Ask the space professionals, as I have at Schriever, Buckley, or Peterson Air Force Base, and they will tell you how much these investments are needed. Beyond the funding for equipment and facilities in the bill, however, there are several key quality-of-life provisions in this legislation that the Armed Services Committee has brought before us. Supporting our troops, after all, means we support them in the field and we support them at home.”