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Congressional Daily Record
This section is about changes proposed to a bill or resolution. It mentions members such as Catherine Marie Cortez Masto.
Issued
June 24, 2026
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Download official Senate Record PDFReturn to issue contextSA 6424. Ms. CORTEZ MASTO submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by her to the bill S. 4784, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2027 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:
At the appropriate place in title VIII, insert the
following:
SEC. 8. DESIGNATION AND USE OF A GOVERNMENT-OWNED,
CONTRACTOR-OPERATED RAPID MANUFACTURING
FACILITY FOR UNCREWED SYSTEMS.
(a) Designation of Facility.—The Secretary of Defense
shall designate an existing Government-owned facility, or
modify an existing facility within the organic industrial
base, to function as a Government-owned, contractor-operated
rapid manufacturing facility (in this section referred to as
the “Facility”) for the purpose of supporting accelerated
production and integration of airborne and maritime uncrewed
systems.
(b) Purpose.—The purpose of the Facility shall be to
provide the Department of Defense with a surge-capable
capability to rapidly produce, reconfigure, and scale
uncrewed systems and associated payloads in response to
operational requirements and contingency planning needs.
(c) Activities.—The Facility shall—
(1) support the production of airborne and maritime
uncrewed systems, including attritable systems, loitering
munitions, autonomous surface vessels, and modular payloads;
(2) employ modular open architectures, digital engineering,
and advanced manufacturing techniques, including additive
manufacturing and automation, to enable flexible production;
(3) maintain the capability to shift production across
system types based on operational demand;
(4) prioritize systems capable of being fielded within 12
to 24 months using iterative development and deployment
approaches; and
(5) support rapid transition from prototyping to production
consistent with existing Department of Defense acquisition
authorities.
(d) Operation.—
(1) Contract.—The Secretary shall provide for the
operation of the Facility through a competitively awarded
contract or consortium agreement using existing contracting
authorities.
(2) Priority in operator selection.—In selecting an
operator for the award of a contract or agreement under
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall prioritize entities with
demonstrated experience in rapid prototyping, advanced
manufacturing, and defense system integration.
(e) Integration With Existing Efforts.—In carrying out
this section, the Secretary shall ensure coordination with,
and avoid duplication of, existing Department of Defense
efforts, including—
(1) the Defense Innovation Unit;
(2) the Department of Defense Manufacturing Innovation
Institutes;
(3) the Manufacturing Technology Program; and
(4) the transition activities of the Defense Advanced
Research Projects Agency.
(f) Workforce Development.—The Secretary shall use the
Facility, to the maximum extent practicable, to support
training and reskilling of Department of Defense personnel
and members of the defense industrial workforce in advanced
manufacturing, digital engineering, and agile production
methods, using existing training programs and authorities.
(g) Limitation.—The Facility may not be used for the
production of major defense acquisition program platforms,
including ships and submarines.
(h) Implementation Plan.—Not later than 180 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense
shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report
describing—
(1) the facility designated under subsection (a);
(2) the manner by which existing authorities, facilities,
and appropriations will be used to carry out this section;
(3) the management and contracting structure for the
Facility; and
(4) metrics to evaluate production speed, flexibility, and
operational relevance.
(i) Budget Neutrality.—
(1) No additional funds authorized.—No additional funds
are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section.
(2) Use of existing resources.—The Secretary of Defense
shall carry out this section using amounts otherwise
authorized and appropriated for the Department of Defense.
(3) No new program element required.—Nothing in this
section shall be construed to require the establishment of a
new program element or budget line.
(j) Rule of Construction.—Nothing in this section may be
construed to alter or expand the statutory requirements
applicable to major defense acquisition programs or to create
a new acquisition category.