All meetings will take place at 1:00 pm at the American Chemical Society in the Othmer A-B conference room (1550 M Street NW)

Please join us at in the Marvel Conference rooms of the American Chemical Society (1155 16th Street NW) on Tuesday, December 19th at 1:00 pm for our monthly CNSR meeting.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/09/20060905.html

And the entire strategy document can be downloaded here:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/nsc/nsct/2006/index.html

The strategy taps the resources of many federal agencies, including the Department of Defense. One particular passage might be of interest to your institutions:

Foster intellectual and human capital. To better prepare ourselves for a generational struggle against terrorism and the extremist ideologies fueling it, we will create an expert community of counterterrorism professionals. We will continue to establish more systematic programs for the development and education of current professionals in counterterrorism-related fields. We will substantively expand our existing programs with curricula that includes not only training in counterterrorism policies, plans and planning, strategies, and legal authorities, but continuing education in appropriate area studies, religious philosophies, and languages. We also will ensure that personnel throughout all levels of government and in all fields related to combating terror are invited to participate.

Yet such development and education programs must not be restricted to current counterterrorism personnel. We will support multidisciplinary studies throughout our educational system to build a knowledgeable pool of counterterrorism recruits for the future. The recent National Security Language Initiative is an essential step forward. It will help to expand U.S. foreign language education beginning in early childhood and continuing throughout formal schooling and into the workforce. Our efforts to foster intellectual and human capital also will extend beyond our borders – to academic and non-governmental forums with our international partners to discuss and enhance our knowledge about the critical counterterrorism challenges we confront.

In the War on Terror, there is also a need for all elements of our Nation – from Federal, State, and local governments to the private sector to local communities and individual citizens – to help create and share responsibilities in a Culture of Preparedness. This Culture of Preparedness, which applies to all catastrophes and all hazards, natural or man-made, rests on four principles: a shared acknowledgement of the certainty of future catastrophes and that creating a prepared Nation will be a continuing challenge; the importance of initiative and accountability at all levels of society; the role of citizen and community preparedness; and finally, the roles of each level of government and the private sector in creating a prepared Nation. Built upon a foundation of partnerships, common goals, and shared responsibility, the creation of a Culture of Preparedness will be among our most profound and enduring transformations in the broader effort to protect and defend the Homeland.

Latest press reports indicate that Leadership wants the bill completed by the end of the week. Both chambers have expressed that they want the conference and final floor action to be completed by the end of September.

Senators Kennedy and Collins plan to introduce an amendment to the DoD Appropriations Bill, H.R. 5631, when it is considered by the Senate.

The amendment will appropriate an additional $45 million for basic research accounts. It differs slightly from the Authorization amendment passed earlier this summer.

Specifically, the amendment calls for increases to the Committee-reported funding levels in the following amounts:
$12 million in additional funds for Army University Research Initiatives (PE 0601103A)
$13 million in additional funds for Navy URI (PE 0601103N)
$5 million in additional funds for Air Force URI (PE 0601103F)
$6 million in additional funds for the DARPA (PE 0601101E) for its University Research Program in Computer Science and Cybersecurity
$9 million in additional funds for the SMART National Defense Education Program (PE 0601120D8Z)

From information provided by the senators:

The Kennedy-Collins Amendment:

Increases the Senate Appropriations Committee-Reported Funding Level for the DoD SMART Scholars Program to $24 Million in Fiscal Year 2007. Provides sufficient funding for full cost of college scholarships and graduate fellowships to approximately 100 star science, technology, engineering and math undergraduate and graduate students. Students will receive funding for their full cost of attendance, summer internships, laboratory materials, undergraduate and graduate level research.

Increases funding by 10% over 2006 for research, development, test and evaluation in the Science and Technology areas through university research initiatives. Increases are directed to the Army ($12M), Navy ($13M), Air Force ($5M), and the DARPA University Research Program in Computer Science and Cyber security ($6M).

The DoD appropriations bill currently allocates a $1.479 billion in basic research. This is $9.3 million or only 0.6 percent increase above the FY2006 appropriated levels for defense basic research. An additional $45 million in these basic research lines and NDEP would raise the increase to nearly $55 million, or about 3.7 percent.

A solid showing of support for this amendment is very important for its adoption. We had 24 senators support a similar effort on the authorization bill - it would be incredibly helpful for universities and associations to contact these and other offices to urge their co-sponsorship of this amendment.

Those that cosponsored the authorization amendment are (and we should NOT limit ourselves to these members):

Reed
Lieberman
Mikulski
Bingaman
Stabenow
Feingold
Snowe
Dole
Roberts
Collins
Sarbanes
Kennedy
Clinton
Alexander
Jeffords
Harkin
Kerry
Murray
Schumer
Domenici
Dodd
Durbin
DeWine

From Full Committee Print

Army Basic Research: 359.281 Million
+47.350 million from budget
+7.3 million from house

Army Applied: 973.045 million
+287.800 million from budget
-236.300 million from house

Army Advanced: 994.760 million
+273.099 million from budget
-306.201 million from house

Navy Basic: 478.387 million
+22.55 million from budget
-20.500 million from house

Navy Applied: 756.757 million
+118.100 million from budget
+29.411 million from house

Navy Advanced: 663.434 million
+158.800 million from budget
-59.700 million from house

AF Basic: 386.606 million
+16.400 million from budget
+1.800 million from house

AF Applied: 1,099.079 million
+125.985 million from budget
-25.015 million from budget

AF Advanced: 983.936 million
+179.100 million from budget
-18.724 million from house

Defense-Wide Basic: 255.161 million
-28.775 million from budget
-79.875 million from house

Defense-Wide Applied: 1,975.800 million
-205.000 million from budget
-239.900 million from house

Defense-Wide Advanced: 3,056.947 million
-95.285 million from budget
-376.858 million from house

The full appropriations committee will take up the bill on Thursday, July 20th at 2 pm in 106 Dirksen SOB. Labor HHS, Transportation-Treasury-HUD, and MilCon will also be considered at that time by the full committee.

Overall 6.1 received a 2.8% increase over the PBR ($40.5 million), which is a $7.679 million decrease from FY06 (0.5% decrease).

6.2 received a 6.2% increase over the PBR ($278.613 million), which is a $411.637 million decrease from FY06 (8% decrease)

6.3 received a 6.4% increase over the PBR ($332.143 million), which is a $1.088 billion decrease from FY06 (16.5% decrease)

Nearly all service 6.1, 6.2, and 6.3 lines are increased from the PBR.

Nearly all, with the exception of Air Force 6.1 Defense-wide 6.1 and 6.2, received less than the FY06 Estimate.

Basic Research Program specifics:

GICUR received the PBR (zeroed out)
SMART/NDEP received the PBR ($19.532 million)
Chemical and Biological Defense Program 6.1 received $10 million above PBR (total $109.182 million)
Air Force URI received the PBR ($107.571 million)
Navy URI received the PBR ($73.322 million)
Army URI received the PBR ($68.545 million)

http://www.house.gov/hasc/

As reported in this USA Today article:

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/2006-03-23-strategic-missile-threat_x.htm

the Defense Science Board released a report stating that the Pentagon risks running out of scientists to operate and upgrade our conventional missiles and ICBMs.

The Report of the DSB Task Force on Future Strategic Strike Skills can be found here:

http://www.acq.osd.mil/dsb/reports/2006-03-Skills_Report.pdf

The text of the news article can be found below, but I wanted to draw your attention to two of the findings and recommendations found in that DSB report. They are another example of the why the NDEP/SMART program and supporting the S&E workforce is important for the DoD.

Finding #3
The strategic strike area most at risk today is ballistic missiles:
Current skills may not be able to cope with unanticipated failures requiring analysis, testing, and redesign;
A large number of skilled military, civil service, and contractor personnel are nearing retirement;
Design skills are rapidly disappearing, both for major redesigns of current systems and for the design of new strategic systems; and
Applications programs are necessary, but not sufficient to maintain skills; moreover, they have never been funded at the required levels.

Recommendation
Ballistic missile program offices should devote resources to the transfer of critical knowledge and skills to early career personnel in industry.
The Secretary of Defense should direct the Navy and the Air Force - absent near-term systems development - to fund advanced development (subsystem design, system prototype development, and testing) to support next-generation system development (which will also restore and maintain the skills base).
The Secretary of Defense should ensure that the Navy and Air Force Applications Programs are fully funded at the STRATCOM SAG's originally-recommended levels to address critical areas not supported fully by advanced development.

Finding #4
DoD and industry have difficulty attracting and retaining the best and brightest students to the science and engineering disciplines relevant to maintaining current and future strategic strike capabilities.
The National Defense Education Act (NDEA) program has the potential for attracting personnel to government; however, it currently does not have strategic strike element.

Recommendation
Strategic strike program offices should encourage and fund supporting industries to develop combined undergraduate scholarship and co-op programs for U.S. citizens in relevant science and engineering disciplines that would:
Include the requirement to work for a period of time in DoD or the Defense industry;
Encourage future graduate studies; and,
Take advantage of the NDEA program.

Contact me if you need copies of this letter.

Note that Domenici and Mikluski are themselves appropriators on the subcommittee, so having their signatures on the letter is notable given the reluctance of appropriators to sign such letters.

AAU, NASULGC, and CNSR will be whipping this letter. To help us keep track of this effort, if you have contacted your member, please send me a quick email letting me know that you have done so and who you contacted in the office. Furthermore, if you have any feedback from the office which you can share, this would also be helpful.

One other fact that might be helpful in your efforts is that a similar 10-percent increase for defense basic research is included in S.2198, the PACE-Education Act, sponsored by Senator Domenici, and currently has 57 cosponsors.

Title V, section 502 increases the 6.1 accounts.

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:s.02198:

The Quadrennial Defense Review is now available on the Department of Defense website.

Bush Cites DoD Internet Development in Promoting U.S. Innovation

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Feb. 3, 2006 – President Bush cited the Defense Department's development of the Internet during a speech yesterday as an example of the ingenuity he hopes to promote through his American Competitiveness Agenda to ensure the United States maintains its leadership role in the world.

Speaking to workers at the 3M corporate headquarters in Maplewood, Minn., the president used DoD's investment in the research and development that ultimately led to the Internet as a model for the innovation he hopes to spark nationwide.

"I don't know if people realize this, but the Internet began as a Defense Department project to improve military communications," Bush told the group. "In other words, we were trying to figure out how to better communicate, here was research money spent, and as a result of this sound investment, the Internet came to be."

The initiative goes back to the early 1960s at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, then called the Advanced Research Projects Agency, DARPA spokeswoman Jan Walker told the American Forces Press Service. JCR Licklider, a visionary manager at the agency at the time, was convinced that computers would revolutionize the way humans interact with the world.

Through his work at ARPA, Licklider began working with some of the brightest minds in computing to explore ways to advance this concept of integrating computer networks, Walker said. These included scientists at Stanford University; the University of California, Berkeley; the University of California, Los Angeles; the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; and several companies.

Other DARPA researchers who followed him at the agency continued building on Licklider's vision as they explored ways for DARPA scientists around the country to share information on their various computer systems, Walker said.

In doing so, they developed rules for the computers to pass information by breaking a message into small units, or packets. These packets were then reassembled into the original message after reaching the end destination, Walker explained. These rules became what we now know among users as the TCP/IP, or Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol, she said.

DARPA referred to this early computer-networking project as the "ARPANET." The agency's researchers continued to enhance the system and ultimately led to the use of network mail as an impromptu communication tool. By the early 1970s, an ARPA study showed that three-quarters of all message traffic on the ARPANET was electronic mail, or e-mail as it is commonly known, Walker said.

Other organizations created more and more networks, all using the TCP/IP rules. This now-vast web of interconnected networks forms today's Internet, Walker said.

Bush heralded the revolutionary nature of this DARPA initiative yesterday as he spoke to 3M employees. "The Internet has changed us," he said. "It's changed the whole world. It's an amazing example of what a commitment to research dollars can mean."

The United States - government and industry alike - needs to continue this type of innovation for the nation to remain a technological and economic leader, the president said. "Let's stay on the leading edge of technology and change, and let's reaffirm our commitment to scientific innovation," he said.

QDR Dominated by Uncertain, Unpredictable World
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Jan. 25, 2006 – The Quadrennial Defense Review, to be delivered to Congress Feb. 6, will be dominated by two words: uncertainty and unpredictability, senior defense officials said today.
***
The officials said the 2005 review discusses four major challenges. The first is threats posed by traditional foes. "This basically involved major combat ops and state versus state conflicts, and we looked at everything else as a lesser included case to be able to meet that," one official said.

In the future, irregular challenges will be more common. The official cited Iraq and Afghanistan as examples of irregular threats facing the United States, but included operations in areas such as the Horn of Africa, the Philippines and Haiti in this challenge. The enemy in this case would be within the state, but not sponsored by the state.

A third challenge is what he called a "catastrophic set of challenges." These are unacceptable blows to the United States and attacks such as Sept. 11 or Pearl Harbor. "Getting hit by a nuclear (improvised explosive device) in one of our cities would be an example of that," the official said.

The fourth is a "disruptive" challenge. "That is a challenge or threat that would come against us and neutralize the American military as a key instrument of national power," he said.
***
View the entire article by following this link: http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Jan2006/20060125_4010.html