DoD Budget FY 2023
HBUD: Department of Defense FY 2023 Budget, April 27, 2022
My first job out of graduate school in 1986 was with the Comptroller of the Air Force, later the Assistant Secretary for Financial Management. I picked this agency for my management intern appointment because of my background as the son of an Air Force test engineering contractor.
I mention this, though a liberal, to point out that the Defense Budget is an integral part of both the U.S., local and many family economies. There is no such thing as a budget which contains program efficiencies allowing for less than one percent annual growth after the upcoming biennium. Even if this were possible, it would not be good for families or the economy.
Some similar activity is required to employ our "industrial base." The term makes this sound like a boondoggle. It is not. The various contractors are not as important as the skilled workforce and their families. These families buy things, from homes to baby food to date night.
The obvious substitute, as we commented last June, is expanding space exploration. Current commercial initiatives help fill the gap, but we need to go bigger. Doing so allows an even greater cost shifting from weapons development and procurement while programming larger budgets than the Administration has requested.
From last year:
One such effort is research on Closed Loop Environmental Support Systems. Doing so could provide alternate means of agriculture, water treatment and home building. It ends the problem of population, conceivably on a worldwide basis.
NASA spending has much room to grow and shifting it to Defense Appropriations gives it more room to ask for more funding. Eventually, recent progress in private sector space services and management will end the need for a NASA budget.
The current pace of commercial space development is exciting, but it is nothing compared to what is possible. I have some suggestions:
Conduct orbital experiments to determine whether artificial gravity as currently envisioned will, in fact, work. Start with two small modules in the ends of trusses radiating from a center module with a fly wheel to control rotation and an electric motor and small nuclear power unit (or solar panel structures) would suffice.
Rotating modules and passageways to the base module could all be inflatable to save weight and cost. Truss length should be expandable to test various gravitational levels at various rotational speeds. Such a system could be deployed with three or four launches, assuming the power system is a separate launch.
Develop on-earth limited closed environmental systems with human testing, but without unrealistic conditions like no mechanical oxygen conversion or outside food resupply. See what can be done and improve it as lessons are learned.
Expand experiments into cloned protein, but with cloned fat, bone and blood rather than using plant-based substitutes. These are too high on the glycemic index. The product should be something that non-vegans would actually eat.
Develop small crew geosynchronous orbital missions, and later stations, to explore manned infrastructure options.
Develop systems to capture space debris, either manned or unmanned. Some items could be repaired and stowed rather than discarded into the Pacific space jynk graveyard.
Last year, we suggested that this initiative might include more cooperation with our Russian partners. What a difference a year makes.
Given the situation on the ground in Ukraine and Russia, barring a nuclear holocaust, by the next fiscal year (or soon after), increased spending will be required to help rebuild Ukraine and to rebuild some kind of Russian military and civil society. President Putin has destroyed his own forces through corruption and ineptitude. I cannot imagine that he will be allowed to continue by the Russian military establishment.
Cooperation in aerospace is a way in the door for providing aid in rebuilding a Russian nation that has never really been developed. It went from kleptocratic commissars to kleptocratic oligarchs. The nation needs serious help.
What it does not need is a strategic nuclear arsenal. Part of the cost of helping Russia move forward is mutually assured disarmament. As de facto global police officer, we still need some capability. Russia does not.
Building for space infrastructure will take full advantage of the Russian industrial base, just as it is essential for our own. From there, Russian physical and economic infrastructure can be expanded. Russian brides and orphans need not be one of their chief exports.
Please see our attachment from last year's submission, which includes suggested appropriations committee report language on reporting where defense assets are deployed, rather than on where they are purchased. This will be useful in the event some form of regionally based fiscal policy is developed.
The second attachment includes suggestions previously provided on improving the congressional budget and appropriations process. Having served in financial management, procurement and as a contract proposal coordinator, I can assure you that the greatest source of waste in federal finance is the United States Congress.
Process reforms to get legislation passed on time will allow the rest of the system to implement greater efficiencies. Part of any reform must include new caps be set through 2030 so that budget passage is assured through the next presidential term. These caps must be realistic, rather than punitive, so that automatic enactments can occur without harm.
As you may recall, I have suggested creating a joint budget committee. This is still a good idea. Within it could be three subcommittees: revenue, civil and defense. The JBC Defense Subcommittee would include Armed Services and Defense Appropriations chairs and ranking members. Space exploration would be within their purview.
Once a top line number is agreed to, a separate joint defense budget resolution should be drawn up and passed so that authorization and appropriations committees can begin work in earnest. If work on both the authorization and appropriation bills are not passed by a date certain, their markups would be discharged and sent to a joint select committee for negotiation and completion. Our warfighters, their civilian and contract supports and all of their families deserve no less.
Videos:
Attachment: Committee Reports and the Budget Process
Video https://youtu.be/HUBDpsSbZ1E
Attachment: Budget Process
posted by Michael Bindner at 3:28 AM
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