The Senate Appropriations Committee’s fiscal year 2020 defense budget pluses up the Air Force’s space procurement budget for fiscal year 2020, but the majority of the increase comes from shifting research-and-development funds for a future weather satellite to procure an off-the-shelf option.
The committee’s budget, which was approved to move to the Senate floor Sept. 12, recommends $2.4 billion for Air Force space procurement – over $46 million more than was originally requested – and $3.8 billion for space-related research-and-development funds. 
The committee fully funded the Air Force’s Next-Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared (OPIR) early missile warning program, and added an additional $535 million to the effort, bringing the total for FY ’20 RDT&E up to $1.93 billion. It also fully funded the service’s request for National Security Space Launch (NSSL) efforts plus an additional $30 million, and added a new tactically responsive launch operations procurement line with $22 million appropriated.
However, members approved reductions to current procurement plans, including $10 million from the service’s Advanced EHF protected satellite communications program, citing improved funds management and anticipated cost savings. They also removed $20 million each from the GPS III Follow-On program and the Space Fence space surveillance system, claiming the additional funds were excess to need. Lockheed Martin [LMT] is the prime contractor for both programs, as well as a co-prime contractor on the Advanced EHF program with Northrop Grumman [NOC].
The notable increase for Air Force space is a new procurement line for Electro Optical/Infrared EO/IR Weather. According to the committee report, lawmakers recommended shifting RDT&E funds that would have gone toward developing an interim EO/IR weather solution to procure an off-the-shelf sensor.
The committee wants to cancel an Air Force R&D program to build a new weather satellite dubbed Operationally Responsive Space (ORS)-8 and use the fiscal year 2019 and 2020 funds to buy a commercial product, the report said. Sierra Nevada Corp. [SNC] was awarded a $119 million contract in 2018 by the Space Rapid Capabilities Office to develop a new sensor under ORS-8 with a projected launch in 2022.
The report includes a rescission of $74.4 million from FY ’19 RDT&E funds as well as $24.7 million from FY ’20 RDT&E funds that would have gone to the ORS-8 as an interim EO/IR weather solution. It adds $101.2 million in Air Force procurement funds for a new weather sensor.
“The committee is concerned about the Air Force’s [EO/IR] weather acquisition strategy,” the committee report said, claiming the service abandoned a “viable path forward” that was laid out in the fiscal year 2019 and 2020 budget submissions due to contract challenges. A recent submission included a distributed Low Earth Orbit solution, a plan that could be due to “an overreliance on notional small satellite constellations” for several acquisition programs, committee members said. “No small satellite constellations currently exist and potential challenges with communications and ground systems have yet to be tested.”
The committee has not yet received a briefing on the latest submission “and has many questions about the plans, timeline and cost assumptions,” the report said. “The committee welcomes additional discussion with the Air Force about its new acquisition strategy prior to conference discussion with the House Appropriations Committee.”
Lawmakers also took away $50 million from the Air Force’s Silent Barker program, a secretive acquisition program between the service and the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) to launch a new payload meant to improve space situational awareness. The SAC FY ’20 defense spending bill provides $362.8 million in R&D funding for the program.