Congressman Mo Brooks (AL-05) on Friday announced his reappointment to the influential House Armed Services Committee (HASC) for the 117th Congress, which runs through January 3, 2023.
At the subcommittee level, Brooks has been reappointed to Strategic Forces and appointed to Cyber, Innovative Technologies, and Information Systems.
The North Alabama congressman has served on HASC since taking office in 2011. In the current Congress, he improved his seniority three spots to become the eighth-most senior Republican on the committee.
In addition to Brooks, Congressmen Mike Rogers (AL-03) and Jerry Carl (AL-01) are also members of the committee. Rogers is the ranking member, or top Republican, on HASC.
Armed Services has jurisdiction over the Department of Defense and the Department of Energy’s nuclear weapons programs and annually produces the all-important National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
“I am pleased to serve on the House Armed Services Committee (“HASC”), where I’ll continue using my growing seniority to both protect America’s national security interests and promote Redstone Arsenal and the groundbreaking research and development work we do in the Tennessee Valley,” said Brooks in a statement. “Additionally, serving on the Strategic Forces Subcommittee affords me the opportunity to address growing threats from America’s near-peer adversaries China and Russia, each of whom is gaining on the U.S. in weapons capability. I’m especially looking forward to a new subcommittee assignment, the Cyber, Innovative Technologies, and Information Systems Subcommittee, which, in a time of great power competition, helps determine the emerging technologies that will determine who wins, and who loses, military confrontations.”
The Subcommittee on Strategic Forces has jurisdiction over Department of Defense and Department of Energy policy related to strategic deterrence, strategic stability, nuclear weapons, strategic and nuclear arms control, nonproliferation, nuclear safety, missile defense, and space; Department of Defense programs and accounts related to nuclear weapons, strategic missiles, nuclear command and control systems, Department of Defense intelligence space, space systems and services of the military departments, and intermediate and long-range missile defense systems; and Department of Energy national security programs and accounts. Brooks will be the fourth highest ranking Republican on Strategic Forces.
The Subcommittee on Cyber, Innovative Technologies, and Information Systems has jurisdiction over Department of Defense policy related to the acquisition of computer software, the electromagnetic spectrum, and electromagnetic warfare; and Department of Defense policy and programs and accounts related to artificial intelligence, cyber security, cyber operations, cyber forces, information technology, information operations, and science and technology (including defense-wide programs and accounts related to research, development, testing, and evaluation, except for those defense-wide programs and accounts related to research, development, testing, and evaluation of missile defense systems). Brooks will be the No. 2 highest ranking Republican on this subcommittee.
“The Cyber, Innovative Technologies, and Information Systems Subcommittee and the Strategic Forces Subcommittee are vital to Redstone Arsenal commands and agencies,” Brooks stated. “The Missile Defense Agency, the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, the U.S. Army Program Executive Office Missiles and Space, and U.S. Space Command all focus on strengthening America’s strategic deterrence, outmaneuvering our adversaries to protect the homeland, and outpacing foes in the space domain. Likewise, Army Futures Command teams, including the Future Vertical Lift (FVL) and Assured Positioning, Navigation and Timing (APNT) Cross-Functional Team (CFT); the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Aviation & Missile Center; and Redstone Test Center are heavily focused on research and development, test and evaluation. The Cyber, Innovative Technologies, and Information Systems Subcommittee has jurisdiction over all Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E) accounts across the DoD that aren’t under Strategic Forces’ jurisdiction.”
He concluded, “The Tennessee Valley has long been a center of innovation for military technologies, a status which contributes to rapid economic growth in the region. Each year, thanks to my position on HASC, I have been successful including key provisions in the National Defense Authorization Act that benefit America’s national security and the Tennessee Valley defense community. I intend to continue that work for America’s national security and the defense work we do so well in the Tennessee Valley.”
In addition to the three House members serving on HASC, U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) this week was announced as a new member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Sean Ross is the editor of Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn
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