Success, or failure, of new Army command rests with Congress

In July, the U.S. Army announced that Austin will be the location for its new Futures Command headquarters. The command, intended to be the spearhead of the Army’s modernization effort, will direct the research and development of new military technologies and build partnerships with civilian innovators in academia and industry.

Futures Command has clear objectives, the authority of a four-star Army command, and an innovation-rich environment to work with in Austin. Rarely does a team — in any field or at any level — find itself in such a favorable position and with the power to see its projects through to execution.

Despite these conditions, Futures Command has a daunting mission ahead of it — one that it may not be able to achieve: The command is charged with nothing less than overhauling and modernizing the U.S. Army, one of the most cumbersome and bureaucratic organizations in the world.

Beyond that, America’s global competitors haven’t been sitting on their hands. China has modernized its force at an alarming rate, pouring billions into defense research and development and aggressively pursuing global leadership in technologies like artificial intelligence. In recent years, Russia has advanced its missile technologies and become an enthusiastic employer of autonomous weaponry. Staying ahead of these challengers, much less keeping pace with them, should not be taken for granted.

The immediate test for Futures Command doesn’t lie overseas, however, but at home. Looming over the command is Congress’ recent legacy of budget instability and the injurious effect that it has on military modernization.

Congress hasn’t implemented a final defense funding bill on time since 2009. Ever since, the Department of Defense has begun each fiscal year without knowing how much money it could spend that year. As Pentagon budget experts Susanna Blume and Lauren Fish write, “Congress’s inability to pass budgets, let alone on time, has severely handicapped the department in fulfilling its mission — to ensure the safety of the nation and protect U.S. citizens and interests at home and abroad.”

Specifically, the past decade of budget instability has discouraged the very thing that the military needs more than ever: innovation. With no guarantee of program funding from year to year, the Army chooses to invest its cash back into legacy systems like Abrams tanks and Black Hawk helicopters instead of research and development for modern systems. This cycle has kept the service dangerously behind the pace set by its competitors.

Going forward, congressional leaders need look no further than the new home of Futures Command to see the value of Pentagon innovation well-funded. Since 2016, the defense department has invested strategically in Austin-based companies through its Defense Innovation Unit Experimental (DIUx). Contracts issued through DIUx have benefited the Department of Defense with artificial intelligence programs that economize Air Force budgeting, software that saves the military 350,000 pounds of fuel per week, and systems that flag damaged Army vehicle parts before they break down. Futures Command intends to pursue similar partnerships with Austin-based organizations.

To its credit, Congress is taking steps to amend its deficiencies. On Aug. 1, the Senate approved the final version of its 2019 National Defense Authorization Act, keeping the bill on track to be implemented before the beginning of the 2019 fiscal year. In the bill, Congress pledges to meet and exceed the Pentagon’s budget request, authorizing increases in key areas like microelectronics research, hypersonic weapons and artificial intelligence. Additionally, leaders from the House Armed Services Committee have introduced a resolution recognizing that “failure to provide our military with full, stable, and on-time funding ... severely harms our military’s ability to prepare for and defend against (enemy) capabilities.”

Although commendable, these actions are just a start. Until Congress straightens its never-ending fiscal roller coaster and the Army truly begins prioritizing innovation, the success of Futures Command remains dubious. In the meantime, America’s challengers continue to march forward.