Sec. 1646. GROUND-BASED MIDCOURSE DEFENSE INTERIM CAPABILITY

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## SEC. 1646 GROUND-BASED MIDCOURSE DEFENSE INTERIM CAPABILITY ###

(a)Interim Ground-based Interceptor ####

(1)Development Subject to the availability of appropriations, not later than 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense, acting through the Director of the Missile Defense Agency and in coordination with the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, the Commander of the United States Northern Command, and the Commander of the United States Strategic Command, shall commence carrying out a program to develop an interim ground-based interceptor capability that will— #####

(A)use sound acquisition practices; #####

(B)address the majority of current and near- to mid-term projected ballistic missile threats to the United States homeland from rogue nations; #####

(C)at minimum, meet the proposed capabilities of the Redesigned Kill Vehicle program; #####

(D)leverage existing kill vehicle and booster technology; and #####

(E)appropriately balance interceptor performance with schedule of delivery. ####

(2)Capabilities and criteria The Director shall ensure that the interim ground-based interceptor developed under paragraph

(1)meets, at a minimum, the following capabilities and criteria: #####

(A)Vehicle-to-vehicle communications, as applicable. #####

(B)Vehicle-to-ground communications. #####

(C)Kill assessment capability. #####

(D)The ability to counter advanced countermeasures, decoys, and penetration aids. #####

(E)Producibility and manufacturability. #####

(F)Use of technology involving high technology readiness levels. #####

(G)Options to integrate the new kill vehicle onto other missile defense interceptor vehicles other than the ground-based interceptors of the ground-based midcourse defense system. #####

(H)Sound acquisition processes. ####

(3)Deployment The Secretary of Defense, acting through the Director of the Missile Defense Agency and in coordination with the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, the Commander of the United States Northern Command, and the Commander of the United States Strategic Command, shall— #####

(A)conduct rigorous flight testing of the interim ground-based interceptor; and #####

(B)deliver 20 interim ground-based interceptors by 2026. ###

(b)Waiver ####

(1)Authority The Secretary of Defense may waive the requirements under paragraphs

(1)and

(3)of subsection

(a)if the Secretary— #####

(A)determines that— ######

(i)the technology development is not technically feasible; ######

(ii)the interim capability development is not in the national security interest of the United States; or ######

(iii)the interim ground-based interceptor program under subsection (a)(1) cannot deliver an initial operational capability at least two years prior to the fielding of the next-generation interceptor for the ground-based midcourse defense system; and #####

(B)submits to the congressional defense committees a certification that such a waiver is necessary based on the determination under subparagraph (A), including— ######

(i)an explanation of the rationale of such determination; ######

(ii)an estimate of the ballistic missile threats to the United States homeland from rogue nations that will not be defended against until the fielding of the next-generation interceptor for the ground-based midcourse defense system; and ######

(iii)an updated schedule for the development and deployment of such next-generation interceptor. ####

(2)Delegation The Secretary may not delegate the authority to carry out paragraph

(1)below the level of an Under Secretary of Defense. ###

(c)Report on Funding Profile Unless the Secretary makes a waiver under subsection (b), the Director shall include with the budget justification materials submitted to Congress in support of the budget of the Department of Defense for fiscal year 2022 (as submitted with the budget of the President under section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code) a report on the funding profile necessary for the interim ground-based interceptor program to meet the objectives under subsection (a).