Eliminating these resources could increase costs to upgrade existing weapons systems in the future. The Air Force's proposed cuts for these programs follow significant reductions already taken in the Air Force science and technology budget over the last decade. Lt. Gen. Gregory Martin, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, testified before the House Armed Services Committee that the Air Force would welcome the additional funding. Through Section 214 of last year's Strom Thurmond National Defense Authorization Act, Congress has taken a strong position on the need to maintain a stable defense science and technology investment. We continue to believe in the importance of providing sufficient funding to ensure that the defense technology base remains strong and capable.
Scientific research is the seed corn of tomorrow's information and weapons systems.
Reducing scientific research will jeopardize our nation's future ability to maintain technological supremacy in an unstable world.