Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Jim Banks (IN-03) championed Indiana’s defense priorities in this year’s National Defense Authorization Act and advocated for multiple policy and funding decisions to modernize our military and authorize funding key national security interests.

“Indiana is home to some of the best and brightest minds in the defense industry. We continue to attract leaders that are on the forefront developing technologies used by our military to keep our nation safe and secure. I was glad to represent Indiana and champion our state’s role in projects and initiatives critical to U.S. national security.” said Rep. Jim Banks.

Rep. Banks advocated for the vital national security work of Hoosiers at companies like Ultra Electronics, AM General, Rolls-Royce, Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, Cummins, Allision Transmission, GE, Hendrix International, BWXT, Gradient, PMI, and others. These companies both big and small, employ tens of thousands of Indiana residents and contribute significantly to securing our nation.

The programs Rep Banks championed represent over $4 billion in authorized defense budget spending, funding everything from advanced research initiatives such as materials science, synthetic training environments, and next generation combat vehicles; to securing the authorization of major national defense procurements, such as the P-8 Poseidon aircraft, Stryker Tactical vehicles, F-15EX fighter jets, and state of the art Sonobuoys.

Rep. Banks passed several amendments unanimously, including language on the Future Tactical Unmanned Aerial System (FTUAS), cutting edge waterjet demilitarization disposal technology, hypersonic and high mach aircraft capabilities, RF and EMP protection technologies, and defensive support for partner nations like Taiwan.

Other initiatives Rep. Banks championed critical to United States national security:

SMART Program Amendment – Rep. Banks’ amendment utilitizes key principles from his standalone bill HR 6526, known as the STEM Corps Act, and incorporated them into DOD scholarship programs. The program advocates for student financial assistance, close partnerships with industry, and competitive salaries for talented STEM graduates. These initiatives will help address critical STEM workforce demands and attract more STEM talent to government service.

Protecting Sensitive University Research – This amendment furthered Rep. Banks’ efforts to protect our university research programs from nefarious foreign actors. The amendment sought to address concerns initially raised in a bill Rep. Banks introduced last year, the Protect Our Universities Act. Taking the lead on a heated markup floor debate, Rep. Banks was able to win bipartisan support to remove a loophole in the existing policy, allowing and directing the DOD to now be able to gather information on, and understand who exactly is working on DOD funded research programs that have direct national security interests. This opens the door to an open and transparent research and development program, permitting the DOD to identify potential adversarial threats earlier on in the process.

Professional Military Education Amendment – Rep. Banks was able to achieve unanimous support for the establishment of a new program to develop a “Public-Private Consortium to Improve Professional Military Education.” The consortium would advance the training and development of junior and senior warfighters.

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