SENSE OF CONGRESS CONCERNING JOINT WARFIGHTING EXPERIMENTATION.

SEC. 922. SENSE OF CONGRESS CONCERNING JOINT WARFIGHTING EXPERIMENTATION. (a) Designation of Commander To Have Joint Warfighting Experimentation Mission.— It is the sense of Congress that the initiative of the Secretary of Defense to designate the commander of a combatant command to have the mission of joint warfighting experimentation is a key step in exploiting the potential of advanced technologies, new organizational structures, and new joint operational concepts to transform the conduct of military operations by the Armed Forces. (b) Resources and Authority of Commander.— It is, further, the sense of Congress that the commander of the combatant command referred to in subsection (a) should be provided with appropriate and sufficient resources for joint warfighting experimentation and with the appropriate authority to execute the commander’s assigned responsibilities and that such authority should include the following: (1) Planning, preparing, and conducting the program of joint warfighting experimentation, which program should include analyses, simulations, wargames, experiments, advanced concept technology demonstrations, joint exercises conducted in virtual and field environments, and, as a particularly critical aspect, assessments of “red team” vulnerability. (2) Developing scenarios and measures of effectiveness to meet the operational challenges expected to be encountered in the early 21st century and assessing the effectiveness of current and new organizational structures, operational concepts, and technologies in addressing those challenges. (3) Integrating and testing in joint experimentation the systems and concepts that result from warfighting experimentation conducted by the Armed Forces and the Defense Agencies. (4) Coordinating with each of the Armed Forces and Defense Agencies regarding the development and acquisition of equipment (including surrogate or real technologies, plat-forms, and systems), supplies, and services necessary for joint experimentation. (5) Providing the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff with recommendations, based on the conduct of joint warfighting experimentation, for— (A) improving interoperability; (B) reducing unnecessary redundancy; (C) synchronizing technology fielding; (D) developing joint operational concepts; (E) prioritizing the most promising joint capabilities for future experimentation; and (F) prioritizing joint requirements and acquisition programs. (6) Making recommendations to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on mission needs statements and operational requirements documents. 112 STAT. 2104 (c) Congressional Review.— It is, further, the sense of Congress that Congress— (1) should review the adequacy of the process of transformation to meet future challenges to the national security; and (2) if progress is determined inadequate, should consider legislation to— (A) establish an appropriate organization to conduct the mission described in subsection (a); and (B) provide to the commander given the responsibility for that mission appropriate and sufficient resources for joint warfighting experimentation and the appropriate authority to execute that commander’s assigned responsibilities for that mission, including the authorities specified in subsection (b).