The program acquisition strategies developed under a dedicated Space Force SAE [service acquisition executive] will then get fed into the planning, programming, budgeting and execution process, known as PPBE. Programs approved by the SAE do not automatically get funded. The Space Force military staff must line up funding through the PPBE. Here is where the Space Force’s acquisition authorities may break down.
Both military staffs in the Space Force and Air Force will present their program plans and funding requests to the deputy undersecretary for management, or SAF/MG. With limited funding available, trade-offs must be made between program plans before presenting a unified front to higher levels…
If authorities from SAF/MG up through the secretary of the Air Force align themselves with perspectives from the traditional Air Force, then Space Force acquisitions may languish. A lack of control over funds could in effect kill new developments until they meet the Air Force’s idea of capabilities, cost and schedule.
That was from my article in Defense News, “Will the Space Force control its own destiny?” The Space Force will have strong acquisition authorities with its own dedicated SAE, responsible for turning requirements into materiel solutions and approving solutions through milestone phases. That will make Space Force more independent that the Marine Corps under the Navy. But the Space Force and Air Force must still funnel budget requests through SAF/MG, which in effect can put a veto on any Space Force plans.
A few additional thoughts:
(1) The Space Rapid Capabilities Office (SpRCO) has special authorities that allow it to by-pass the JCIDS requirements process. In the first year, the Chief Space Officer can actually unilaterally approve his own requirements for the SpRCO. The Space Force has also been an aggressive user of Section 804 middle tier authorities.
(2) The Space Force SAE called ASAF/SP will come online at the start of fiscal year 2023. Until then, it will operate under legacy programs shaped by the Air Force. The first Space Force programming cycle with materiel solutions devised by ASAF/SP will then take another two years until it makes it through the system. Fiscal year 2025 is likely the first time funding will be received for programs devised entirely by the Space Force.
(3) The Air Force SAE will sit on the Space Force Acquisition Council, which perhaps provides the Air Force with asymmetric information if and when they battle over the budget. The Space Force will not have as much information on Air Force programs to devise counter arguments.
(4) The Air Force’s current SAE, Dr. William Roper, has been a forward thinker and cultivator of space capabilities. Dr. Roper increased the number of Program Executive Offices for space systems from one in 2018 to five in 2019, and delegated MDA authorities to them for several programs. Yet the separate PPBE process stymies even his own attempts to change acquisition programs. While Dr. Roper may be a friend of the forthcoming Space Force, he will not hold the position forever.
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