S.Amdt. 3631

SA 3631, submitted by Mr. Hickenlooper, aims to add a new section (SEC. 1508) to bill S. 2296. This addition requires the Secretary of the Army to create a tactical high-altitude intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance strategy.

The purpose of this strategy is to address the advancements of foreign adversarial high-altitude systems that provide deep-ingress, mass-swarm, low-signature, and persistent intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.

The amendment requires the strategy to include the following:

• Options to formalize and streamline investments in novel high-altitude platforms, such as tactical stratosphere balloons, across Army commands, task forces, and organizations.
• Budgetary and policy changes to lower platform costs and allow for faster adoption of existing technologies.
• Plans to use and assess investments from the intelligence community, Defense agencies and field activities, the United States Special Operations Command, and other military departments.

Additionally, the Secretary of the Army must brief the appropriate committees of Congress on this strategy and the options for centralizing efforts and deploying capabilities by March 1, 2026.