S.Amdt. 6708

SA 6708, submitted by Mrs. Blackburn, aims to add a pilot program to bill S. 4784. This program focuses on the rapid fielding, testing, and evaluation of approved renewable water-from-air (RWA) systems.

The purpose of this addition is to deploy these systems at specific foreign and domestic installations to evaluate:

• Capabilities for independent and resilient water sustainment across strategic, operational, tactical, expeditionary, and distributed levels.
• The capacity to meet water sustainment needs for units or installations, including combat and emergency scenarios.
• The ability to assist in domestic and global disaster response and humanitarian missions.

The amendment requires the Secretary of the Army to prioritize locations with vulnerable water infrastructure or supply chains, such as those facing cyberattacks, natural disasters, or kinetic attacks. Systems must be domestically manufactured (85 percent U.S. supply chain), have no foreign entity of concern ownership, have undergone previous field testing or combat use by uniformed services, and be protected against nuclear-contested environments and electromagnetic pulse attacks.

Finally, the amendment authorizes $25,000,000 for this program from the date of enactment through September 30, 2029, and requires a report to congressional defense committees evaluating the system's performance, cost, and recommendations for future acquisition.