WASHINGTON — Chief of Space Operations Gen. B. Chance Saltzman testified before the House Appropriations Committee’s Defense Subcommittee on April 30, calling the Space Force’s $71.1 billion FY2027 budget request a “generational opportunity” to position the service against rapidly expanding adversary threats in the space domain.
“As the past year has demonstrated, space is more vital than ever to our economic prosperity, our national security, and the effectiveness of the joint force,” Saltzman said in his testimony. “However, our adversaries are constantly working to take away our military and economic advantages in the space domain. To defend our nation’s interest in space, the Space Force must do more than grow. We must evolve to meet the challenges of this new era.”
The hearing was webcast live by DVIDS and featured testimony from Secretary of the Air Force Dr. Troy Meink, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach, and Saltzman.
The Budget Request
The $71.1 billion Space Force request is part of a larger $338.8 billion Department of the Air Force budget proposal unveiled April 21 — a combined package that would grow the Air Force and Space Force’s combined budget by $92.5 billion compared to the current fiscal year, according to an official Air Force press release.
The Space Force’s portion alone represents a 124 percent increase over its current fiscal year budget of approximately $31.86 billion — and a roughly 450 percent increase from the service’s initial budget when it was established in FY2020. Of the $71.1 billion total, approximately $59 billion is built into the Department’s base discretionary budget, with the remaining $12 billion funded through a separate reconciliation package.
“The Department of the Air Force’s Fiscal Year 2027 budget request moves beyond the trade-off between modernization and readiness,” said Secretary Meink. “We are funding both as concurrent priorities to ensure the force is ready to fight tonight, tomorrow, next week, next year, and next decade.”
Key Space Force Investments
The budget request targets several specific capability areas, according to the official Air Force press release:
Satellite Communications: $6.7 billion — a 60 percent increase — to ensure forces have a “secure, reliable” communications link in any environment, including contested and degraded conditions.
Missile Warning and Tracking: $6.8 billion — a $2.9 billion, or 70 percent, increase — to expand and harden the missile warning and tracking architecture. This investment comes as hypersonic weapons fielded by China and Russia have placed increasing pressure on legacy warning systems.
Space Control: $21.6 billion — a 158 percent increase from FY26 — to invest in all categories of Space Control systems. Space Control is one of the Space Force’s three core functions, comprising the activities required to contest and control the space domain against adversary capabilities.
National Security Space Launch: An additional $2.9 billion over current funding to procure 22 launches, accelerating the delivery of satellites and other orbital assets.
Cyber Warfare Operations: $500 million directed to safeguard satellites from cyberattacks, reflecting growing adversary efforts to disrupt or deny U.S. space-based capabilities through electronic and cyber means.
Guardian End Strength: Funding to grow the Space Force’s force of Guardians by 2,800 personnel, with a total personnel budget of $1.8 billion in FY27, projected to reach $3.2 billion by FY2030 as the service works toward doubling its current strength of approximately 10,000 Guardians.
Congressional Reception
Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Ken Calvert (R-CA) expressed support for the investment but raised concerns about oversight, noting that several high-priority programs — including $17.5 billion for the Golden Dome missile defense initiative and $3.9 billion for the Space Data Network — are funded through the mandatory reconciliation package rather than the standard appropriations process, according to his opening remarks published by the House Appropriations Committee.
“Mandatory funding bypasses the annual appropriations process, which is how Congress exercises its oversight responsibility,” Calvert said. “If these programs are as critical as the budget request suggests — and I believe they are — then they deserve the full scrutiny and sustained attention that the appropriations process provides.”
Calvert acknowledged the threat environment driving the request. “China and Russia are not standing still. China has dramatically expanded its on-orbit presence, and both nations continue to test and develop dedicated space combat capabilities. This is not a future threat — it is a present one, and our posture must reflect that reality,” he said.
A Service Evolving at Speed
The budget request reflects the Space Force’s rapid institutional growth since its establishment in December 2019 as the sixth branch of the U.S. military. In that time the service has gone from a startup to a force with global operational responsibilities spanning missile warning, satellite communications, space domain awareness, positioning/navigation/timing, and offensive and defensive space control.
Saltzman has emphasized in recent public appearances that the service’s founding doctrine — prioritizing “exquisite,” single-point systems — is being replaced by a model centered on resilience, proliferation, and speed of delivery. The FY27 budget’s landmark investment in Space Control, satellite communications, and missile warning directly reflects that shift.
The budget request now heads to Congress for appropriation. As Calvert noted at the hearing, the $71 billion topline is a request, not law — and the path through Congress, particularly the reconciliation-dependent $12 billion portion, faces political uncertainty ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.