"In a bipartisan effort, HPSCI authorized funding for the Electro-Optical Commercial Layer program at a strong level that will send a significant demand signal to the commercial imagery industry. Commercial imagery purchases are critical to our national security and provide key support to both policymakers and warfighters,"
"Crucially, commercial imagery is not classified, so other parts of the U.S. Government can use it to support disaster relief efforts, for example, something our IC's imagery analysts are allowed to do. This investment will continue to yield greater capacity and new, exciting capabilities. This committee remains committed to funding commercial imagery procurement at a level that meets the needs of policymakers and warfighters"
The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence passed the fiscal 2026 intelligence policy bill on Sept. 10. The House version would restore funds the White House cut for National Reconnaissance Office commercial imagery purchases. The NRO commercial budget is reported at about $400 million annually, with most funding the Electro-Optical Commercial Layer and the remainder supporting study contracts for other remote sensing capabilities such as synthetic aperture radar under the Strategic Commercial Enhancements BAA. The legislation signals strong, bipartisan support for continued commercial imagery procurement to meet policymakers' and warfighters' needs and enable unclassified uses like disaster relief.
Read at Breaking Defense
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