Congress cuts DISA, BTA budgets

The Defense Information Systems Agency and the Defense Business Transformation Agency (BTA) took modest hits in their operations and maintenance budgets in the final version of the 2007 Defense Appropriations bill approved by a House/Senate conference Sept. 25. The procurement budget for DISA’s core Net-Centric Enterprise Services (NCES) project more than doubled from cuts proposed by the House.

The conference report and final bill, which Congress needs to approve before it adjourns this week, cut operations and maintenance funding for BTA by $28.4 million to $150.9 million from the $179.3 million requested by the Bush administration. This gives BTA more than the amount the House allocated in its version of the bill -- $129.5 million -- but slightly less than the $152.3 million the Senate provided.

The final version of the bill cut DISA operations and maintenance funding $30 million from the administration’s request to $956.9 million. This number is in line with the Senate mark, but below the House version of the bill, which matched the administration’s request.

The conference report approved an NCES procurement budget of $24.9 million, $2 million less than the administration request and in line with Senate funding, but $13 million more than what the House had allocated in its version.

The conferees boosted DISA’s procurement budget for information systems security by $16 million to $34.7 million. The administration had requested and the House approved $18.7 million.

The extra funding for DISA information systems security will provide critical infrastructure protection for the Alaska leg of the Global Information Grid, the conference report states. The Missile Defense Agency uses the grid for command and control of its missile field at Fort Greely, Alaska, and connections to the Sea-Based X-band radar at Adak, Alaska, according to published reports.

The conferees, Senate and House approved DISA’s requested 2007 procurement budget of $50.2 million for the agency’s teleport system, which serves as the interface between the Defense Information Systems Network tactical and commercial satellite communications systems.