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Good morning. Subcommittee will come to order. Today, the subcommittee will receive testimony in the posture of the United States Army. First, I'd like to welcome our two witnesses, Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll and General Randy George, Chief of Staff of the United States Army. Mr. Secretary, congratulations on your appointment. I look forward to working with you. General George, thank you for joining us once again. The U.S. Army is a force that remains the backbone of our nation's defense and the critical pillar in ensuring global stability. Today, we will assess the Army's readiness to meet the challenges of the increasingly complex security environment, particularly as we look toward future conflicts, including those that may unfold in the Indo-Pacific theater of operation, where strategic competition continues to intensify. The Army's role in the future fight is evolving rapidly. shaped by emerging threats and technological advancements. Among these, the proliferation of drone technology stands out as a game changer. Drone warfare offers both unprecedented opportunity and significant vulnerability. Our adversaries are leveraging drones to challenge traditional battlefield dynamics, requiring robust investment in counter drone technology to protect our soldiers and maintain operational superiority. Modernization remains a cornerstone of the Army's transformation, and I commend the progress made in recent years through the next generation combat systems, combined soldier lethality, and advanced network capability. However, progress must be matched by scrutiny. We must ensure that these efforts align with the demands of tomorrow's battlefield, where agility, resilience, and technological edge will define success. We must ensure that the investments in our Army reflect the needs of a multi-domain fight and strike the right balance between conventional capability and the specialized forces required for hybrid and asymmetric warfare.
The Army has begun to implement a comprehensive transformation strategy to rapidly deliver capability, optimize force structure, and eliminate waste and obsolete programs. I'm interested in hearing how you will implement this strategy to achieve a more efficient and more effective Army. Today's hearing is an opportunity to address these issues head-on, to hear from our witnesses, and to chart a course that ensures the U.S. Army remains the world's preeminent land force. I look forward to a robust and insightful discussion. With that, I recognize the distinguished ranking member, Ms. McCollum, for her opening remarks. Thank you for the courtesy, Mr. Chair. Mr. Secretary, General George, welcome to the committee's discussion about the Army's plans to transform for the future. As the chairman pointed out, we're excited and interested in hearing your plans.
As I said yesterday in our hearing with the Air Force, fiscal year 2026 budget process is off to a very rough start. We have just over four months left until the end of FY25, and the department still has not agreed upon a final spend plan with Congress. I know there's plans floating out there, but they haven't been agreed upon. The skinny budget for next year has been released, but we don't know what the numbers are based off of yet. These are rumors that full budget may not even be released until June. All puts us in a very difficult position getting our job done, and I know both a ranking member, Delora, and Chairman Cole want to get our job done on time. And that's why yesterday we were unable really to discuss the Air Force and Space Force budget priorities in any detail. They just don't have the information. Likewise, it's disappointing that we're going to be unable to discuss the Army's priorities and programming details for FY26 at this time. And I know you share that concern. So I hope you'll reach out to the committee, to the chair and I, with details as soon as they are released. Last week, you both presented the Army's transformative initiative, which will include changes to warfighting capabilities and force structure and program activities. And we do need to make changes. And I know you want to move quickly, very quickly. However, any successful transformation proposed by the services has only going to be made possible with an open dialogue with the united states congress the people of this country that means you must work with us with the industry and with military communities involved bypassing any of these vital steps will only create questions and create delays, something I know you don't wish to have happen. And I know you want to put to rest any confusion, and I know it's not your desire to provoke anxiety, but not doing this in a forward, transparent manner could land up doing exactly that.
So I look forward to hearing more details on the Army's transformation of initiative and how this differs from implementing the Army's 2030 initiative. What are the differences? So, Mr. Secretary, you also have proposals for agile funding. counter small unmanned aerial systems, network capabilities, civilian workforce decreases, and activities on the southern border.
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