National Reconnaissance Office director Bruce Carlson said his agency’s new charter, expected out in a couple of weeks, will probably give him milestone decision authority over NRO programs. “I think that’s appropriate because, when we hit the [launch] button, I have to be the guy who says it’s OK to hit the button.” It will also allow the NRO director to call a meeting of the Secretary of Defense and Director of National Intelligence to work out when they give NRO incompatible instructions or requirements on programs. This is of “paramount” importance, Carlson said, if space recce programs are to succeed.
A new report from the Government Accountability Office calls for the Pentagon’s Chief Technology Officer to have budget certification authority over the military services’ research and development accounts—a move the services say would add a burdensome and unnecessary layer of bureaucracy.
