House and Senate defense overseers have called on the Secretary of Defense, in conjunction with the director of national intelligence (DNI), to craft a strategy to protect the capabilities necessary to ensure U.S. freedom of action in space, according to the conference report accompanying the final version of the FY ’08 Defense Authorization Bill.

“It is the Sense of Congress that the United States should place greater priority on the protection of national security space systems,” they write in the report, which they finalized Dec. 6.

Accordingly, they call for the creation of a Space Protection Strategy that identifies threats to these space systems as well as their vulnerabilities, and a description of the capabilities being pursued by the Department of Defense (DoD) and Intelligence Community (IC) to ensure the freedom of action.

The authorizers want the Secretary of Defense, together with the DNI, to submit a report on the strategy not later than six months after the FY ’08 defense authorization bill becomes law, according to the conference report. Thereafter, an update to the report will be submitted biennially not later than March 15 of each even-numbered year after 2008, the authorizers write.

The report and each update shall be in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex, they write.

The strategy shall cover three periods: FY ’08 through FY ’13; FY ’14 through FY ’19; and FY ’20 through FY ’25. For each period, congressional authorizers want a description of: the hardware, software, and other materials or services to be developed or procured; the management and organizational changes to be achieved; and the concepts of operations, tactics, techniques, and procedures to be employed.

They also want for each period: an assessment of the gaps and shortfalls between the capabilities that are needed and the capabilities currently contained in the program of record; a comprehensive plan for investment in capabilities that identifies specific program and technology investments; a description of the current processes by which the systems protection requirements of the DoD and IC are addressed in space acquisition programs and during key milestone decisions; an assessment of the adequacy of those processes; and an identification of their actions for addressing any inadequacies in those processes.

Further, they call the strategy to include: a description of the current processes by which the DoD and IC program and budget for capabilities–both those incorporated into single programs and those that span multiple programs; an assessment of the adequacy of those processes; and an identification of their actions for addressing any inadequacies in those processes.

Lastly, the authorizers want: a description of the organizational and management structure of the DoD and IC for addressing policy, planning, acquisition, and operations with respect to capabilities; a description of the roles and responsibilities of each organization; and an identification of their actions for addressing any inadequacies in that structure.

Senior DoD officials have said China’s successful test of an anti-satellite weapon in January served as a wake-up call that the United States may need to do more to protect its on-orbit assets as well as their communications links and ground-control stations.