COLORADO SPRINGS – Colorado Springs is anticipating the arrival of the new U.S. Space Force under a defense policy bill making its way through Congress.
The Gazette reported Wednesday that the bill also earmarks $322 million for construction at military bases in the city.
The Space Force will take over from the existing Air Force Space Command as the newest armed forces branch charged with defending satellites and conducting other military initiatives in space.
The Space Force is a longtime priority of President Donald Trump. Republican Congressman Doug Lamborn of Colorado Springs told the Gazette in remarks published Wednesday that the National Defense Authorization Act will make the city “the center of military space.”
Lamborn is a member of the House Armed Services Committee and sat on a bipartisan conference committee that drafted the bill. It is set for a House vote before going to the Senate.
Funding for the initiative depends on approval of a new Pentagon budget.
The Space Force is the first new U.S. military branch since the Air Force was created in 1947. It will consist of troops attached to Air Force Space Command. The command, in turn, supervises space-related operations of all service branches.
