Combating Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction

Department’s WMD technology efforts to lose their focus over time, in favor of the moretraditional priorities resident within each organization. For example, nearly two-thirds ofwhat DoD reports as WMD technology investment for fiscal year 1999 is in missiledefense, a traditional warfighting requirement that would exist even without a WMD threat.A similar tendency toward traditional roles and missions can be found in the Departmentof Energy’s reported WMD technology program.Recommendation 3.7: The President should direct the National Director forCombating Proliferation to oversee the creation of a government-wide technologyacquisition plan.This plan, the first of its kind, must clearly articulate an acquisition strategy, be understoodand executed by all relevant federal departments and agencies, and effectively includeprivate-sector technology. To succeed, the plan must have the direct and vigorous supportof the President, and should be integrated into the proliferation-related programs andbudgets submitted to Congress. The Commission recognizes that the construction of sucha plan will necessarily involve decisions about what is to be included and what is to beexcluded. The National Director must also develop or possess suitable tools, such as anintegrated budget, that can facilitate management oversight of the many separateorganization and accounting systems used by the executing departments and agencies.(Another potential management tool is illustrated by the taxonomy provided in AppendixH.) Without such tools, managing the federal technology effort will be impossible. .3B (27p x 20p)28