[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 137 (Wednesday, September 6, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12677-S12678]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


            TESTING OF THEATER MISSILE DEFENSE INTERCEPTORS

  Mr. PRYOR. Mr. President, I rise to briefly discuss a small, and 
virtually unnoticed amendment to the DOD authorization bill that just 
passed the U.S. Senate. It was an amendment offered by Senator Nunn, 
Senator Bingaman, and myself to restore some common sense to the 
Missile Defense Act of 1995.
  As my colleagues know, the Missile Defense Act of 1995 contains, 
among other things, an aggressive program to develop and deploy theater 
missile defenses in the form of sophisticated missile interceptors.
  Our amendment to the DOD bill will help ensure that these 
interceptors are tested properly so we know how the taxpayer's money is 
being spent on these programs.
  If we want to protect ourselves from the threat of missile attacks, 
we should make sure these interceptor programs are capable of 
destroying incoming missiles.
  I was disappointed that this bill originally deleted a provision 
passed by Congress 2 years ago that would help us monitor these 
programs through a series of live-fire tests.
  I believe it would be dangerous for the Senate to show a lack of 
interest in monitoring the progress of our theater missile defense 
interceptors. Our primary concern should be in making sure they are 
maturing properly.
  Mr. President, I am pleased that the Director of the Ballistic 
Missile Defense Organization [BMDO] and the Pentagon's Director of 
Operational Testing agreed to work together in an effort to help us 
properly emphasize the importance of testing our TMD interceptor 
programs.
  I applaud the Director of the BMDO, Gen. Malcolm O'Neill, and the 
Director of Operational Testing, Phil Coyle, for working cooperatively 
in this effort.
  Mr. President, this is a responsible amendment that asks the Pentagon 
to periodically assess the maturity of each interceptor program, and to 
advise the Congress on the progress we're making. It also asks the 
Secretary of Defense to certify to Congress that these programs work 
properly before they enter into full-rate production.
 Finally, this amendment will help prevent the wasteful practice of 
building weapon systems that do not work as expected.

  This concept, Mr. President, is commonly referred to as ``Fly Before 
You Buy.'' Fly Before You Buy means that new weapons must demonstrate 
their progress and maturity in operational 

[[Page S 12678]]
testing so that we do not waste money buying systems that do not work, 
that give us a false sense of security.
  I am proud to say, Mr. President, that with this amendment, the 
weapon developers in the BMDO office and the Pentagon's testers have 
worked together to reach an agreement on the proposed language.
  This is indeed a remarkable accomplishment that the entire U.S. 
Senate and the Congress should applaud.
  This is exactly the type of productive cooperation that Senator 
Grassley, Senator Roth, and I envisioned when we wrote the legislation 
creating the independent testing office back in 1983: Developers and 
testers working together for a common goal. Unfortunately, for many 
years, the developers have refused to allow operational testers to 
monitor their progress. Too often in the Pentagon, the word ``test'' is 
considered a four-letter word.
  This is exactly the scenario we should avoid with our interceptor 
programs.
  We have already spent well over $5 billion on theater missile defense 
interceptors. In this bill, an additional $2 billion is authorized for 
these programs. And the total costs are projected to exceed $22 
billion.
  As we continue spending more and more on ballistic missile defenses, 
let us not forget the most basic and most important element of these 
programs--making sure they work.
  I wish to once again thank Gen. Malcolm O'Neill for his cooperation 
on this amendment. Also, special thanks to Mr. Phil Coyle, the 
President's testing czar, for his outstanding leadership, and for his 
help in seeing that the Pentagon practices Fly Before You Buy by 
testing new weapons before they are produced.
  Mr. President, I thank the managers of this bill for accepting this 
amendment.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. COATS addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Indiana.
  Mr. COATS. May I inquire if we are now prepared for morning business?

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