In February, the Department of Defense (DOD) released a strategic roadmap to address supply chain vulnerabilities in the defense industrial base. The report focuses on four areas of critical importance to national security: kinetic capabilities; energy storage and batteries; castings and forgings; and microelectronics. Manufacturing, a key sector in so many regional economies, is highlighted as a strategic enabler for mission success now and in the future. The president’s budget request for DOD once again proposes divesting from legacy systems to invest in modernization efforts. How does the 2023 budget lay the groundwork for this transition? What actions has the administration been able to take thus far to address supply chain vulnerabilities and the need to modernize? How can tools like the Defense Spending by State report help state and local leaders target support to workers and companies in the defense industrial base, so they can be responsive to our current and future national security needs?

On April 28, Elizabeth Chimienti, Program Activity Lead for Diversification and Realignment at the Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation, joined a discussion on the latest Defense Spending by State report with Michael O’Hanlon, Senior Fellow and Director of Research for Foreign Policy at Brookings, and John G. Ferrari, Nonresident Senior Fellow at American Enterprise Institute.

View the full agenda here.