By Philip Butterworth-Hayes
President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” was signed into law on July 4, 2025. According to analysts Holland & Knight:
“The defense portion of the reconciliation bill addresses critical capability gaps identified by the Trump Administration, military leadership and members of Congress. It includes significant investment across multiple domains, with particular emphasis on shipbuilding, supply chain resilience, low-cost weapons and munitions production, DOD cybersecurity, nuclear modernization, Indo-Pacific Command capabilities and readiness initiatives. The legislation also provides an initial investment in the president’s Golden Dome initiative, which is a comprehensive layered missile defense architecture.”
The key counter-UAS expenditure line items are included in Section 20004: “Enhancement of DOD Resources for Munitions and Defense Supply Chain Resiliency (USD25 Billion)”. This section includes investments in various munitions and counter-drone programmes, including:
- USD500 million for counter-unmanned aerial systems programs to address emerging drone threats:
- USD350 million for non-kinetic counter-unmanned aerial systems programs
- USD250 million for development of land-based counter-unmanned aerial systems
- USD200 million for ship-based counter-unmanned aerial systems
Further funding of USD500 million for state and local drone detection capability and USD2.77 for “cutting-edge surveillance technologies“ for border control agencies will push the final total to more than USD2 billion.
The bill also includes a preliminary USD12.5 billion from a total of USD31 billion President Trump has identified for ATC modernization; how much of this will be made available for investment in new UAS traffic management systems is not yet clear, though the switch to more digital technologies and investment in new weather systems plus USD50 million to fund the FAA’s Center for Advanced Aviation Technologies (CAAT) should provide some funding for more UTM development.
According to an AUVSI statement: “This is a major milestone for the autonomy and robotics industry, positioning the U.S. to lead the world in secure, innovative, and scalable uncrewed technologies. Thanks to sustained engagement from AUVSI and our members, the bill includes billions in funding across all domains of autonomy, including: USD13.5B+ for small UAS, maritime robotics, autonomous munitions, and more; robust funding for shipbuilding, ground vehicles, AI/ML integration, and counter-UAS; USD500M to support state and local UAS detection capabilities; major investments in uncrewed systems for the Coast Guard, border surveillance, and public safety missions
For more information
https://www.linkedin.com/company/auvsi/posts/?feedView=all
https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/1/text
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