{ "id": "R45088", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "R", "number": "R45088", "active": true, "source": "CRSReports.Congress.gov, EveryCRSReport.com", "versions": [ { "source_dir": "crsreports.congress.gov", "title": "Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency: Overview and Issues for Congress", "retrieved": "2021-09-30T04:03:47.945403", "id": "R45088_15_2021-08-19", "formats": [ { "filename": "files/2021-08-19_R45088_f8136eb0d6bddb8c6055ad8530e25bf2746d94b0.pdf", "format": "PDF", "url": "https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R45088/15", "sha1": "f8136eb0d6bddb8c6055ad8530e25bf2746d94b0" }, { "format": "HTML", "filename": "files/2021-08-19_R45088_f8136eb0d6bddb8c6055ad8530e25bf2746d94b0.html" } ], "date": "2021-08-19", "summary": null, "source": "CRSReports.Congress.gov", "typeId": "R", "active": true, "sourceLink": "https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/details?prodcode=R45088", "type": "CRS Report" }, { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 620048, "date": "2020-03-17", "retrieved": "2020-03-18T22:06:08.519136", "title": "Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency: Overview and Issues for Congress", "summary": "The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), established in 1958, is an agency within the Department of Defense (DOD) responsible for catalyzing the development of technologies that maintain and advance the capabilities and technical superiority of the U.S. military.\nDARPA-funded research has made important science and technology contributions that have led to the development of both military and commercial technologies, such as precision guided missiles, stealth, the internet, and personal electronics. DARPA has a culture of risk-taking and tolerance for failure that has led experts, some Members of Congress, and others to view DARPA as a model for innovation both inside and outside of the federal government.\nThe \u201cDARPA model\u201d is characterized by a flat organization that empowers its tenure-limited program managers with trust, autonomy, and the ability to take risks on innovative ideas. Congress has aided DARPA\u2019s efforts by granting the agency certain flexible acquisition and personnel hiring authorities, which have allowed DARPA to engage with people and entities that may have otherwise been reluctant to interact and do business with DOD. \nDARPA funding has remained relatively steady over time. In FY2019 constant dollars, DARPA funding has decreased by 2.7% from $3.48 billion in FY1996 ($2.27 billion in current dollars) to $3.39 billion in FY2020 ($3.46 billion in current dollars). Nearly all of DARPA\u2019s funding falls under the budget categories of basic research, applied research, and advanced technology development (6.1, 6.2, and 6.3). Funding under these categories is referred to by DOD as the science and technology (S&T) budget. DOD\u2019s S&T budget is often singled out by analysts and others for additional scrutiny, as it is viewed as an investment in the foundational knowledge needed to develop future military systems. DARPA\u2019s share of Defense S&T funding has remained relatively steady at between 21% and 25% from FY2000 to FY2020. In FY2020, basic research accounts for 14% of DARPA funding, up from 3% in FY1996. Between FY1996 and FY2019, DARPA\u2019s share of DOD research, development, testing, and evaluation funding (budget categories 6.1 through 6.7) has declined from 6.4% in FY1996 to 3.3% in FY2020. \nSome Members of Congress, think tanks, and other experts have expressed concern that the U.S. military is losing its technological advantage and have called for increased innovation within DOD to address the perceived decline in U.S. technical dominance. In this context, Congress may consider several related issues, including the appropriate level of funding for DARPA; the effectiveness of the agency in transitioning technologies to the military services and the commercial sector; the role to be played by DARPA in any efforts by the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering to increase innovation at DOD; and the mechanism by which DARPA integrates ethical, legal, and social considerations into its research and development projects.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/R45088", "sha1": "5961964ddc1d2c19967cb7c85f8dfaded2e1d26a", "filename": "files/20200317_R45088_5961964ddc1d2c19967cb7c85f8dfaded2e1d26a.html", "images": { "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/1.png": "files/20200317_R45088_images_3cfb7629bad6ea7563feb4ee6e214a1ae6538227.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/2.png": "files/20200317_R45088_images_6108eda24626565fb9d73b33f73c0aac7e3ce7e0.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/0.png": "files/20200317_R45088_images_6fc763ee32fea1f1edf64eafcde9719338c156af.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/4.png": "files/20200317_R45088_images_24f2609f44b27ab7dacc2ca33186b89cc87359bf.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/3.png": "files/20200317_R45088_images_3be25cae8a39a01d729b0e890ae0ba49ad1f4cd3.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/5.png": "files/20200317_R45088_images_7b13e4dc94344f8a778c6b3e1a826c53a696172a.png" } }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R45088", "sha1": "eaf9484acf347262a22efed967ef89e3a74b1ded", "filename": "files/20200317_R45088_eaf9484acf347262a22efed967ef89e3a74b1ded.pdf", "images": {} } ], "topics": [] }, { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 588055, "date": "2018-11-13", "retrieved": "2019-12-20T20:39:25.456336", "title": "Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency: Overview and Issues for Congress", "summary": "The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), established in 1958, is an agency within the Department of Defense (DOD) responsible for catalyzing the development of technologies that maintain and advance the capabilities and technical superiority of the U.S. military.\nDARPA-funded research has made important science and technology contributions that have led to the development of both military and commercial technologies, such as precision guided missiles, stealth, the internet, and personal electronics. DARPA has a culture of risk-taking and tolerance for failure that has led experts, some Members of Congress, and others to view DARPA as a model for innovation both inside and outside of the federal government.\nThe \u201cDARPA model\u201d is characterized by a flat organization that empowers its tenure-limited program managers with trust, autonomy, and the ability to take risks on innovative ideas. Congress has aided DARPA\u2019s efforts by granting the agency certain flexible acquisition and personnel hiring authorities, which have allowed DARPA to engage with people and entities that may have otherwise been reluctant to interact and do business with DOD. \nDARPA funding has remained relatively steady over time. In FY2017 constant dollars, DARPA funding has decreased by less than 1% from $3.35 billion in FY1996 ($2.27 billion in current dollars) to $3.32 billion in FY2019 ($3.4 billion in current dollars). Nearly all of DARPA\u2019s funding falls under the categories of basic research, applied research, and advanced technology development. Funding under these categories is referred to by DOD as the science and technology (S&T) budget. DOD\u2019s S&T budget is often singled out by analysts and others for additional scrutiny, as it is viewed as an investment in the foundational knowledge needed to develop future military systems. DARPA\u2019s share of Defense S&T funding has remained relatively steady at between 22% and 25% from FY2000 to FY2019. In FY2019, basic research accounts for 14% of DARPA funding, up from 3% in FY1996. However, the proportion of DARPA funding supporting basic research in FY2019 represents a 10% decline when compared to the proportion of DARPA funding supporting basic research in FY2018. Between FY1996 and FY2019, DARPA\u2019s share of DOD research, development, testing, and evaluation funding has declined from 6.4% in FY1996 to 3.6% in FY2019. \nSome Members of Congress, think tanks, and other experts have expressed concern that the U.S. military is losing its technological advantage and have called for increased innovation within DOD to address the perceived decline in U.S. technical dominance. In this context, Congress may consider several related issues, including the appropriate level of funding for DARPA; the effectiveness of the agency in transitioning technologies to the military services and the commercial sector; the role to be played by DARPA in any efforts by the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering to increase innovation at DOD; and the mechanism by which DARPA integrates ethical, legal, and social considerations into its research and development projects.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/R45088", "sha1": "b9c0263270697adfc235bb4ccd8df8cf6f13385f", "filename": "files/20181113_R45088_b9c0263270697adfc235bb4ccd8df8cf6f13385f.html", "images": { "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/1.png": "files/20181113_R45088_images_83a970fea932dfe7481c344cb437471bcd3469a1.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/2.png": "files/20181113_R45088_images_09a90facb6fb7051a6535fbe6272a7533fb921ec.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/0.png": "files/20181113_R45088_images_510a5f033e31b275b9e000cd20159827cf4594e9.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/4.png": "files/20181113_R45088_images_b2cc1c116bbf20e100546240ee0065d50e4488ae.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/3.png": "files/20181113_R45088_images_abb712ccb8e55cc790ad328717a7a4f7229c902d.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/5.png": "files/20181113_R45088_images_d7eee3e2408627d885d54d4dad4fa85aef0f8761.png" } }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R45088", "sha1": "09a94c4fc4e3d66a78fcc03da125de9b5d5a94d7", "filename": "files/20181113_R45088_09a94c4fc4e3d66a78fcc03da125de9b5d5a94d7.pdf", "images": {} } ], "topics": [] }, { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 584659, "date": "2018-07-24", "retrieved": "2018-09-10T13:17:33.364050", "title": "Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency: Overview and Issues for Congress", "summary": "The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), established in 1958, is an agency within the Department of Defense (DOD) responsible for catalyzing the development of technologies that maintain and advance the capabilities and technical superiority of the United States military.\nDARPA-funded research has made important science and technology contributions that have led to the development of both military and commercial technologies, such as precision guided missiles, stealth, the internet, and personal electronics. DARPA has a culture of risk-taking and tolerance for failure that has led experts, some Members of Congress, and others to view DARPA as a model for innovation both inside and outside of the federal government.\nThe \u201cDARPA model\u201d is characterized by a flat organization that empowers its tenure-limited program managers with trust, autonomy, and the ability to take risks on innovative ideas. Congress has aided DARPA\u2019s efforts by granting the agency certain flexible acquisition and personnel hiring authorities, which have allowed DARPA to engage with people and entities that may have otherwise been reluctant to interact and do business with DOD. \nThe President\u2019s FY2019 budget request proposed $3.44 billion for DARPA, an increase of $367 million or 12% above FY2018. The proposed request would decrease the proportion of DARPA funding allocated to basic and applied research while increasing the proportion allocated to advanced technology development. The President\u2019s request would also increase DARPA\u2019s share of DOD\u2019s science and technology (Defense S&T) budget to 25%. Since FY1999 DARPA\u2019s share of the Defense S&T budget has remained relatively steady, between 21% and 25% with an average of 23.6%. Congress is currently debating funding levels for defense activities, including research and development.\nSome Members of Congress, think tanks, and other experts have expressed concern that the United States military is losing its technological advantage and have called for increased innovation within DOD to address the perceived decline in U.S. technical dominance. In this context, the 115th Congress may consider several related issues, including the appropriate level of funding for DARPA; the effectiveness of the agency in transitioning technologies to the military services and the commercial sector; the role to be played by DARPA in any efforts by the new Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering to increase innovation at DOD; and the mechanism by which DARPA integrates ethical, legal, and social considerations into its research and development projects.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/R45088", "sha1": "3ceec0c59c290dbd752173ea7907994002bab7e1", "filename": "files/20180724_R45088_3ceec0c59c290dbd752173ea7907994002bab7e1.html", "images": { "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/1.png": "files/20180724_R45088_images_459f511f53bdecc221d31c5dfaf74b8c047d4eb3.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/2.png": "files/20180724_R45088_images_da0ee944425650029420fbb57bf400ed20c18486.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/0.png": "files/20180724_R45088_images_51377f7936fd8379a5ae476d3f79a7181825e73d.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/4.png": "files/20180724_R45088_images_130c368e2a056088d5533ba5474140739ee1c720.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/3.png": "files/20180724_R45088_images_5edba00065d4aa15e5c534aa27f4d87acbb11982.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/5.png": "files/20180724_R45088_images_268950093b3d3c60be98f75f5530514e46e7aeff.png" } }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R45088", "sha1": "f070c3010b7c5fb300507f8aced4d2546028e615", "filename": "files/20180724_R45088_f070c3010b7c5fb300507f8aced4d2546028e615.pdf", "images": {} } ], "topics": [] }, { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 579608, "date": "2018-03-26", "retrieved": "2018-05-10T10:58:35.975351", "title": "Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency: Overview and Issues for Congress", "summary": "The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), established in 1958, is an agency within the Department of Defense (DOD) responsible for catalyzing the development of technologies that maintain and advance the capabilities and technical superiority of the United States military.\nDARPA-funded research has made important science and technology contributions that have led to the development of both military and commercial technologies, such as precision guided missiles, stealth, the internet, and personal electronics. DARPA has a culture of risk-taking and tolerance for failure that has led experts, some Members of Congress, and others to view DARPA as a model for innovation both inside and outside of the federal government.\nThe \u201cDARPA model\u201d is characterized by a flat organization that empowers its tenure-limited program managers with trust, autonomy, and the ability to take risks on innovative ideas. Congress has aided DARPA\u2019s efforts by granting the agency certain flexible acquisition and personnel hiring authorities, which have allowed DARPA to engage with people and entities that may have otherwise been reluctant to interact and do business with DOD. \nThe President\u2019s FY2019 budget request proposed $3.44 billion for DARPA, an increase of $367 million or 12% above FY2018. The proposed request would decrease the proportion of DARPA funding allocated to basic and applied research while increasing the proportion allocated to advanced technology development. The President\u2019s request would also increase DARPA\u2019s share of DOD\u2019s science and technology (Defense S&T) budget to 25%. Since FY1999 DARPA\u2019s share of the Defense S&T budget has remained relatively steady, between 21% and 25% with an average of 23.6%. Congress is currently debating funding levels for defense activities, including research and development.\nSome Members of Congress, think tanks, and other experts have expressed concern that the United States military is losing its technological advantage and have called for increased innovation within DOD to address the perceived decline in U.S. technical dominance. In this context, the 115th Congress may consider several related issues, including the appropriate level of funding for DARPA; the effectiveness of the agency in transitioning technologies to the military services and the commercial sector; the role to be played by DARPA in any efforts by the new Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering to increase innovation at DOD; and the mechanism by which DARPA integrates ethical, legal, and social considerations into its research and development projects.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/R45088", "sha1": "2019432fe9f7dc5a367c6339c1bfdff4e1242a75", "filename": "files/20180326_R45088_2019432fe9f7dc5a367c6339c1bfdff4e1242a75.html", "images": { "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/1.png": "files/20180326_R45088_images_459f511f53bdecc221d31c5dfaf74b8c047d4eb3.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/2.png": "files/20180326_R45088_images_da0ee944425650029420fbb57bf400ed20c18486.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/0.png": "files/20180326_R45088_images_51377f7936fd8379a5ae476d3f79a7181825e73d.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/4.png": "files/20180326_R45088_images_130c368e2a056088d5533ba5474140739ee1c720.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/3.png": "files/20180326_R45088_images_5edba00065d4aa15e5c534aa27f4d87acbb11982.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/5.png": "files/20180326_R45088_images_268950093b3d3c60be98f75f5530514e46e7aeff.png" } }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R45088", "sha1": "fe765cea0b806a52db9eb0dc483c220382a8d271", "filename": "files/20180326_R45088_fe765cea0b806a52db9eb0dc483c220382a8d271.pdf", "images": {} } ], "topics": [] }, { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 578092, "date": "2018-02-02", "retrieved": "2018-02-05T14:00:26.142273", "title": "Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency: Overview and Issues for Congress", "summary": "The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), established in 1958, is an agency within the Department of Defense (DOD) responsible for catalyzing the development of technologies that maintain and advance the capabilities and technical superiority of the United States military.\nDARPA-funded research has made important science and technology contributions that have led to the development of both military and commercial technologies, such as precision guided missiles, stealth, the Internet, and personal electronics. DARPA has a culture of risk-taking and tolerance for failure that has led experts, some Members of Congress, and others to view DARPA as a model for innovation both inside and outside of the federal government.\nThe \u201cDARPA model\u201d is characterized by a flat organization that empowers its tenure-limited program managers with trust, autonomy, and the ability to take risks on innovative ideas. Congress has aided DARPA\u2019s efforts by granting the agency certain flexible acquisition and personnel hiring authorities, which have allowed DARPA to engage with people and entities that may have otherwise been reluctant to interact and do business with DOD. \nThe President\u2019s FY2018 budget request proposed $3.17 billion for DARPA, an increase of $281 million or 9% above FY2017 enacted levels. The proposed request would continue the trend of increasing the proportion of DARPA funding allocated to basic and applied research. The President\u2019s request would also increase DARPA\u2019s share of DOD\u2019s science and technology (Defense S&T) budget to 24%. Since FY1999 DARPA\u2019s share of the Defense S&T budget has remained relatively steady, averaging 23%. Congress is currently debating funding levels for defense activities, including research and development.\nSome Members of Congress, think tanks, and other experts have expressed concern that the United States military is losing its technological advantage and have called for increased innovation within DOD to address the perceived decline in U.S. technical dominance. In this context, the 115th Congress may consider several related issues, including the appropriate level of funding for DARPA; the effectiveness of the agency in transitioning technologies to the military services and the commercial sector; the role to be played by DARPA in any efforts by the new Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering to increase innovation at DOD; and the mechanism by which DARPA integrates ethical, legal, and social considerations into its research and development projects.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/R45088", "sha1": "10e1e7e7f9a0744362b35ad894db58b4aaf517f0", "filename": "files/20180202_R45088_10e1e7e7f9a0744362b35ad894db58b4aaf517f0.html", "images": { "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/1.png": "files/20180202_R45088_images_734d56be3ee9bfe83142095fbd6e3a9bd4dd4e8d.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/2.png": "files/20180202_R45088_images_0bed0de4a6dba4e6ab849658ffc16fd53cdcdbf0.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/0.png": "files/20180202_R45088_images_51377f7936fd8379a5ae476d3f79a7181825e73d.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/4.png": "files/20180202_R45088_images_3a515d2cdfbeaca2c4a435467cc0d3fcf09e6129.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/3.png": "files/20180202_R45088_images_64fd41119043d0cbb1c05209b49df6ddc2a399aa.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45088_files&id=/5.png": "files/20180202_R45088_images_aabec61bc878a0739edb16ea99b723d3c9bbf93f.png" } }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R45088", "sha1": "34575b7b02dd327d15cf7060e2dd0a29c46aa60b", "filename": "files/20180202_R45088_34575b7b02dd327d15cf7060e2dd0a29c46aa60b.pdf", "images": {} } ], "topics": [] } ], "topics": [ "National Defense", "Science and Technology Policy" ] }