Title 10, Armed ForcesRelease 119-110

§2275d Acquisition and Operation of Space Systems for Space Warfighting and Control

Title 10 › Subtitle A — General Military Law › PART IV — SERVICE, SUPPLY, AND PROPERTY › CHAPTER 135 — SPACE PROGRAMS › § 2275d

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary of Defense must buy and run space systems mainly for space warfighting and control to meet needs set by combatant commanders as they perform their duties. The Secretary may also use commercial space systems to help, but only if a military officer in charge of space warfighting and control is directing them. The Secretary can skip the buy-and-run rule if doing so is in the United States’ national security interest. If the Secretary does that, they must tell the congressional defense committees within 10 days. The notice must say why the waiver is needed for national security, what vulnerabilities it could create, which operational commander will direct the commercial system, and how long the waiver will last.

Full Legal Text

Title 10, §2275d

Armed Forces, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Requirement.—

The Secretary of Defense shall acquire and operate space systems to be used primarily for space warfighting and control to meet the requirements specified by one or more combatant commanders in carrying out the responsibilities set forth in section 164 of this title.

(b)Role of Commercial Space Systems.—

The Secretary may use one or more commercial space systems to augment the space systems acquired and operated under subsection (a) if such commercial space systems are under the direction of a member of the armed forces with responsibility for space warfighting and control operations.

(c)National Security Waiver.—

(1)The Secretary may waive the application of subsection (a) if the Secretary determines that such a waiver is in the national security interest of the United States.

(2)Not later than 10 days after exercising the waiver authority under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense committees a notification of the use of such authority that includes—

(A)a description of the national security interest upon which the exercise of such authority is based;

(B)the anticipated vulnerabilities to national security posed by the use of such waiver;

(C)identification of which operational commander will provide direction to the commercial space system that is used pursuant to the waiver instead of a system acquired and operated by the Secretary; and

(D)the anticipated duration of such waiver.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

10 U.S.C. § 2275d

Title 10, Armed Forces

Last Updated

Sep 22, 2026

Release point: 119-110