Video Interview Series: GovCon Expert Jim McAleese Breaks Down FY23 Budget Part 1

The Biden Administration’s fiscal year 2023 budget request, released in March 2022, allocates $773 billion in funding to the Department of Defense. In a recent video interview with Executive Mosaic, GovCon Expert Jim McAleese, principal and owner of McAleese and Associates and a Wash100 Award winner, gave an in-depth analysis of what this budget request means for the DOD, which programs are getting the most funding and what it can tell us about the United States’ current and future defense priorities.

In his exploration of the FY23 budget, McAleese noted a significant “spike” in funding for RDT&E, or research, development, testing and evaluation, within the DOD. At over $130 billion, the department’s requested R&D funding for 2023 is at an all-time high. In March, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin explained that this funding will help the U.S. “sharpen its readiness” in areas like cyber, space and artificial intelligence

But the overarching priority for the DOD into 2023 and beyond, McAleese revealed, is the race to outpace China, or what is being referred to as the “China fight.”

“The most important takeaway is, there’s an enormous surge of funding coming into the department in 2022/2023,” said McAleese. “Then, if you look at where that funding is going, it’s immediately being shifted into the China fight.”

He also confirmed the notion that this future fight will be one fought by the Navy, the Air Force and the Space Force, which is reflected with increased funding for these services in the budget.