What will the U.S. Space Force budget be in the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act?
Started
Aug 08, 2025 04:00PM UTC
Closed Dec 18, 2025 05:00PM UTC
Closed Dec 18, 2025 05:00PM UTC
Topics
Seasons
Congressional appropriations for the U.S. Space Force’s Operations and Maintenance (O&M) and Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation (RDT&E) accounts have fluctuated in recent years. The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY2023 authorized a combined total of $20.8 billion for these accounts, which increased to $24.7 billion in FY2024, before decreasing to $23.6 billion in FY2025. (NOTE: All amounts in the linked NDAAs are listed in thousands of dollars.)
The final FY2026 NDAA, likely to be passed in December 2025, will determine whether this trend of year-to-year changes continues for Space Force O&M and RDT&E funding.
Resolution Criteria:
The final calculation for the U.S. Space Force budget will be taken from the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act, as published by the U.S. Congress. Specifically, the budget number will be the combined amount from the U.S. Space Force Operations and Maintenance (O&M) and Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation (RDT&E) appropriations. This question will resolve according to the appropriated amount in the FY2026 NDAA or according to the appropriated amount in a potential FY26 Continuing Resolution (CR) and will remain open until the NDAA or CR is passed.
Recent (FY23-25) authorized funding amounts for Space Force’s combined RDT&E and O&M within the National Defense Authorization Acts:
| Fiscal Year | Category | Amount Requested ($000’s) | Amount Authorized ($000’s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2023 | RDT&E (“TOTAL RDT&E, SPACE FORCE”) | $15,819,372 | $16,589,070 |
| O&M (“TOTAL OPERATION & MAINTENANCE, SPACE FORCE”) | $4,034,658 | $4,184,378 | |
| Total | $20,773,448 | ||
| FY2024 | RDT&E (“TOTAL RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, TEST & EVAL, SF”) | $19,199,340 | $19,701,916 |
| O&M (“OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE, SPACE FORCE”) | $5,017,468 | $4,963,441 | |
| Total | $24,665,357 | ||
| FY2025 | RDT&E (“TOTAL RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, TEST & EVAL, SF”) | $18,700,153 | $18,371,754 |
| O&M (“TOTAL OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE, SPACE FORCE”) | $5,292,272 | $5,217,272 | |
| Total | $23,589,026 |
Resolution Notes
The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 became law on 18 December 2025. In the NDAA, $16.616 billion ($16,615,855 thousand) was authorized for Space Force RDT&E and $5.670 billion ($5,670,086 thousand) was authorized for O&M, for a total budget of $22.286 billion.
| Possible Answer | Correct? | Final Crowd Forecast |
|---|---|---|
| Less than $21.0 billion | 15% | |
| More than or equal to $21.0 billion but less than $22.5 billion | 52% | |
| More than or equal to $22.5 billion but less than $23.5 billion | 13% | |
| More than or equal to $23.5 billion but less than $25.0 billion | 8% | |
| More than or equal to $25.0 billion | 12% |
Crowd Forecast Profile
| Participation Level | |
|---|---|
| Number of Forecasters | 52 |
| Average for questions in their first 6 months: 59 | |
| Number of Forecasts | 201 |
| Average for questions in their first 6 months: 178 | |
| Accuracy | |
|---|---|
| Participants in this question vs. all forecasters | better than average |
