# Project 138 — S&T Protection

**Program element:** 0605797D8Z — Maintaining Technology Advantage  
**Project:** 138  
**Component:** Defense-Wide  
**Appropriation:** 0400 — RDT&E, Defense-Wide  
**Budget Activity:** 6 — RDT&E Management Support  
**Vintage:** President's Budget PB2027  
**Canonical URL:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605797D8Z/138  
**Parent:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605797D8Z

## Summary

Project 138 — S&T Protection requests $13.9M in FY2027, 39% of the $35.5M requested for program element 0605797D8Z, up 21% on FY2026. 1 R-2A activity decomposes the request.

## Funding profile

| Fiscal Year | Estimate Type | Amount ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | Actual | 13.9 |
| FY2026 | Enacted | 11.5 |
| FY2027 | Request | 13.9 |
| FY2028 | Outyear | 20.4 |
| FY2029 | Outyear | 16.4 |
| FY2030 | Outyear | 14.1 |
| FY2031 | Outyear | 14.4 |

> Estimate types are not summed. This project is one leaf of PE 0605797D8Z; the PE total is the sum of its projects, never added to them.

## What project 138 buys

As the Department develops advanced technologies, it must use a rigorous, repeatable methodology to protect technology advantage. For example, the Department will establish and implement procedures to protect critical technology in science and technology (S&T), encompassing the lifecycle of basic and applied research, advanced technology development, prototyping, and technology transition to programs. This includes driving consistency across risk-based security reviews for fundamental research and Small Businesses Innovation Research / Small Business Technology Transfer (SBIR/STTR) programs. This also include working with the acquisition community to identify Programs of Record and S&T Projects that require enhanced protection to maintain U.S. technological advantage. The production, updating, and use of Technology Area Protection Plans (TAPPs) generate consistent protection of critical technology, provide foundational guidance for communicating about the technology to particular audiences, and inform protection and controls integrated with technology promotion activities. The implementation of the guidance and TAPPs have broad impacts across DoW and interagency-wide activities associated with critical technologies, including development of protection practices with DoW research performers (e.g., the DoW and national laboratories, academia, small businesses, and the broader industrial innovation base); international agreements; counterintelligence and law enforcement priorities and activities; export controls; and foreign investment screening through the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS).

## Activities (R-2A) — 1

| Activity | FY2025 | FY2026 | FY2027 | Move | Page |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Science and Technology (S&T) Protection | 13.9 | 11.5 | 13.9 | +21% | [a0](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605797D8Z/138/a0) |

> Activities carry the prior, current and budget year only — no five-year plan. In the request year they partition this project exactly; in earlier years they can under-cover it.

### Science and Technology (S&T) Protection

- Continue to update as needed DoW risk-based security review practices (e.g., fundamental research, SBIR/STTR) that are consistent across the DoW and mitigate foreign influence in S&T efforts. - Institutionalize DoW risk-based security reviews for fundamental research to mitigate foreign influence in S&T efforts across OSW. - Prioritize…

Full year-by-year narrative: https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605797D8Z/138/a0

## What is NOT on this page

Congressional marks, the R-2 mission description and acquisition strategy, the industry vs government split of the whole request, and related program elements are recorded at **program-element** grain — an NDAA mark lands on a PE, never on a project. They are at https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605797D8Z.

## Source & machine access

- **Source:** FY2027 Office of the Secretary of Defense RDT&E Budget Justification, Exhibits R-2/R-2A/R-3, PE 0605797D8Z project 138 (PB PB2027).
- **MCP:** `mcp.hitchintel.com` — `budget_get_program_element(pe="0605797D8Z")`.

*HitchAI is an independent intelligence service, not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Defense. Budget figures are requests/estimates, not obligations.*