WASHINGTON—U.S. Senators Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) and Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), and Representative Mark Messmer (R-Ind.)— members of the Senate and House Armed Services Committees—hosted a press conference today with their colleagues announcing the introduction of their legislation, the Ground and Orbital Launched Defeat of Emergent Nuclear Destruction and Other Missile Engagements (GOLDEN DOME) Act. The GOLDEN DOME Act authorizes more than $23 billion to begin developing a modernized, layered homeland missile defense system that can counter, detect, track, and defeat existing and evolving threats as envisioned by President Donald Trump in his January 27, 2025 executive order.
“The escalating missile threats we’ve witnessed from the Iranian terrorist regime and the rapidly evolving missile threats from Russia and China demonstrate why we need to develop a robust, modernized missile defense system to protect the entire country—which the GOLDEN DOME Act will do,” said Sen. Sullivan. “The three prongs of successful policy in D.C. are presidential leadership, appropriated funding and comprehensive authorizing legislation. We have all three of these elements behind this historic Golden Dome initiative. President Trump has, for years, going back to his first term, driven the vision of a layered, open architecture missile defense system. Congress is stepping up with a down payment appropriation of $25 billion in the reconciliation bill. And now, we are introducing the GOLDEN DOME Act to cement this vision in law. The GOLDEN DOME Act will incorporate space-based sensors and new intercept technologies, significantly expand and modernize existing infrastructure, like the ground-based missile interceptor fields at Alaska’s Fort Greely and North Dakota’s PARCS radar system, and enhance all-domain awareness to counter, detect, track, and defeat potential missile threats. The great State of Alaska has been—and will continue to be—the cornerstone of our missile defense system. I look forward to working with my colleagues in both the House and the Senate to get this important legislation to President Trump’s desk to better secure the homeland.”
“Our adversaries have developed more advanced long-range weapons over the last couple of decades, posing a significant threat to our national security,” said Sen. Cramer. “We have to act in order to defend against the evolving and complex threat landscape. Senator Sullivan and I introduced the GOLDEN DOME Act to build a layered missile defense system, which protects our homeland from catastrophic attacks from modern missiles. Our bill puts the legislative muscle behind President Trump’s executive order to support his innovative vision of protecting our great nation from current and future threats. The Golden Dome is great for America, great for North Dakota, and great for Alaska. The time is now to prioritize the defense of the United States by modernizing our missile defense infrastructure.”
“In a world where hostile adversaries like Russia and China present an ever-present nuclear threat, America must stand ready to prevent nuclear weapons from harming our citizens,” said Rep. Messmer. “The Golden Dome Act fulfills President Trump’s initiative to keep America safe with this state of the art missile defense shield.”
Specifically, the GOLDEN DOME Act is focused on enhancing the all-domain awareness of the U.S missile defense system, bolstering the capacity of U.S. missiles and drones to defend against threats from rogue nations as well as near-peer nations, and accelerating the development of new capabilities to keep pace with future threats, particularly from hypersonics and cruise missiles.
This legislation is cosponsored in the Senate by Sens. John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.), Katie Britt (R-Ala.), Jim Banks (R-Ind.), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), and Tim Scott (R-SC).
