Duckworth Introduces Bill to Help Invest in Tech Talent in Our Armed Forces

Duckworth Introduces Bill to Help Invest in Tech Talent in Our Armed Forces

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Today, combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) introduced legislation to help invest in our military's technological workforce. While cultivating a strong and competitive workforce in computer programming, coding and Artificial Intelligence (AI) is key to bolstering our military readiness and national security, a September 2021 policy brief from the Center for Security and Emerging Technology revealed that the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) is failing to find and leverage tech talent that already exists in the Armed Forces. Senator Duckworth's Managing Active and Reserve Tech Talent Effectively Act would help change this by empowering the DoD to build on its Cyber Workforce Framework and create new military careers across active and reserve components for computer programming, coding and AI-related skills so that the Department can better recruit, retain and manage technological talent among our nation's servicemembers.

"To ensure our national security and military readiness is as strong as it can be, we cannot risk overlooking the computer programming, artificial intelligence and other advanced technological talent of our servicemembers-particularly those members of the Reserve Component who have tech and digital skills from their civilian careers," said Duckworth. "I'm proud to introduce this new legislation to help the Department of Defense better understand, manage and grow our technological workforce in our military so we can make sure our military remains ready for the next fight."

A copy of the bill text can be found here.

Duckworth is an Iraq War Veteran who served in the Reserve Forces for 23 years before retiring from military service in 2014 at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. She is a Purple Heart recipient and one of the first handful of Army women to fly combat missions during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

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