Rome, N.Y. - In case you missed it, Congresswoman Elise Stefanik highlighted several results she secured for Rome, New York, through the FY2024 appropriations process including over $415 million in funding for the Air Force Research Lab. Congresswoman Stefanik also announced the introduction of the Defense Quantum Acceleration Act at the Griffiss Institute. Stefanik was joined by New York State Senator Joe Griffo, Oneida County Executive Anthony J. Picente Jr., City of Rome Mayor Jeff Lanigan, and Griffiss Institute President and CEO Heather Hage.
The Defense Quantum Acceleration Act will accelerate quantum technology adoption in the U.S. Department of Defense.
Find her full remarks below:
“It’s great to be back in Rome. I was here two years ago when this was almost part of my Congressional District. And I’m so proud that this community and this incredible gem right here in Upstate New York is now a part of New York’s 21st Congressional District. And it has been a warm welcome with very good friends that I’ve worked with before. I want to thank them here today. Of course we have Senator Joe Griffo who I’ve known for well over a decade, who has represented parts of my district in Upstate New York. We have our wonderful County Executive who is such a strong voice and who I have kept in close touch with over the past two years as we’ve worked to deliver results right here to Oneida County.
I’ve been here many times before. It was great to get a briefing from Dr. Michael Hayduk about all the incredible research and emerging technological work that is being done right here at Rome AFRL, and I think this is a really great fit.
I am proud to serve as the senior most New Yorker on the House Armed Services Committee and the House Committee on Intelligence so the work that we do here, in Upstate New York, related to national security issues is a tremendous fit for the committees in which I am honored to serve as a very senior member. And the experience that we have advocating for Fort Drum, advocating for other military partnerships and defense partnerships throughout Upstate New York and the North Country, it fits into a very strong ecosystem that your local leadership in Oneida County are building right now.
I also want to thank the Rome Mayor, Jeff Lanigan, I’m looking forward to working closely with him. I want to thank our local leadership, from the Central New York Defense Alliance who has been a tremendous partner over many years as we’ve worked to deliver results to this community in the National Defense Authorization Act and the Appropriations bill. I also want to note that we worked very closely with your current member of Congress, Brandon Williams, who worked to ensure that we were able to deliver these results, partnering in the appropriations process and then in my seat on the House Armed Services Committee.
This is a tremendous investment that I’m proud to announce for the region, doubling the previous year's investment and we just passed the Appropriations bill which was signed into law and I'm proud to announce over 415 million dollars total for Fiscal Year 2024 for the Air Force Research Lab. This goes towards quantum research. This goes towards cyber. This goes to our Counter-UAS. So all the emerging technologies, when we consider future national security challenges we will be the leaders right here in Rome. And I am proud to have delivered that significant funding working with Brandon Williams, working with our local elected officials, and utilizing my seat on the House Armed Services Committee and the House Intelligence Committee to get that done. This is a tremendous endorsement at the national level of the incredible work and the unique work that Rome lab does every single day. We are not only the leader in New York, the leader in the United States of America but we are a global leader when it comes to these emerging technologies.
And that’s why I am excited to announce one of the new pieces of legislation that I am introducing right here in Rome, it's called the Defense Quantum Acceleration Act. And this bill will supercharge the DoD’s approach to Quantum Information Science and create a framework for reaching the first first utility-scale, fault tolerant, quantum computer right here in Rome, New York. So we want to make sure when it comes to Quantum, that we continue to be the world leader. That is why I am introducing this legislation. It’s not only important for national security purposes but also important for right here in Oneida County and right here in Rome. So I’m looking forward to building on these partnerships. I'm looking forward to earning the support from voters in the portions of Oneida County that have been added to New York’s 21st Congressional District. As I said I have been here many times before and looking forward to the work and the vision that lies ahead. I am excited to introduce some of my fellow elected officials who I have worked with before.”
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