HouseH.R. 9366119th Congress
Eastern Frontier Defense Infrastructure Readiness Act
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[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9366 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 9366
To require a report on Eastern Frontier infrastructure readiness.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 18, 2026
Mr. Self introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require a report on Eastern Frontier infrastructure readiness.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Eastern Frontier Defense
Infrastructure Readiness Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND SENSE OF CONGRESS.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) The Government of the Russian Federation continues to
pose a long-term threat to Euro-Atlantic security, as
reaffirmed by allies in the Hague Summit Declaration issued on
June 25, 2025.
(2) Under that Declaration, allies of the North Atlantic
Treaty Organization committed to invest five percent of gross
domestic product annually on core defense requirements and on
defense- and security-related spending by 2035, of which up to
1.5 percent is to be accounted for to protect critical
infrastructure, defend networks, ensure civil preparedness and
resilience, unleash innovation, and strengthen the defense
industrial base.
(3) The Supreme Allied Commander-Europe, has identified
military mobility, host-nation infrastructure, and theater-wide
resilience as essential to executing the Alliance's new family
of regional defense plans approved at the 2023 Vilnius Summit.
(4) Allies located on the Eastern Frontier of the Alliance
bear disproportionate first-responder responsibilities under
those plans and require infrastructure that can sustain large-
scale reinforcement, sustainment, and combat operations in the
event of conflict with the Russian Federation. Gaps in
transportation, energy, communications, and financial
infrastructure along the Eastern Frontier directly affect the
ability of the United States Armed Forces and the forces of
other allies to deter aggression and, if necessary, to defend
allied territory.
(b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the United
States has a vital national security interest in the timely and
verifiable integration of the infrastructure of Eastern Frontier allies
with the requirements of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
SEC. 3. REPORT ON EASTERN FRONTIER INFRASTRUCTURE READINESS.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense, in coordination with
the Secretary of State and in consultation with the Supreme Allied
Commander-Europe, shall submit to the appropriate congressional
committees a report on the progress of each Eastern Frontier ally in
integrating its national infrastructure with the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO) infrastructure requirements.
(b) Contents.--The report required by subsection (a) shall include
the following:
(1) For each Eastern Frontier ally, an assessment of such
ally's progress, as of the date of the report, in meeting NATO
infrastructure requirements, including--
(A) transportation infrastructure, including roads,
bridges, rail, ports, inland waterways, and airfields,
with particular attention to military-mobility
corridors and dual-use capacity;
(B) energy infrastructure, including pipelines,
refineries, electricity generation and transmission,
fuel storage, and grid interconnections;
(C) communications and digital infrastructure,
including telecommunications networks, undersea cables,
satellite ground stations, and cybersecurity of
national networks;
(D) financial systems infrastructure, including the
resilience and continuity of payment, clearing, and
settlement systems necessary to sustain mobilization,
host-nation support, and Alliance operations;
(E) civil preparedness and resilience, including
water, medical, and emergency-services infrastructure;
and
(F) defense industrial base infrastructure,
including munitions production, maintenance and
overhaul capacity, and storage.
(2) An assessment of the ally's progress toward, and the
credibility of its plan to reach, the 1.5 percent of gross
domestic product commitment described in section 2(a)(2),
including a description of the categories of expenditure being
counted toward that commitment and whether such expenditure is
materially improving infrastructure relevant to Alliance
defense plans.
(3) An identification of the most consequential
infrastructure shortfalls, including any shortfall that would,
in the event of conflict with the Russian Federation--
(A) impede the timely reinforcement of the ally by
United States forces or by other allied forces;
(B) impede the sustainment of combat operations in
the ally's territory; or
(C) create a single point of failure exploitable by
the Russian Federation, including through cyber or
sabotage operations.
(4) Recommendations to address the shortfalls identified
under paragraph (3), including--
(A) recommended adjustments to United States
security cooperation programs under chapter 16 of title
10, United States Code;
(B) recommended prioritization within the European
Deterrence Initiative;
(C) recommended use of authorities under the
Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Arms Export
Control Act, in coordination with the Secretary of
State;
(D) opportunities for cost-sharing with the ally,
with the Alliance through the NATO Security Investment
Program, or with the European Union; and
(E) any legislative recommendations the Secretary
of Defense considers appropriate.
(5) A description of Russian Federation activities,
including cyber operations, sabotage, and hybrid operations,
targeting the infrastructure described in paragraph (1).
(c) Form.--The report required by subsection (a) shall be submitted
in unclassified form, and may contain a classified annex.
SEC. 4. COMPTROLLER GENERAL REVIEW.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date on which
the report required under section 3(a) is submitted, the Comptroller
General of the United States shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees a review of that report.
(b) Contents.--The review required under subsection (a) shall
include--
(1) an independent assessment of the methodology, data
sources, and analytic rigor of the report and an evaluation of
the extent to which the recommendations in the report are
supported by the underlying findings;
(2) an assessment of the extent to which expenditures
counted by Eastern Frontier allies toward the 1.5 percent of
gross domestic product commitment are materially improving
North Atlantic Treaty Organization infrastructure requirements;
and
(3) any recommendations of the Comptroller General to
improve the prioritization of United States security assistance
and security cooperation for Eastern Frontier allies.
(c) Form.--The review required by subsection (a) shall be submitted
in unclassified form, and may contain a classified annex.
SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION FOR SECURITY ASSISTANCE AND SECURITY COOPERATION
PRIORITIZATION.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Defense is authorized to
prioritize security assistance in the European Deterrence Initiative,
and in programming security cooperation activities under chapter 16 of
title 10, United States Code, for Eastern Frontier allies.
(b) Annual Briefing.--Not later than 30 days after the date of the
submission of the President's budget under section 1105 of title 31,
United States Code, for each of fiscal years 2028 through 2032, the
Secretary of Defense shall provide to the appropriate congressional
committees a briefing on the manner in which the budget request
implements subsection (a).
SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) The term ``appropriate congressional committees''
means--
(A) the Committees on Armed Services, Foreign
Affairs, and Appropriations of the House of
Representatives; and
(B) the Committees on Armed Services, Foreign
Relations, and Appropriations of the Senate.
(2) The term ``Eastern Frontier ally'' means each of the
following member states of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization:
(A) The Republic of Estonia.
(B) The Republic of Latvia.
(C) The Republic of Lithuania.
(D) The Republic of Poland.
(E) The Czech Republic.
(F) The Slovak Republic.
(G) Hungary.
(H) Romania.
(I) The Republic of Bulgaria.
(J) The Republic of Finland.
(K) The Kingdom of Sweden.
(L) The Kingdom of Norway.
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