A bill to require the Secretary of Defense to establish a pilot program to evaluate the safety, quality, and qualification pathways of printable energetic feedstocks for controlled additive manufacturing applications.

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4766 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4766

  To require the Secretary of Defense to establish a pilot program to 
 evaluate the safety, quality, and qualification pathways of printable 
      energetic feedstocks for controlled additive manufacturing 
                             applications.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 11, 2026

  Mr. Cornyn introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
              referred to the Committee on Armed Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
  To require the Secretary of Defense to establish a pilot program to 
 evaluate the safety, quality, and qualification pathways of printable 
      energetic feedstocks for controlled additive manufacturing 
                             applications.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. PILOT PROGRAM ON SAFETY AND QUALIFICATION OF PRINTABLE 
              ENERGETIC FEEDSTOCKS FOR ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary of Defense shall establish a 
pilot program, to be carried out by the Under Secretary of Defense for 
Research and Engineering, in coordination with the Capability Program 
Executive, Ammunition and Energetics (or successor organization) and 
appropriate service acquisition executives, to evaluate the safety, 
quality, and qualification pathways of printable energetic feedstocks 
for controlled additive manufacturing applications.
    (b) Purpose.--The purposes of the pilot program are--
            (1) to determine whether the use of printable energetic 
        feedstocks can improve handling safety, process stability, lot-
        to-lot consistency, and supply chain resilience relative to 
        traditional energetics manufacturing and handling methods;
            (2) to analyze the effect of printable energetic feedstocks 
        with regards to logistics, including throughput, waste, defect 
        rate, and constituent material availability versus state-of-
        the-art legacy processes;
            (3) to develop and validate new test and evaluation 
        methods, if necessary, including metrology and digital quality 
        assurance, if existing qualification pathways are insufficient 
        to assess printable energetic feedstocks for Department of 
        Defense use;
            (4) to assess applicability of printable energetic 
        feedstocks to existing or planned munition and energetics 
        modernization efforts, consistent with explosive safety, 
        security, and environmental requirements that provide advantage 
        in performance or logistics; and
            (5) to identify barriers to adoption, including 
        infrastructure, standards, certification, and workforce 
        requirements.
    (c) Activities.--Activities under the pilot program may include--
            (1) identification, assessment, and characterization of 
        representative printable energetic feedstocks and their 
        performance consistency under controlled conditions;
            (2) development of qualification criteria and data packages 
        to inform safety releases, waivers, or certifications as 
        appropriate;
            (3) limited demonstrations at Government facilities or 
        contractor facilities that meet all applicable explosive safety 
        and security requirements;
            (4) development of nonproprietary standards, metrology 
        approaches, and digital thread quality controls for printable 
        energetic feedstocks; and
            (5) analysis of operational effects via wargaming or 
        mission or campaign modeling and experimental performance data.
    (d) Comparative Safety Assessment Required.--As a core element of 
the pilot program, the Secretary shall conduct a comparative assessment 
of the safety of the use of printable energetic feedstocks relative to 
traditional energetics manufacturing and handling, including, at a 
minimum--
            (1) hazards and risks associated with storage, transport, 
        handling, and processing;
            (2) sensitivity and response to credible stimuli (including 
        thermal and mechanical stimuli) using appropriate test 
        standards;
            (3) process safety considerations, including potential 
        failure modes and mitigations for controlled additive 
        manufacturing workflows;
            (4) accident and incident risk modeling (including 
        qualitative and quantitative risk assessment where feasible); 
        and
            (5) recommended safety controls, facility requirements, and 
        operational constraints for any future operational use.
    (e) Safety and Security Requirements.--The Secretary shall ensure 
that activities under the pilot program--
            (1) are conducted only at facilities compliant with 
        applicable explosive safety siting, storage, handling, and 
        operating requirements;
            (2) incorporate counter-diversion safeguards, inventory 
        accountability, and chain-of-custody controls; and
            (3) do not authorize dissemination of restricted 
        manufacturing parameters outside approved Government and 
        cleared-industry channels.
    (f) Reporting.--Not later than 180 days after initiation of the 
pilot program, and annually thereafter for the duration of the pilot 
program, the Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense 
committees a report that includes--
            (1) pilot objectives, participants, test locations, and 
        safety governance structure;
            (2) test methodologies, standards used, and key safety and 
        quality metrics;
            (3) results of activities conducted under subsection (c), 
        including identification, assessment, and characterization of 
        representative printable energetic feedstocks, demonstrations, 
        qualification criteria, data packages, and standards 
        development;
            (4) results of the comparative safety assessment required 
        under subsection (d), including identified hazards, 
        mitigations, and residual risk;
            (5) an assessment of cost, schedule, and scalability 
        relative to traditional energetics manufacturing and handling;
            (6) recommended qualification and certification pathways, 
        including any standards gaps; and
            (7) any recommended legislative, regulatory, or resourcing 
        actions required to enable safe adoption.
    (g) Termination.--The pilot program shall terminate before the date 
that is two years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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