The President’s FY 2027 Budget Request And How It Will Impact Defense Conversations
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Each fiscal year the cyclical budget process begins with the president submitting his budget request to congress, and this year the Trump administration disclosed their request on April 6. The president's funding request for the federal government included a 44% increase in funds for the DoW and 9% for the VA.
As the White House looks to boost funding for these critical federal agencies, IDGA is planning to support each organization's objectives for the upcoming fiscal year.
IDGA hosts a series of conferences and summits for government, military, industry, and academia to discuss important defense and security topics, including plans for the upcoming fiscal year funding. For over 20 years, these conferences have been designed to further the national security objectives of the federal government and to facilitate the acquisition priorities of the DoD, DHS, and other federal agencies.
This article connects the President's budget request and upcoming IDGA events, detailing what is being requested for agencies like DoW, DHS, and the VA, agencies that are the focal point of conversations at IDGA events.
Future Indirect Fires
As conflicts in Ukraine and Iran continue, the US is looking to maintain its production of critical munitions to support the warfighter. This year's budget request makes it clear that the Pentagon needs to ramp up the mass production of munitions. In the request, the White House states it intends to "rapidly procure 12 critical munitions." without specifying munition types or dollar amounts. This goal aligns with a wider DoW initiative to strengthen America's defense industrial base and provide a foundation for scalable munitions production in the future.
IDGA's Future Indirect Fires Summit provides a forum for the DoW to share with industry the role it can play as munitions production escalates. The two-day conference, which serves as the first in IDGA's event calendar each January, has also become an important resource for attendees to learn the latest innovations and modernizations in indirect fires platforms, support systems, munitions, and the role of indirect fires in Europe and the Indo-Pacific.
Military Simulation Training
As operational demands increase and advanced platforms grow more complex and costly to operate, the budget reinforces a shift toward training models that are scalable, interoperable, and data‑centric. Given this new reality, military simulation is positioned not merely as a cost‑savings tool, but as a critical mechanism for preparing forces for high‑end, multi‑domain conflict.
Each February, the Military Simulation Training Summit provides a forum for US and allied forces to share best practices in modern military training. At the 2027 summit, there will be much to discuss as the latest budget request places an emphasis on readiness modernization, training efficiency and predictive analytics across the armed forces.
Homeland Security
The Trump Administration has placed the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) at the center of its domestic security agenda, and the FY 2027 budget request continues to emphasize the agency's importance.
At the time the FY 2027 budget was prepared, DHS had yet to receive its funding for FY 2026. However, the FY 2027 request allocates $63 billion in discretionary funding for DHS, complemented by more than $190 billion in multiyear funding provided through the Working Families Tax Cut Act (WFTC). An estimated $31.4 billion of WFTC funding will be available in FY 2027 alone.
IDGA's Homeland Security Week this March convened senior leaders from DHS, DOJ, CBP, ICE, CISA, and state and local law enforcement to address the same issues the White House would like to provide funding for. These include border management, counter‑UAS, biometrics, AI, cybersecurity, and infrastructure resilience.
Wildfire Technology
In 2026 the federal government has reorganized its approach to wildfire surveillance and mitigation. In January, the Department of the Interior introduced the new U.S. Wildland Fire Service (USWFS), established to streamlines wildfire prevention, response, and recovery efforts across public lands. Already, USWFS has unified the Department of the Interior's four firefighting bureaus and will soon take the responsibility of federal wildland fire management away from the Department of Agriculture's Forest Service.
To support the new service, the FY 2027 budget requests a new Wildfire Intelligence Center that would centralize and modernize fire intelligence and technology. IDGA's Wildfire Technology Summit, which wrapped up this April, gave the firefighting community an opportunity to hear from USWFS, as well as a forum to discuss advanced detection tools, unmanned systems, aerial firefighting approaches, and more.
Air Dominance
In 2025, the Pentagon selected Boeing's F-47 to be the U.S. military's first sixth-generation fighter aircraft, and the FY2027 budget request cements the Trump administration's support of the air superiority initiative. The 2027 request prioritizes the rapid development and production of the F-47, with the goal of achieving first flight in 2028, as well as supports the Navy's F-A/XX program as it prepares to downselect in August.
IDGA's Air Dominance Summit this May 12-13 in Henderson, Nevada, bring together leaders from across the defense and aerospace communities, including the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Navy, allied nations, industry, and academia, to discuss the sixth-generation fighter aircraft as well as the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy's Collaborative Combat Aircraft programs.
Armored Vehicles
The President's FY 2027 budget reinforces ground combat systems as a foundational element of US military power, positioning armored vehicle modernization as a prerequisite for deterrence in high ‑intensity conflict.
The Army's efforts to modernize its ground fleet are highlighted by efforts to replace the Bradley armored vehicles with the XM-30, an optionally-manned fighting vehicle that the Army is looking to procure over 100 units of in the coming years. At IDGA's Armored Vehicle USA this June 22-23, leaders from Army divisions such as T2COM, CPE Ground, and TACOM will deliver updates on the Army's ground modernization efforts.
Armored Vehicles USA 2026 returns to Detroit, Michigan on June 23–24, uniting over 400 senior military leaders, acquisition professionals, and industry experts for two days of strategic briefings, technical discussions, and solution-oriented collaboration.Learn More About Armored Vehicle USA
Veterans Healthcare
The Trump Administration showed its support for American veterans by requesting a 9% increase in discretionary funding for the Department of Veteran Affairs in 2027. The budget places strong emphasis on modernization across the department, including $4.2 billion for Electronic Health Record modernization, expanded IT and cybersecurity investments, large-scale construction projects, and increased use of automation and AI in benefits processing.
Additionally, the request prioritizes veterans with complex needs by allocating $644 million for residential mental health and substance use treatment programs and $3.8 billion for veteran homelessness initiatives.
To learn more specifics about VA funding for FY 2027, check out IDGA's full analysis of the requested funding for the VA.
UAS and Counter-UAS Systems
Drones are redefining modern warfare and homeland security. Low‑cost, proliferated drones have emerged as a persistent risk to military forces, critical infrastructure, borders, and public events, while advanced unmanned platforms are simultaneously becoming indispensable to U.S. military operations. As a result, the budget advances a dual imperative: field next‑generation UAS at scale while rapidly expanding counter‑UAS (C-UAS) capabilities across defense and homeland security missions.
In 2026 IDGA is running two events to pair with these efforts. First is the Next Gen UAS Summit taking place June 23-24 in Arlington, Virginia. The two-day conference gives attendees visibility into key program areas like the development of the UAS marketplace and how the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) is scaling the Blue UAS List. Participants will also hear from leaders across the services about one-way attack systems, vertical lift modernization, AI-enabled autonomy, ISR capabilities, and next-generation training pipelines.
Then, starting August 25, IDGA will host the Counter UAS Summit at the MGM Hotel & Casino in national Harbor, Maryland. This conference provides attendees with a unique platform to network, connect, and learn directly from the decision-makers shaping the CUAS marketplace and broader counter-drone strategy.
The premier event for the Counter-UAS community will be in National Harbor, Maryland, this August 25-26. Now in its 8th year, the two-day conference provides a forum comprised of key decision-makers and senior military leaders for discussions on ways to collaboratively combat the threat of UAS to the United States military and civilians.Learn more about IDGA's Counter-UAS Summit
Defense Energy & Logistics
A priority for the DoW under the Trump Administration has been to strengthen the American defense industrial base. To do so, the Pentagon has introduced new acquisition reforms that speed up procurement for the department.
IDGA's Defense Logistics & Energy Summit will help industry understand how ongoing changes within the DoW will impact the defense supply chain. Additionally, as the department increases funding to nuclear energy research and deployment, the two-day conference will include an expanded focus on military energy. Click here to learn more about the two-day conference taking place September 9-10 in the Washington D.C. area.
Border Technology
Protecting American borders has been a top priority for the Trump Administration, and this year's budget request reflects the urgency the White House places securing US borders. The budget request states that WFTC appropriated more than $190 billion in additional multiyear budget authority for DHS to implement, which at least an estimated $31.4 billion will be allocated in 2027. The president is requesting the WFTC funds appropriated to DHS be used to finish construction of the border wall on the Southwest border and procure advanced border security technology, among other homeland security measures.
This September, the Border Technology Summit provides an opportunity for CBP to hear from industry about the type of technologies available to secure US borders. The two-day conference taking place September 17-18 in San Diego, California, brings together 300+ senior leaders from CBP, ICE, state and local law enforcement, alongside industry innovators to advance the future of border security and management.
Military Flight Training
As the DoW plans to strengthen its investment in next-gen fighter jets, the President's FY 2027 budget underscores the fact that this investment must be matched by parallel investments in the training pipelines that produce combat‑ready aircrews.
No event gives industry a better idea of what the DoW is looking for in flight training modernization more than IDGA's Military Flight Training Summit. This two-day conference taking place October 27-28 in San Antonio, Texas, brings together 300+ attendees to discuss the programs shaping how U.S. and allied forces develop, prepare, and sustain their pilots for tomorrow's operational demands.
Biometrics for Government & Law Enforcement
The FY 2027 request sustains significant investment across DHS and DOJ mission sets such as border enforcement, lawful travel facilitation, and infrastructure protection. These are areas where identity verification, screening, and access control are central to operational effectiveness.
IDGA's Biometrics for Government & Law Enforcement Summit this December sits at a critical intersection of policy, technology, and execution. As the FY 2027 budget channels resources toward border security, transportation screening, and federal law enforcement modernization, the conference provides a timely forum for government and industry leaders to assess how biometric systems can be deployed responsibly, interoperably, and at the scale required by national security priorities.
