An additional missile defense radar that some lawmakers want deployed on U.S. territory would cost approximately $650 million through 2018, according to a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report.
The July 25 report reviews the Senate’s version of the 2014 defense authorization bill, which includes $30 million for an X-band radar to be deployed at a location to optimize protection against long-range missiles.
The CBO said several options are available, but assumed the Pentagon would upgrade an existing radar at the Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific and then relocate it to a military base or other facility near the U.S. East Coast. The CBO said its cost estimate includes the upgrade, communications equipment, site preparation and operations.
