Overview
- The bipartisan commission run by CSIS and the Foundation for Defense of Democracies published the blueprint on Wednesday, June 3, 2026, calling for roughly 33,000 personnel and an initial budget of $10 billion to $11 billion to stand up a Cyber Force.
- The report projects a 12 to 18 month path to initial operating capacity using a phased approach that begins with setting conditions and then fields an initial force for operations.
- It recommends a uniformed corps made up only of commissioned officers and warrant officers, alongside about 5,000 to 6,000 civilians and contractors, and assigns the new service primary responsibility for offensive and defensive cyberspace operations.
- Authors say much of the start-up cost could be covered by realigning existing service cyber budgets and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand plans an amendment to the FY2027 National Defense Authorization Act but the proposal still needs congressional approval and a decision from the Pentagon and the White House.
- The plan aims to fix readiness shortfalls tied to fragmented service personnel systems and cites lessons from the Space Force stand-up, yet it faces major institutional questions over mission lines, who will defend the Department of Defense Information Network, and whether the Cyber Force should be a new military department or an independent service under the Army.