Congress: 116 · Status: active · Israel/Palestine classification: pro-Israel
Data (JSON) — machine-readable record of this bill (identifiers, sponsor, classification, actions, and the member-by-member vote breakdown).
Official record on Congress.gov — full text, actions, and cosponsor history for HR 7148.
Sponsor: Wilson, Joe (R-South Carolina)
United States-Israel Military Capability Act of 2020 This bill requires the Department of Defense, with the concurrence of the Israeli Ministry of Defense, to establish a United States-Israel Operations-Technology Working Group. The purposes of the working group shall be to (1) provide a standing forum for the United States and Israel to identify and share intelligence-informed military capability requirements; (2) assist defense suppliers in both countries to gain government approval for conducting joint science, technology, research, development, test, evaluation, and production efforts; and (3) develop combined U.S.-Israel plans to research, develop, procure, and field weapons systems and military capabilities to meet common capability requirements.
This bill requires the Defense Department and Israeli Ministry of Defense to create a joint working group that identifies military capability needs, helps defense contractors from both countries collaborate on weapons development, and develops shared plans for researching and building new weapons systems together.
This formalizes deeper military integration between the US and Israel, including shared weapons development and technology transfer, which locks in ongoing defense cooperation beyond annual appropriations. It signals congressional support for treating Israel as a primary military partner in joint R&D efforts.