Rogers says that the IG report confirms that the decision to award SPACECOM HQ to Alabama was the right decision

April 14, 2025 - WASHINGTON, D.C. – House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-AL03) has released a statement in response to the Department of Defense Inspector General's report on the Biden Administration's decision to locate United States Space Command (SPACECOM) headquarters in Colorado even instead of Huntsville, Alabama.

"The Inspector General's report confirms that the Trump Administration was correct in selecting Huntsville, AL, as the site for SPACECOM Headquarters, and reveals an astounding lack of transparency and accountability by the Biden Administration," said Chairman Rogers. "After years of promises about 'due diligence' and 'careful consideration, ' political employees at the White House cut out the Air Force and senior defense leaders to select Colorado over Alabama as the site for SPACECOM headquarters."

The report shows that there was no basis for siting SPACECOM in Colorado and that siting SPACECOM in Colorado would be much more expensive than siting it in Alabama......or even for that matter in Texas or Nebraska.

"This dangerous and dishonest decision was followed by months of cover-ups and unanswered questions regarding the cost of placing the headquarters in Colorado, the security concerns around placing the headquarters in an aging commercial building in a residential area, and cleverly worded statements about 'operational capabilities'" continued Rogers. "According to the IG, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall refused to cooperate with the IG investigation and would not even consent to be interviewed. The Biden administration's attempt to cover up its unjustified political decision is appalling."

"The fact is that the Air Force recommended SPACECOM HQ be built in Huntsville, that any disruption associated with that move could be mitigated, and that moving to Huntsville would save the taxpayer over $420,000,000," Chairman Rogers concluded.

SPACECOM was reactivated in August 2019, before the establishment of the Space Force as the military's sixth branch. SPACECOM is responsible for military operations related to space. The Pentagon began an effort to find a location for SPACECOM started in spring 2019. The command is temporarily housed at Peterson in Colorado Springs. Then President Joseph R. Biden (D) chose to keep SPACECOM there purely for political reasons, as Alabama, Texas, and Nebraska – all of which finished ahead of Colorado in the competition – are red states.

Rogers was one of the driving forces behind the creation of the Space Force during the first Trump administration.

Costs for new construction to support SPACECOM are estimated at nearly $1 billion. Rogers has blocked efforts to attempts by the Biden administration to make improvements to Peterson Air Force Base to make it a more permanent home for SPACECOM.

Huntsville's Redstone Arsenal is already home to the Missile Defense Agency, Army Space and Missile Command, Army Aviation and Missile Command, the FBI, and the Defense Intelligence Agency/Missile and Space Intelligence Center.

Rogers insists that in coming weeks the Trump administration will announce that Space Command will be coming to Huntsville – the site chosen as the best location by the independent study performed by the Air Force in an open competition between the six sites that were under consideration.

Rep. Rogers represents Alabama's Third Congressional District. He has served for the last 23 years in that role. Prior to his congressional service he represented Calhoun County in the Alabama Legislature and on the county commission.

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