During a hearing before the House Armed Services Committee today, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said President Donald J. Trump's proposed defense budget for fiscal year 2026 includes funding to meet the increased worldwide demand for the military's special operations forces community.
During remarks he gave at the annual SOF convention in Tampa, Florida, May 6, 2025, Hegseth noted that presidentially directed SOF missions have increased by 200% over the past three years.
"Not only [has SOF] been used more than anybody else over the last 20 years, but — even in just the last four or five years — the amount of times we call on the … special operations community has increased," Hegseth told the committee.
"So, the funding needs to match that, which you will see in this budget," he added.
Though the specific amount of spending for the SOF community in the president's budget request has yet to be disclosed, it would presumably be more than the fiscal year 2025 budget.
When asked how his department was able to determine the specific financial needs of the SOF community, Hegseth said it requires direct contact.
"We start by listening to those units; [we ask] what they're facing, what they need, what their families need and then [we] resource it," Hegseth said.
He also said that the quality of SOF training has to be commensurate with adequate funding and that overall morale and high adherence to standards in the SOF community are necessary for mission accomplishment.
"There's a reason we've looked at [the] schoolhouses of some of our most elite of special operations forces and ensured that standards have not eroded," Hegseth said, adding that the overall goal is to ensure SOF standards go up "to the highest possible level," and that meeting those standards is necessary for qualifying to be a SOF operator.
"And guess what it does for those units?" Hegseth asked rhetorically.
"It increases morale [and] increases unit cohesion because [the SOF operators] know they're as capable as they can possibly be," he said.
The secretary has voiced his support for SOF on numerous occasions.
At the conference in Tampa last month, he underscored the significant contribution SOF makes to national security — both at home and abroad — despite the ever-increasing operations tempo of missions.
"The best gift I can give you is getting up every day, working as hard as I can with my staff … to ensure you have everything you need," he told the thousands of operators in attendance.
"Your commander in chief, your secretary of defense, and your country are behind you because we are beyond grateful for what you [and] your families give on behalf of this nation."