Keith Sledd, executive director of the Heart of Texas Defense Alliance, gave the council a quarterly activity report that covered forces growth at Fort Hood, infrastructure grants and a potential small modular nuclear reactor (SMR) pilot at the installation.

Sledd said the Army’s FY26 draft budget includes modest increases and a roughly 3.8% pay raise for service members and that the Army plans to increase overall end strength by about 12,000 soldiers, which would add about 300 to 400 soldiers at the local installation and an estimated 600–800 family members in the community. He said those numbers will become clearer as the Army calculates specifics per installation.

Sledd said the coordinating board selected the aquifer recovery and storage system first‑phase project for a regional grant application; Bell County volunteered as project sponsor and no additional local cost share is required beyond routine staffing. He also said the Highway 9 ramps contract and a rail and energy resiliency grant ribbon cutting are expected soon, and that the Economic Development Administration (EDA) and other grants are being pursued.

On small modular reactors, Sledd described SMRs as containerized nuclear units the Department of Defense is testing as backup power for installations; he said Fort Hood is among five installations identified as potential pilot sites and that DOD aims to have an SMR in operation within three years. He characterized SMRs as smaller and different from traditional nuclear plants, in some designs using liquid sodium cooling rather than large water cooling towers.

Sledd emphasized the potential for new industry tied to such projects but said details and announcements are pending.