Laura Taylor-Kale
Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy
Laura Taylor-Kale (pronounced “Kah-lay”) was born and raised in Illinois. She earned an undergraduate degree from Smith College, and an M.P.A. at Princeton University, and an M.B.A. from New York University. She received a Ph.D. at Stanford University.
She has served as a career foreign service advisor with the U.S. State Department in India, Côte d’Ivoire, and Afghanistan. She also served on the World Bank executive board, and in the State Department’s Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs. In President Obama’s administration, she served as a senior advisor to the president. She then served as assistant secretary of commerce for manufacturing.
President Joe Biden nominated her to be Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy in May 2022. After the first nomination expired, the president renominated her, and she was confirmed by the Senate in March 2023 and sworn into office the following month.
In the News…
Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy Laura Taylor-Kale announced the awarding of $7 million to the Doe Run Resources Corporation (Doe Run) under the Defense Production Act Investment (DPAI) Program. The funding supports the creation of a demonstration-scale hydrometallurgical plant in Viburnum, Missouri, to separate cobalt and nickel.
Assistant Secretary Taylor-Kale said, “This award is another important step towards decreasing reliance on unstable sources of cobalt and nickel, and ensuring a sustainable industrial base capable of meeting current and future demand.”
The award is part of the 2024 National Defense Industrial Strategy to support domestic production to enhance supply chain resilience.
