House Moves Forward Its Defense Wish-List Authorization

Last updated on Thursday, May 24, 2018

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - The House approved a final bill authorizing defense spending for 2019 on Thursday after spending a week deciding, dispersing and declining more than 500 amendments to the bill.

Tom Squitieri, of Talk Media News reports, the vote was 351-66, with the measure approving widely supported ideas such as increasing force strength and paying for modernization and training. The House also wrestled with some thorny amendments that survived a week of raucous committee debate and posturing.

The White House objected to a House draft 2019 NDAA's prohibition on the Air Force cutting the JSTARS recap program. JSTARS technicians work on a thrust reverser on a JSTARS E-8C at Robins Air Force Base, Ga., on Feb. 26, 2018. (U.S. Air National Guard photo.)

The bill would authorize about $717 billion in defense spending, including $616.7 billion for the Pentagon's base budget and $69 billion for an unmonitored war fund known as the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) account that was initially established to fight terrorism in Afghanistan and elsewhere; an effort to remove authorization for that fund was defeated by a 62-351 vote but the House agreed to require the Pentagon to "provide estimates of enduring costs" of the fund.

The House also rejected by 188 to 226 vote to hold half of the money tagged for development of new low-yield, submarine-launched nuclear warheads until "the Secretary of Defense submits a report assessing the program's impacts on strategic stability and options to reduce the risk of miscalculation," according to the amendment language.

The Senate Armed Services Committee approved its version of the defense bill Wednesday night. A committee summary of its version is to be released this week.

Its version must be aligned with what the House approved before the bill can be sent to the White House.

The bill passed by the House is an authorization bill. That sets out the priorities and wishlist of Congress. However, the actual money to pay for anything must come from an appropriations bill, which is a separate piece of legislation. Think of the difference akin to writing out a grocery shopping list, then getting the money to go to the store and purchase the items on the list.

It is the appropriations measure that Congress has usually been unable to pass.

White House officials said President Trump generally supports what the House has done with the exception of at least 37 items either included or not included. Those objections include adding an extra new aircraft carrier, not supporting the administration's request for a high-value detention facility at Guantánamo Bay, adding language supporting creating a new numbered air force dedicated to space and a new U.S. Space Command, and prohibiting the Air Force from eliminating the JSTARS recap program.

Much of the authorization had strong bipartisan support, such as increasing the overall size of the military by 15,600 troops and giving service members at 2.6 percent pay raise.

There also was wide support for spending on new equipment, such as for 77 of the still unused F-35 fighter jets, and funding more training operations to a one way to reduce a surge in deadly accidents.

In addition to the extra aircraft carrier, the bill also authorizes two littoral combat ships not sought by the White House.

Among actions agreed to by the full House that underscore the vast range of what members see as defense issues:

Require the Department of Defense to conduct a study to determine how they can attract and recruit individuals from institutions of higher education, including Hispanic Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Asian American and Native American Pacific and Islander Serving Institutions with educational backgrounds in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and cybersecurity;
Blocked the sale of 100 high-tech fifth-generation fighters to Turkey.
Require a report on the nations, organizations, and persons against which the United States has taken military action under the authority of the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF);
Require a report on the practical impact of U.S. military strikes against Syria on April 13, 2018;
Ensure the Secretary of Defense and other NATO countries shall: seek opportunities to conduct more NATO naval exercises in the Baltic and Black Sea to deter Russian aggression in those regions; and conduct joint research to enhance military capabilities;
Require the Secretary of Defense to conduct an investigation to determine if coalition partners or United States military or intelligence personnel violated federal law or department of defense policy while conducting operations in Yemen;
Provides the sense of Congress on why there is a need for a military explosive ordnance disposal intelligence program;
Authorize $5 million to advance the development of canine freeze-dried plasma.
Modify federal hiring authority to make it easier to hire military spouses;
Authorize the establishment of up to 100 new JROTC units in low-income and rural areas and strengthens the JROTC program to promote military readiness;
Prohibit federal agencies from procuring certain Chinese-made video surveillance equipment or services;
Require a report from State Department and DOD on Russia's support for the Taliban in Afghanistan;
Require the Secretary of Defense to develop a list of technology that is currently eligible for export to China but the export of that technology my harm national security;
Require foreign-owned media outlets based in the United States to submit a report to Congress and the FCC on the relationship of such outlet to the foreign principal, legal structure of that relationship, and funding source;
Institute domestic sourcing requirements for dinnerware within the Department of Defense. Additionally, reinstate the Berry Amendment's longstanding domestic sourcing requirement for stainless steel flatware and provides a one-year phase-in period;
Authorize financial and visa sanctions against perpetrators of ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya by the Burmese military and security forces; limits U.S. military and security assistance with Burma until reforms take place; incentivizes reform of the Burmese gemstone sector which is notoriously dominated by the military; and requires a determination of what crimes the Burmese military committed, including genocide;
Create a pilot program to train members of the Armed Forces in mindfulness-based stress reduction techniques before deploying to combat zones. A report on the effect of the program on stress management and post-traumatic stress disorder;
Require a report from the Secretary of Defense on Department of Defense missions, operations, and activities in Niger and the broader region;
Direct the Secretary of Defense to conduct a joint study with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on the impact wind farms have on weather radars and military operations;
Direct the Secretary of Defense to include blast exposure history as part of soldier service records in order to ensure that, if medical issues arise later, soldiers receive care for any service-connect injuries;
Add language clarifying that the bill is not an authorization for the use of military force against Iran or against North Korea; and
Finally, the House bill, as amended, would keep two species -- the sage grouse and the lesser prairie chicken -- off the endangered list for a decade. The Pentagon maintains protecting these birds on bases reduces usable space on training ranges.

1340 AM WBIW welcomes comments and suggestions by calling 812.277.1340 during normal business hours or by email at comments@wbiw.com

Click here to go back to previous page