Congress is one step closer to clearing its defense authorization bill. (Photo by Mark Makela/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON: The House of Representatives late Thursday passed its version of the fiscal year 2022 National Defense Authorization Act by a bipartisan 316-113 margin, paving the way for an investigation into the Afghanistan withdrawal, for women to register for the draft and for new ships and missiles.
The bill — which sets defense spending at $740 billion, $24 billion over what was requested by the Biden administration — now heads to the Senate, where changes undoubtedly await.
The NDAA is the annual defense policy bill. While it does not come with money — that comes from the appropriations committees — it serves as both a setter for policy inside the military and a signal of where lawmakers want the Pentagon to go.
“The NDAA represents the legislative process at its best. This year, like every year, we worked for months to identify policies where we agree, and where we don’t, and engaged in thorough, thoughtful debate on all of them,” HASC chairman Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., said in a statement. “In an era where our politics is so dominated by divisiveness, it has never mattered more to show the American people that democracy still works.”
Members debated almost 500 amendments in the week-long leadup to the vote. Among key parts of the NDAA:
- The bill would create a 12-member bipartisan commission to look into what happened in Afghanistan and whether there were intelligence missteps that led to America’s rapid evacuation of the country. It would also require annual reports on the administration’s handling of long-distance counter-terrorism efforts now that there are not forces on the ground.
- It would fund 13 new ships for the Navy, including three new Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, and includes money for 85 F-35 fighters.
- Funding for the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent, the next-generation ICBM, was protected against an effort from progressives to defund the program and keep the Minuteman III ICBMs working until 2040. One hundred eighty-eight members voted in favor of the plan, which was not enough to slow the GBSD program.
- The House language includes a 2.7% pay raise for members of the military and sweeping changes to the sexual assault justice system. It also would require women to register for the draft for the first time, something expected to be backed fully in the Senate.
- It also puts in language that would require any Defense Secretary nominee who previously served in uniform to have been retired for a full 10 years, rather than the current requirement of seven years. This comes after back-to-back administration sought a waiver to clear Jim Mattis and Lloyd Austin as the top civilian at the Pentagon, neither of whom had cleared the seven year period at that time.
However, as has become commonplace in recent years, the budget won’t actually start when the fiscal year kicks in on Oct. 1. Democrats are currently organizing a vote on a continuing resolution that would keep the government operating through Dec. 3. It is expected that vote will break down on entirely partisan lines.
Under a CR, the Pentagon cannot launch any new programs that were not already funded in the previous fiscal year.
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