By John T. Bennett4:37 p.m. EDT April 30, 2015
NDAA Proposes $496B in Base, $89B in War Funding
WASHINGTON — The House Armed Services Committee early Thursday voted to add billions to a list of Defense Department weapon programs from cuts, and signed off on a $495.9 billion base Pentagon budget and an $89.2 billion war account.
In a bipartisan 60-2 vote, the committee approved its version of the national defense authorization act (NDAA), which proposes keeping alive the Air Force’s A-10 attack plane fleet and endorses extra funding for additional fighter jets for the Navy and Marine Corps.
The marathon session ended just after 4:30 a.m. on Thursday, and featured little — and in some cases no — debate about the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan or a Republican-crafted overseas contingency operations (OCO) account opposed by many Democrats and the White House because it inflates defense spending without doing the same for domestic programs.
HASC Chairman Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, said the legislation “matches the president’s request and the level [Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin] Dempsey said was the ‘lower-ragged edge’ of what is necessary.”
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“The bill advances the vital funding and authorities America’s military requires,” Thornberry said. “At a time of unprecedented threats, uncertainty, and technological change, the NDAA strives to ensure that our forces are agile, efficient, ready, and lethal.”
Ranking Member Adam Smith, D-Wash., said the bill “contains some good provisions,” adding “the world remains a dangerous place and, historically, this bill has provided a vehicle for congress to put its imprint on national security policy.”
The panel handed the Defense Department and industry a list of victories on weapon program funding and its blessing to buy more of some big-ticket items than the services had included in their respective budget requests — despite spending caps.
Responding to the Navy’s and Marine Corps’ shared list of “unfunded priorities” submitted earlier this year to lawmakers, the House committee approved language that would clear the services to purchase more fighter aircraft than requested.
“As the demand increases, it is vital that Congress address the shortfall in strike aircraft for the Navy and Marine Corps — including the replacement of Harrier aircraft lost in Afghanistan,” states a committee fact sheet accompanying the legislation.
The legislation, which must still pass the full House and be negotiated with Senate Armed Services Committee members, would the Navy to buy a dozen more F/A-18 Super Hornets, while also clearing the Marine Corps to purchase six F-35Bs above its request of nine.