National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 2810)
The House overwhelmingly passed H.R. 2810 National Defense Authorization Act would authorize approximately $621 billion in discretionary base budget authority.
Key Amendment Votes:
Climate Change: The House voted to keep language in the annual defense authorization bill directing the DoD to prepare for the effects of climate change.
Border Wall Ban: The House handily rejected a Democratic attempt to reinstate a ban on border wall funding in the fiscal 2018 National Defense Authorization Act.
Muslim Study: The House rejected a contentious amendment to study Islamic doctrine espoused by extremist groups.
Transgender Troops: The House voted down a proposal to prevent the Pentagon from paying for gender transition services for transgender military service members.
Nuclear Weapons: The House turned back a series of Democratic amendments to limit funding for new nuclear weapons and require more extensive reporting on the cost of nuclear modernization.
Summary
The FY18 National Defense Authorization Act would authorize approximately $621 billion in discretionary base budget authority. It would authorize approximately $10 billion of Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funding to be used for base-budget requirements, amounting to a total of $631 for base-budget requirements and $64.6 billion for OCO requirements.
The bill would: (1) authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2018 for procurement and for research, development, test, and evaluation (RDT&E); (2) authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2018 for operation and maintenance (O&M) and for working capital funds; (3) authorize for fiscal year 2018 the personnel strength for each Active Duty component of the military departments, and the personnel strength for the Selected Reserve for each Reserve Component of the Armed Forces; (4) modify various elements of compensation for military personnel and impose certain requirements and limitations on personnel actions in the defense establishment; (5) authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2018 for military construction and family housing; (6) authorize appropriations for Overseas Contingency Operations; (7) authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2018 for the Department of Energy national security programs; and (8) authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2018 for the Maritime Administration.
- House Report 115-200
- Rules Committee Print 115-23
H.R. 2810 - FY18 NDAA Summary- Chairman's Mark
- Chairman's Mark Summary
- FY18 HASC Views and Estimates.pdf
- HASC Budget White Paper.pdf
Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (MD):
The bill would provide for the authorization of funding for the Department of Defense and other related agencies, programs, and operations for Fiscal Year 2018. It authorizes approximately $621.5 billion for base budget requirements and an additional $74.6 billion designated for Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO). However, $10 billion of the $74.6 billion designated as OCO will go to non-OCO base budget activities, manipulating the OCO designation created to account for spending to carry out current conflicts. Even without this OCO plus-up, the bill authorizes $72 billion above the sequester level Budget Control Act’s cap of $549 billion in defense budget authority for FY2018.
The bill supports a 2.4 percent pay increase for military personnel. It also includes important provisions related to sexual assault in the military and authorizes funding for suicide prevention programs among the Special Operations community.
The legislation maintains the current restriction on domestic transfers of Guantanamo detainees and prevents the use of funds for construction or modification of U.S. facilities to house Guantánamo detainees. The bill provides for $4.65 billion for the European Deterrence Initiative and extends the authorization for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative.
WASHINGTON, DC – House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) released the following statement today on the passage of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018:
“Today, Democrats and Republicans in the House came together to pass legislation supporting the work of our men and women in uniform. The defense authorization bill remains a crucial component of our national defense, setting the priorities for investment in our military for the year ahead. While I voted for this year’s House defense authorization bill, I remain concerned about its impact on the long-term fiscal health of our country. If we cannot get our deficits and debt under control, we will be less able to invest in meeting the national security challenges our country faces at home and abroad.
“The House’s defense authorization bill makes no pretense of adhering to the Budget Control Act’s funding caps, blowing through agreed-upon defense spending levels by $72.5 billion. This is in addition to hiding an extra $10 billion worth of base defense spending in the emergency Overseas Contingency Operations fund. If we are to get serious about fiscal sustainability, Congress must be more strategic about budgeting – something that this Republican Majority has ignored by refusing even to adopt a budget resolution for the fiscal year covered by this authorization.
“I am glad that this bill does not include the dangerous and discriminatory amendment offered by Rep. Hartzler, which would have banned the military from providing certain essential health care services to transgender personnel. I am thankful that several Republican Members joined with Democrats to defeat that amendment and send a message to our transgender service-members and transgender Americans looking to enlist that our nation values their eagerness to serve in uniform. I hope the Senate will now take up this defense authorization bill and make improvements that keep discriminatory amendments out and better address the national security threat posed by our long-term debt.”
