On Thursday, more than two-thirds of the United States House of Representatives voted in support of a defense policy measure that includes a record $886 billion in yearly military spending and authorizes programs such as aid to Ukraine and counter-insurgency in the Indo-Pacific.
The National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA, was approved by the House by a vote of 310 to 118, with solid support from both Republicans and Democrats. It was more than the two-thirds majority needed to pass the bill and send it to President Joe Biden's desk for signature.
The NDAA, which is separate from the appropriations legislation that set federal spending levels, authorizes everything from troop pay raises — this year's will be 5.2% — to the acquisition of ships, ammunition, and planes.
Members of Congress utilize it as a vehicle for a variety of agendas because it is one of the few major pieces of legislation that becomes law each year. Major defense corporations, including as Lockheed Martin, RTX Corp, and others that receive Department of Defense contracts, are also keeping a careful eye on it.
With the passage of this year's law, which is nearly 3,100 pages long and authorizes a record $886 billion, up 3% from last year, Congress has now passed an NDAA for 63 consecutive years.
The final version of the NDAA removed provisions addressing divisive social issues, such as abortion access and transgender service members, that had been included in the version passed by the Republican-majority House over Democratic objections, threatening to derail the legislation.
On Wednesday, the Democratic-controlled Senate approved the NDAA with a solid bipartisan majority of 87 to 13.
The fiscal 2024 NDAA also includes a four-month extension of a contentious domestic monitoring provision known as Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence monitoring Act (FISA), allowing lawmakers extra time to modify or repeal the program.
This proposal was met with opposition in both the Senate and the House, but not enough to kill the law. On Wednesday, the Senate rejected an attempt to remove the FISA extension from the NDAA before voting to approve the defense bill.
Earlier this year, the House and Senate each passed their own versions of the NDAA. The bill enacted this week was the result of a compromise between the two parties and two houses.
The bill extends the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative through the end of 2026, funding $300 million for the program in the fiscal year ending September 30, 2024, and the following one.
However, this number pales in comparison to Ukraine's $61 billion in aid. Biden has petitioned Congress for permission to assist Kyiv in its fight against a Russian invasion that began in February 2022.
That emergency expenditure request is being held up in Congress because Republicans have refused to approve it unless Democrats agree to a dramatic toughening of immigration law.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited with senators at the Capitol on Tuesday to argue for the cash requested by Biden, but the sessions ended with no Republican assurances.