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House, Senate Reach Agreement On National Defense Authorization Act

The House and Senate Armed Services Committees have reached an agreement on the National Defense Authorization Act for the 2014 fiscal year, Rep. Buck McKeon’s office announced Tuesday.


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McKeon, R-Santa Clarita, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, and Rep. Adam Smith, D-Washington, ranking member of the committee, released the text of the agreement.

The 2014 NDAA is based on two bills: HR. 1960, which passed the House on June 14 by a vote of 315-108; and S.1197, a product of the Senate Armed Services Committee which passed out of committee on the same day by a vote of 23-3.

The two houses of Congress compromised to ensure that the bill was passed before the end of the year. Negotiators from both houses also considered, and in many cases included, a number of proposals offered by members of both parties that were intended for consideration by the full Senate.

The NDAA is essential to funding the United States military.

McKeon was pleased with the outcome but expressed cautious optimism, because of potential future sequestration cuts, according to a press release from the House Armed Services Committee.

“The legislation meets Chairman McKeon’s goal of providing for a strong defense in an era of uncertain and declining resources,” the release said. “The total funding authorized reflects the will of the House to provide our troops the resources they need to meet a dangerous world. However, Chairman McKeon also recognizes that, more than ever, the impacts of rapid defense cuts, FY13 sequestration, and the prospect of future sequester cuts in the years to come, will force our warfighters to be not only keen stewards of our national security, but to maximize value for every taxpayer dollar.”

The legislation authorizes $552.1 billion for national defense and $80.7 billion for Overseas Contingency Operations.

Specific issues addressed by the NDAA include ensuring that troop pay keeps pace with the civilian sector; preventing and prosecuting sexual assault; increasing troop readiness; current operations in Afghanistan, Syria and Iran; and bureaucratic reduction.

Provisions for the safety of military families, gender equality and religious freedom are also included.

For more information or to read the NDAA Summary Fact Sheet, click here.

The text of the House-Senate Agreement is available here.


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House, Senate Reach Agreement On National Defense Authorization Act

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