Markup Of National Defense Authorization Bill Complete

Senate Armed Services Committee Completes Markup Of National Defense Authorization Bill For Fiscal Year 2009

Senator Carl Levin (D-MI), Chairman of the Armed Services Committee, and Senator John McCain (R-AZ), Ranking Member, announced today that the committee has completed its markup of the National Defense Authorization Bill for Fiscal Year (FY) 2009. The bill authorizes funding for the Department of Defense (DOD) and the national security programs of the Department of Energy (DOE). “I am very pleased that the committee has unanimously voted to report out a bill that provides our troops and their families with the support that they deserve.

The bill provides a 3.9 percent across-the-board pay raise for all uniformed personnel, a half a percent more than the President requested. It adds more than $120 million for various nonproliferation and combating WMD efforts, and includes legislative provisions to improve our ability to reduce or respond to threats of WMD, both abroad and at home. The bill also ensures proper stewardship of taxpayer dollars by requiring DOD to ensure that contractors do not receive a competitive advantage by using foreign subsidiaries to avoid the payment of U.S. payroll taxes, ensuring that private security contractors do not perform inherently governmental functions in an area of combat operations, and prohibiting the use of appropriated funds for any large-scale infrastructure projects in Iraq. All Armed Services Committee Members can be proud of their bipartisan work on this bill,” said Levin.

“I congratulate Chairman Levin on a successful markup of this year's National Defense Authorization bill. Senator Levin's leadership continues to exemplify the Committee's long tradition of bipartisanship, and I am honored to serve with him. We have a good bill that fully funds the President's budget request, provides a 3.9 percent pay raise for all military personnel and enhances dental and medical benefits for the Guard and Reserves. This is a critical time in our nation's history and the Committee has, once again, demonstrated its strong bipartisan support for our troops and their mission to protect our great nation,” said McCain. “I also want to express my heartfelt thanks to Senator John Warner. After 29 years on the Armed Services Committee, this year's markup was his last. Senator Warner has served as the Committee's great sage. His rare brand of integrity, honor and gentle persuasion are emblematic of his long distinguished service to his nation. I've long admired his steady hand and tireless commitment to our brave servicemen and women. I am grateful for his strong stewardship. His advice and counsel have been invaluable to me and he will be greatly missed by me and all members of the Senate,” added McCain.

“The policies and funding decisions in this bill are designed to reduce our Nation's strategic risk by helping to restore the readiness of the military services to conduct the full range of their assigned missions as soon as possible,” added Levin. “I also want to thank Senator John McCain for his steadfast support and Senator John Warner, whose wise counsel contributes so much to the Committee's work,” Levin also added.

MARKUP HIGHLIGHTS

To provide fair compensation and first-rate health care, and improve the quality of life of the men and women in the armed forces (active duty, National Guard and Reserves) and their families:

• Authorizes a 3.9 percent across-the-board pay raise, 0.5 percent above the budget request;
• Authorizes FY2009 active-duty end strengths for the Army and Marine Corps of 532,400 and 194,000, respectively, an increase of 7,000 soldiers and 5,000 marines from 2008 authorized levels;
• Authorizes an increase of 3,371 full-time personnel for the Army National Guard and the Army Reserve;
• Authorizes $125 billion for military personnel, including costs of pay, allowances, bonuses, death benefits, and permanent change of station moves;
• Authorizes $26.1 billion for the Defense Health Program, which includes the $1.2 billion necessary to cover the rejection of the Administration proposal to raise TRICARE fees;
• Requires the Secretary of Defense to develop a comprehensive policy to prevent suicides by military personnel;
• Requires the Secretary of Defense to review DOD and military service policies on deferment of deployment of female service members following birth of a child; and
• Requires the Secretaries of Defense and Veterans Affairs to continue the operations of the Senior Oversight Committee to oversee implementation of Wounded Warrior initiatives.

To provide our servicemen and women with the resources, training, technology, equipment (especially force protection) and authorities they need to succeed in combat and stability operations in Iraq and Afghanistan:

• Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization (JIEDDO) – provides $3 billion in funding to support JIEDDO's ongoing efforts to attack the IED network, train deploying units, and procure the counter IED equipment necessary to defeat the threat;
• Land Warrior – Adds $102 million to procure an additional brigade set of Land Warrior equipment for a deploying unit;
• Requires the Secretary of Defense to ensure that the Stryker Mobile Gun System (MGS) is subject to testing to confirm the effectiveness of actions taken to mitigate the deficiencies identified in Initial Operational Test and Evaluation and Live Fire Test and Evaluation; and
• Fully funds Army readiness and depot maintenance programs to ensure that forces preparing to deploy are trained and their equipment is ready. To seek to reduce our Nation's strategic risk by taking action aimed at restoring, as soon as possible, the readiness of the military services to conduct the full range of their assigned missions:
• Army Unfunded Priorities List – Adds over $390 million from the Army Chief of Staff's Unfunded Priorities List for National Guard homeland defense items;
• Adds $75 million for Army equipment redistribution expenses and to reduce ammunition inspection backlogs;
• Adds $63 million for Navy aircraft depot maintenance to keep naval aviation safe and ready for worldwide deployment;
• Adds $96.9 million for Air Force B-52 flying hours and depot maintenance. The DOD failed to include adequate funding in the budget request to meet the requirements of the National Defense Authorization Act for FY2008 to maintain 76 B-52 bombers in a common configuration. This was also the number one priority on the Air Force Unfunded Priorities List;
• Fully funds 8 ships requested in the President's budget request; and
• Fully funds the President's budget request for MV-22, CV-22, MH-60R and MH-60S aircraft.
• To improve the efficiency of Defense Department programs and activities, and apply the savings toward high-priority programs:
• Cost controls for major weapon systems – provides for steering boards to review and approve (or disapprove) any new requirements that could add to the costs of a major weapon system;
• Financial Management – Requires the military departments to establish Business Transformation Offices to serve as a central focus for the reform of their business and financial systems and processes; and
• Energy Considerations in Weapon Systems Development – Directs DOD to develop a plan that would require program managers to incorporate energy efficiency requirements into the key performance parameters in the acquisition of military weapon systems and provide Congress an annual report on the Department's plans and accomplishments.

To promote the transformation of the armed forces to deal with the threats of the 21st Century:

• Supports the President's budget request for the Army's Future Combat Systems and acknowledges that FY2009 is a critical year for the program and emphasizing funding stability provides the Army the best chance of success;
• Requires the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs and the Chief of the National Guard Bureau, to develop a strategic plan to enhance the role of the National Guard and Reserves, taking into account the report of the Commission on the National Guard and Reserves and the recently introduced National Guard Empowerment Act and State-National Defense Integration Act of 2008;
• Missile Defense – Adds more than $270 million for near-term missile defense capabilities: $100 million for Aegis BMD/SM-3; $115 million for THAAD; $28 million for Short-Range BMD; $30 million for an upper-tier follow-on to the Arrow missile; and adds more than $20 million for Army BMD technology development programs;

Transformational Communications Satellite (TSAT) –

• Provides an additional $350 million to TSAT to address delays in the TSAT program caused by reductions in the budget request;
• Authorizes the Secretary of Defense to designate up to 324 general and flag officer positions that are joint duty positions that do not count against Service authorizations for flag and general officers. Establishes objectives for flag and general officers serving in acquisition and contracting positions – addressing shortcomings identified by the Gansler Commission; and
• Energy and power for military systems & operations – Adds over $100 million in investments in advanced energy and power technologies to support defense missions, such as hybrid engines, military fuels research, and battery technologies.

To improve the ability of the armed forces to counter nontraditional threats, including terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction:

• Combating WMD and Nonproliferation – Adds more than $120 million for various nonproliferation and combating WMD efforts, and includes legislative provisions to improve our ability to reduce or respond to threats of WMD, both abroad and at home;
• Authorizes more than $50 million in additional funds for chemical and biological defense procurement programs and research and development projects intended to provide improved protection for our military forces;
• Extends authorization to the Special Operations Command to train and equip forces supporting or facilitating special operations forces in ongoing military operations, and increased the annual funding available for this activity from $25 million to $35 million;
• Extends DOD's authority to use counterdrug funds to support the unified campaign against narco-terrorists in Colombia;
• Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) in National Air Space – Adds $87 million to increase DOD UAV access to U.S. National Air Space;
• Amends the Arms Export Control Act to provide limited waiver authority to allow the DOE and DOD to conduct work to denuclearize North Korea, and adds $50 million to National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) for this work;
• Amends the NNSA Act to clarify that excess fissile material disposition is an NNSA responsibility;
• Consolidates funding for the Mixed Oxide (MOX) fuel program in the NNSA and moves the MOX fuel fabrication facility construction and program funding; and
• Special intelligence support – Adds $50 million and gives direction to provide Special Operations Forces-derived intelligence capabilities to Army and Marine forces.

To ensure aggressive and thorough oversight of the Department's programs and activities to ensure proper stewardship of taxpayer dollars and compliance with relevant laws and regulations:

• Requires DOD to establish ethics standards to prevent personal conflicts of interest by contractor employees who perform acquisition functions on behalf of the DOD;
• Ensures that private security contractors do not perform inherently governmental functions in an area of combat operations. Codifies existing DOD standards, under which security operations are inherently governmental if they will be performed in highly hazardous public areas where the risks are uncertain and could reasonably be expected to require deadly force that is more likely to be initiated by contractor personnel than by others;
• Prohibits contractor employees from conducting interrogations of detainees during or in the aftermath of hostilities. The provision has an effective date one year after the date of enactment, to give DOD time to comply;
• Requires DOD to ensure that a contractor does not receive a competitive advantage by using foreign subsidiaries to avoid the payment of U.S. payroll taxes for its workers; and
• Requires the DOD to establish a database of information regarding the integrity and contract performance of contractors – ensuring that this information is available to acquisition officials aking key contracting decisions.

Full summary of the bill is available at http://armed-services.senate.gov/press.htm.