Rep. Calvert Praises Passage of the National Defense Authorization Act

Today, Congressman Ken Calvert joined a bipartisan majority of his colleagues in the House of Representatives in approving the Fiscal Year (FY) 2014 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The bill was approved by a vote of 350 to 69. The NDAA authorizes $552.1 billion for national defense and an additional $80.7 billion for Overseas Contingency Operations. This is consistent with levels authorized in the FY 13 NDAA for the base budget and $7.8 billion less for war spending.

"Establishing our military priorities and policies is one of the most important roles Congress performs," said Rep. Calvert. "I am pleased that we were able to come to a bipartisan, bicameral agreement that provides our men and women in uniform with the resources they need to do their jobs. I am especially supportive of language in the bill concerning the Forest Service/U.S. Coast Guard aircraft transfer proposal that I have been working on with Senator McCain."

Transfer of Excess Military Aircraft to the Forest Service

The NDAA also contained a provision supported by Rep. Calvert that authorizes the transfer of excess military aircraft to the Forest Service for wildfire fighting purposes. Under the provision, the Forest Service would receive seven C-130H as large air tankers from the Coast Guard (after being modified by Air Force) while Forest Service would relinquish its first right of refusal on seven C-27J aircraft, which allows the Coast Guard to receive the entire compliment of 14 C-27J from the Defense Department. The Forest Service would also receive 15 retired C-23 Sherpas as smokejumper/transport aircraft.

Earlier this year, Rep. Calvert and Senator McCain spearheaded a letter sent to Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack regarding the status of the aircraft transfer.

Johnson Valley Off-Highway Vehicle Area

Language in the NDAA would preserve approximately 100,000 acres of Johnson Valley as the Johnson Valley Off-Highway Vehicle Area. The deal will allow the Marines to expand the Twentynine Palms Marine Base into a portion of Johnson Valley and would end the threat of military expansion to the remaining off-road area. The new Johnson Valley Off-Highway Vehicle Area is nearly as large as the Imperial Sand Dunes at Glamis and is explicitly designated for off-highway vehicle use under the new law. Included in this area is the entire "Hammers" area, both the front and back side. The Marines would be allowed to use a portion of the nearly 100,000 acre Johnson Valley Off-Highway Vehicle Recreation Area for a maximum of 60 days per year. It would be open to the off-road community for recreational use during the remaining 305 days.

Other Highlights

Increased troop pay– The bill allows for a 1.8% increase in troop pay, consistent with current law.

Prevention of new fees and fee increases under TRICARE– The bill once again rejects proposals to increase fees or create new fees under TRICARE and maintains current reforms. The bill also allows certain beneficiaries to remain enrolled in TRICARE Prime after the DoD reduces the program's availability to retired beneficiaries.

Benghazi– In light of the attacks on U.S. facilities in Benghazi in September of 2012, the NDAA requires a report from the Secretary of Defense and the Joint Staff related to Benghazi. The report will cover the posture and readiness of U.S. Armed Forces to respond to a request by the Department of State to support embassy security in the event of a similar attack.

Reduced bureaucracy– The bill requires GAO studies aimed at reducing bureaucracy by putting a check on the expansion of headquarters staff within U.S. Central Command, all functional combatant commands, the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff, and the Service Secretaries.

BRAC– Understanding that a round of base closures at this time would not only be costly, but reflect temporary budget pressures at the expense of long term strategic assets, the NDAA prohibits DOD from initiating another round of BRAC.

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