U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL14) launched the next assertion upon the Home’s 329-101 passage of the bipartisan FY23 Nationwide Protection Authorization Act (NDAA):
“This yr, the American folks have witnessed our service members’ bravery and dedication to serving and defending our nation and its values within the aftermath of Vladimir Putin’s unlawful invasion of Ukraine and the rising risk posed by China. That’s the reason we’ve crafted a protection invoice that equips our army and the Division of Protection with the required sources and expertise to fulfill present and future threats towards america and its allies.
“We’re additionally making good on our promise to fulfill the quick and long-term wants of our service members and their households whereas they’re serving our nation at house and overseas. This consists of an enhance in army fundamental pay by 4.6 p.c for our troops, and a further 2.4 p.c inflation bonus for these incomes lower than $45,000/yr. Importantly, the NDAA additionally codifies a $15 minimal wage for employees on federal service and building contracts.
“Our package deal additionally meets the present second when our neighbors are feeling the pinch on a sizzling housing market, including funds to the fundamental allowance for housing to make sure that army households can discover satisfactory housing wherever they might serve and decrease prices on the similar time. We additionally present assist for the prices of on a regular basis meals and merchandise service members buy from commissaries.
“I’m proud that my modification to assist higher sort out the challenges that our Particular Operator service members face when transitioning to civilian life was included. I launched this modification with my fellow co-chairs of the Particular Operations Forces Caucus to require the Authorities Accountability Workplace to conduct a report on the power of servicemembers assigned to Particular Operations models to make the most of Division of Protection transition packages. It’s our responsibility to serve our women and men in uniform in addition to they serve us, and that features assembly their wants – bodily, psychological and monetary – after they return house.
“Recognizing that local weather change more and more threatens our army preparedness, this laws consists of provisions to sort out these challenges head on, with measures to extend power safety, pilot sustainable aviation fuels, and strengthen our army installations towards wildfire and different climate-fueled threats. Moreover, I am proud to have labored with Congresswoman Veronica Escobar of Texas to efficiently embrace provisions that may develop electrical automobiles (EV) charging throughout our army installations, and to make sure that our army hospitals, housing, and different important services are as much as par in terms of problems with resilience and power effectivity.
“With this week’s Home passage of laws to assist the over 3.5 million veterans who’ve poisonous publicity, the Congress has as soon as once more demonstrated its potential to work in a bipartisan style to assist our army households. It’s my hope that the Senate works shortly to go this important protection invoice to assist the work of our troops at house and overseas because it has in years previous.”
The NDAA consists of the next priorities for MacDill Air Pressure Base and Tampa residents:
Households
- Helps a rise in army fundamental pay by 4.6% for service members, plus provides 2.4% inflation bonuses for these incomes lower than $45,000/yr.
- Provides $750 million for commissary to assist cut back prices.
- Primary Allowance for Housing (BAH): Provides funds to lower BAH discount by 2% and requires a report on a extra clear, truthful, and versatile solution to calculate the fundamental allowance for housing.
- Little one care: Requires the Secretary of Protection to finish a pay examine and alter the pay of kid improvement middle staff as in comparison with equally skilled and certified public elementary college staff.
- Partner change of station reimbursement: Authorizes monetary reimbursement for shifting bills for spouses with house companies.
- Affect support: Authorizes $53.0 million for the aim of offering help to native academic businesses with army dependent college students and $22.0 million for native academic businesses eligible to obtain a fee for youngsters with extreme disabilities.
- the invoice requires the Protection Advisory Committee on Investigation, Prosecution, and Protection of Sexual Assault within the Armed Forces to assess proof within the army justice system for survivors of sexual assault; and a GAO examine the influence using Incident Committees and potential enhancements to the incident willpower course of.
- Contraception and infertility: Eliminates TRICARE copays for contraception for one yr and will increase entry to infertility companies.
Entry to behavioral well being:
- The invoice consists of a number of provisions that may:
- Improve alternatives to develop the variety of obtainable behavioral well being suppliers.
- Require evaluation of the variety of suppliers wanted to assist care delivered at army remedy services and embedded in operational models.
- Set up a program to higher practice civilian behavioral well being suppliers to fulfill the distinctive challenges of service members and their households.
- Develop license portability for suppliers delivering non-medical counseling.
- Require GAO to evaluate whether or not TRICARE conforms with the necessities of sure psychological well being parity legal guidelines.
Improve Oversight of Privatized Navy Household Housing Tasks
- Discover for floor lease extensions: Requires the army departments to inform and transient the Home Armed Companies Committee earlier than executing any lease-term extension for a privatized army household housing challenge.
- Will increase congressional oversight of the privatized army household housing program by requiring an annual briefing on the well being and standing of army housing privatization initiatives enterprise broad.
Afghanistan
- Afghan Particular Immigrant Visas (SIV): Extends the authorization of this program, the deadline for individuals who qualify to use for SIVs, and permits these Afghans wounded throughout their service to the U.S. Authorities to use for the SIV program even when they haven’t met the one-year minimal employment threshold. This provision reaffirms the dedication to Afghan residents who, at nice private threat, supported U.S. operations in Afghanistan.
- Requires a report on how strike and combatant engagement information archived by U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan could be shared, when requested, to assist secure and environment friendly explosive remnants of conflict (ERW) clearance operations.
Supporting and Empowering HBCUs and different Minority Serving Establishments
- Allocates over $111 million for analysis actions at HBCUs – triple the President’s price range request.
- Requires the DoD to submit a report on actions which may be carried out to extend the participation of minority-serving establishments within the analysis, improvement, check, and analysis actions of the DoD following the discharge of the Nationwide Academies examine on protection analysis capability at HBCUs and different minority serving establishments.
- Establishes the Dellums Fellowship Program to offer scholarships and internships for eligible college students, significantly girls of coloration, with excessive potential expertise in science, expertise, engineering, arts, and arithmetic.
- Establishes a pilot program to extend analysis capability at HBCUs and different minority serving establishments.
High quality of Life and Innovation Infrastructure
- Provides $1.7 billion in Services Sustainment Renovation and Modernization funds to deal with poor and failing infrastructure together with high quality of life infrastructure comparable to barracks and little one improvement facilities.
