Supports final passage of the legislation that passed with overwhelming bipartisan majority
WASHINGTON—United States Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN), a member of the Senate Appropriations and Foreign Relations Committees, today supported passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) on the Senate floor, which contains numerous provisions important to the State of Tennessee, the nation’s brave service members, and our national security.
“Providing our service members the tools they need to protect American national security is one of Congress’s most critical jobs, and I am pleased to support this NDAA that accomplishes that,” Senator Hagerty said. “Not only does this legislation include a pay raise for our men and women in uniform, invest in their families, and strengthen our national defense, but it includes significant investments in the Volunteer State that I strongly advocated for in order to keep Tennessee a leader in protecting our homeland.”
Passage of this NDAA marks the 61st consecutive year that Congress has passed this authorization, which provides a 2.7 percent pay increase for service members. It includes significant investments in nuclear modernization and authorizes over $436 million for the Oak Ridge Reservation for nuclear clean up and disposal in Oak Ridge, TN. The legislation also strengthens the United States’ posture toward Communist China, North Korea, Iran, and Russia, including investments to improve U.S. posture in the Indo-Pacific region.
Hagerty secured critical priorities for the State of Tennessee, including:
- Authorizes nearly $20 million for two military construction projects—one at Arnold Air Base and the other at Memphis International Airport.
- Supports critical research, development, and testing projects across Tennessee, which ensure our military capabilities are the best in the world.
- Authorizes $5.1 million for Weapons of Mass Destruction Equipment sustainment, which maintains Tennessee’s leadership in nuclear detection programs.
- Ensures that the Department of Defense is able to maintain their underground training facilities.
- Authorizes a Technology Qualification Program, which will help soldiers better track their skills in critical technologies and ensure they are receiving sufficient training.
- Creates a Hypersonic Facility Base facility designation to streamline critical hypersonics research.
- Authorizes nuclear modernization programs, including several critical national security projects in Tennessee, the Lithium Processing Facility, the Uranium Processing Facility, and the West End Protected Area Reduction project at Y-12 National Security Complex.
- Authorizes funding toward nuclear nonproliferation, which helps the U.S. maintain global nuclear security and safety leadership.
- Protects of the Force and Family Program, which ensures that our Special Operations Forces and their families have access to services that improve quality of life and retention.
- Provides guidelines for the Navy Community College program, which gives sailors the opportunity to earn higher education degrees.