One of the federal government’s most important priorities is to provide for the common defense. It’s right there in the preamble to the Constitution. That starts with making sure our women and men in uniform have what they need to keep us safe. I’m proud to support them in that effort.
Recently, my colleagues and I passed the National Defense Authorization Act – or NDAA. It authorizes $895 billion for national defense next year. It gives a 14.5% pay raise for junior enlisted service members and a 4.5% pay raise to all other servicemembers. It authorizes critical funding for modernizing our nuclear triad. This includes funding for the Sentinel ICBM system, parts of which are hosted here in Nebraska. And it includes elements of my bipartisan BOLSTER Act, which will strengthen European support for Taiwan’s efforts to deter the People’s Republic of China.
This year’s NDAA supports important missions in Nebraska. It authorizes funding to plan and design various facilities at Offutt Air Force Base. $158 million to permanently base the Survivable Airborne Operations Center (SAOC) aircraft fleet, for example. $6 million is authorized for a Consolidated Training Complex and Professional Development Center.
