McClellan Helps Pass NDAA to Fully Fund the Military

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan (VA-04), a member of the House Armed Services Committee (HASC), voted in support of final passage of H.R. 2670, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024. The legislation authorizes funding for the United States military and supports America’s servicemembers. 

“As a member of the House Armed Services Committee, I am proud of the work we accomplished to pass this crucial piece of legislation. Our Commonwealth is home to over 130,000 active-duty servicemembers and over 700,000 veterans, who deserve the full support of the federal government,” said Congresswoman McClellan. “This year’s NDAA represents a bipartisan compromise that protects our national security priorities, advances military development and innovation, and supports our servicemembers, veterans, and their families. Despite House Republicans’ attempts to undermine Diversity, Equity & Inclusion initiatives, attack our LGBTQ+ service members, and restrict reproductive health care, congressional Democrats were able to successfully remove their poison pill policies.”

McClellan successfully secured the following provisions in the legislation: 

1. Traction Alopecia Study: to direct the Department of Defense to conduct a study into the feasibility of implementing novel treatments for service members, particularly Black women, who suffer from traction alopecia and scalp damage caused by the military’s strict grooming standards. 
2. Extension Deadline for U.S.S. George Washington: to provide the Office of the Inspector General at the Department of Defense the necessary time to conclude its investigation into the contributing factors behind the suicides committed by Navy servicemembers aboard the U.S.S. George Washington in Newport News, Virginia. 
3. Mental Health Awareness and Suicide Training Study: to direct the Comptroller General of the Government Accountability Office to conduct a study into mental health awareness and suicide prevention training in the military and to offer recommendations to close existing gaps. 
4. MilitaryOne Source Study: to direct the Department of Defense to conduct a study into the efficacy, utility, and accessibility of the One Source Program, which aims to connect servicemembers and their families with various services and resources. 
5. NATO Resolution: McClellan’s bipartisan, bicameral legislation to prevent any U.S. President from unilaterally withdrawing from NATO without congressional approval. The Senate version is led by Sens. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Marco Rubio (R-FL). 

“Throughout the NDAA process – from the 14 hour committee markup to the hours of floor debate opposing Republicans’ extreme policies – I fought to ensure this legislation meets our national security priorities and supports our troops and their families. I successfully secured five major provisions to safeguard America’s role in NATO and protect our alliance with leading democracies, improve our service members' quality of life, address the mental health crisis among our service members, and ensure they have the resources and support they deserve,” continued Congresswoman McClellan. “As lawmakers, we have a responsibility to simultaneously ensure the security of the Nation and solve the challenges facing our military personnel as they make courageous sacrifices to defend our freedom and liberties. I look forward to President Biden signing this legislation into law.” 

Other notable provisions in the bill include: 

• Pay Raise for Service Members: allocates necessary funding to support the Biden-Harris Administration’s proposed 5.2% pay raise for service members. 
• Expanded Child Development and Education: includes $301 million in military construction for new child development centers, an additional $60 million for planning and design to accelerate future child development center replacements, and $70 million for educational agencies with military dependent students that serve children with severe disabilities. 
• Historic Investments in HBCUs: authorizes a record $150 million for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to invest in innovation, technology, and modernization initiatives, as well as historically underserved communities. 
• Improved Health Care Resources: increases access to mental and physical health care under TRICARE, reduces out-of-pocket costs, and expands delivery of health care benefits. The final version of the bill also struck down the House-version that overturned the Department of Defense’s travel rule for reproductive health care. 
• Bolstered Defense Coordination: authorizes key provisions of the Australia, United Kingdom, and United States (AUKUS) security agreement that will increase defense cooperation between our nations and strengthen the industrial base so that we can produce necessary defense equipment in a more timely and cost effective manner. Also fully reauthorizes the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI).
• Reaffirmed Commitment to a Cleaner Environment: authorizes $650 million worth of investments in energy resilience and energy conservation projects.

Read the NDAA final bill text here.