NTU urges all Senators and Representatives to vote “NO” on the Conference Report to accompany H.R. 2670, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2024. The final compromise NDAA increases authorized funding to $886.3 billion from FY 2023’s $847 billion. This is also $44 billion above President Biden’s request of $842 billion, and over $100 billion higher than was authorized during FY 2022. The bill further includes worrying new domestic sourcing requirements for major defense acquisition programs and an increase to nuclear missile budget authority. With another $100 billion supplemental package under consideration in the Senate, the Pentagon still unable to pass an audit for the sixth year in a row, and with a $33 trillion federal debt, this NDAA needs additional work to sufficiently protect taxpayers as well as our national security priorities.
Furthermore, while the list below is not exhaustive, several good governance provisions were left on the conference cutting room floor:
Furthermore, while the list below is not exhaustive, several good governance provisions were left on the conference cutting room floor:
- Sec. 1005B of the House version would have reduced discretionary budget authority by 0.5 percent each year the Department of Defense had not submitted a financial statement or submitted a qualified or unqualified audit by an independent external auditor.
- Sec. 813 of the Senate version would have authorized the Secretary of Defense to withhold payments pending resolution of allegations of contractor bribery to an official or officer of the government to influence a contract.
- Sec. 1078 of the House version required the Inspector General of the DOD to submit an annual report on oversight of waste, fraud, and abuse.
Fiscal security is an integral part of our national security. Roll call votes on the NDAA conference report will be included in NTU’s annual Rating of Congress and a “NO” vote will be considered the pro-taxpayer position.