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Congressman Bob Latta (R-Bowling Green) joined his colleagues today in voting to pass H.R. 2810, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), legislation that would improve military readiness, increase pay for service members, and preserve important payments to surviving military spouses. The bill also includes important provisions regarding recent military issues by improving aviation readiness, addressing the critical munitions shortage, and increasing our naval presence. The annual defense authorization bill was the result of a Conference Committee between the House and Senate and passed with bipartisan support by a vote of 356-70.

“After years of draw downs under the previous administration, today marks the beginning of the rebuilding of our military,” said Latta. “The NDAA improves military   readiness and ensures that our country’s men and women in uniform will have the resources they need to confront our global threats and to keep our nation safe. In addition, we ensure our troops and their families are supported by providing the largest pay raise in eight years for servicemen and servicewomen, and ensuring that more than 60,000 surviving spouses will continues to have access to special survivor indemnity allowance payments. This bill will provide our military with the tools they need to carry out their mission. In an increasingly dangerous world, U.S. leadership is needed now more than ever.”

The NDAA provides a 2.4% pay raise — the largest in eight years — for active duty military members. In addition, the bill also includes important acquisition reforms at the Pentagon including additional oversight to service contracts, as well as improvements to the process in which the Department of Defense purchases off-the-shelf goods by using online commercial websites. The bill also invests significant resources to strengthen our Missile Defense System in light of increasing threats from North Korea.

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