Yesterday, the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee (HAC-D) approved the FY2014 Department of Defense (DoD) Appropriations bill. According to a committee press release, the HAC-D bill would provide $512.5 billion for the DoD base budget (excluding military construction), almost $3.4 billion below the president’s request.
The HAC-D bill would also provide $85.8 billion for Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) in FY2014. The president originally included an $88.5 billion OCO placeholder in the FY2014 budget request. However, last month he sent Congress a budget amendment that replaced the placeholder with a detailed $79.4 billion OCO budget request.
In a statement that accompanied the committee release, HAC-D chairman Rep. Bill Young (R-FL) said the bill provides “the resources needed to maintain and modernize the best equipped and most capable military in the world,” without adversely affecting military readiness.
The Subcommittee action was held in a closed session so the full details are not yet available. But, the committee press release highlights some components of the subcommittee mark.
The HAC-D bill would fund a 1.8 percent military pay raise that would be authorized in the proposed FY2014 Defense Authorization bill, approved by the House Armed Services Committee (HASC). The president’s budget requests a 1 percent pay raise for military personnel.
The bill proposes to fund the Defense Health Program (DHP) at $33.6 billion, $519 million above the request. Increases are primarily for medical research and medical facility upgrades.
Funding in the HAC-D bill for Operations and Maintenance (O&M) programs would total $175 billion, -$124 million below the request. The bill includes a $922 million increase for facility sustainment and modernization and $536 million more to cover a shortfall in fuel funding.
The bill would provide $98.4 billion for procurement programs, $750 million less than the request. Included in the bill’s approved procurement level are funds to build 8 new ships (including two SSN-774 Attack Submarines), buy 29 F-35 (Joint Strike Fighter) and 21 EA-18G aircraft, 73 H-60 Blackhawk and 37 MH-60S/R helicopters. The bill also proposes $1.5 billion for Guard and Reserve equipment, not requested by DoD.
Funding in the bill for research and development would be $66.4 billion, $1.1 billion below the president’s request.
To offset the HAC-D proposed increases, the bill includes cuts of $1 billion for what the subcommittee calls excess program funding, $437 million for a rejected civilian 1 percent civilian pay raise, and $2.1 billion in recessions of prior-year program funding.
