House passes $895 billion defense bill, despite divisions

The House approved a key defense bill Wednesday that extends a big pay raise to junior troops, while overcoming Democratic objections to a prohibition on the use of military health insurance for gender dysphoria treatments for transgender youth.

The National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2025 passed, 281-140, buoyed by votes from the GOP majority. While most Democrats rejected the bill, more than 80 voted in support.

The $895 billion legislation outlines priorities for the Department of Defense and came in under mandated budget caps despite a push in the Democrat-controlled Senate to go above the limits.

The NDAA is a critical annual effort that sets the table for appropriators to provide funding.

This year’s edition gives a 14.5% raise to junior enlisted service members and a 4.5% pay raise to all other service members. Lawmakers feared junior military members had been struggling to meet basic necessities, especially given high inflation.

“No service member should have to live in squalid conditions. No military family should have to rely on food stamps to feed their children,” House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers, Alabama Republican, said during a floor debate. “This bill goes a long way to fixing that.”

House Speaker Mike Johnson, Louisiana Republican, praised the bill, pointing to provisions that will expand U.S.-Israel military exercises, bolster Indo-Pacific allies to provide for Taiwan’s defense and support the deployment of the National Guard to intercept immigrants crossing the border illegally and drug traffickers.

The 2025 bill eliminates co-pays for contraceptives and sets up a three-year trial program for cryopreservation, which involves freezing eggs or sperm for later use.

It also includes millions for new military housing, child care centers and playgrounds.

Top Republicans and Democrats on the Armed Services committees in the House and Senate negotiated the compromise bill.

But one of them — Rep. Adam Smith, Washington Democrat — balked at a GOP provision that banned the use of Tricare, the health insurance program for active duty members, for “medical interventions for the treatment of gender dysphoria that could result in sterilization … under the age of 18.’’

“The ‘could’ language is very problematic,” Mr. Smith said, calling it overly broad and saying it might deny needed care to the children of service members.

Other Democrats faulted the defense budget itself. They said it is bloated and that President-elect Donald Trump and his Department of Government Efficiency should find a way to cut costs.

“I will oppose and vote ‘no’ on this budget with the hope that next year we can find cost-savings,” said Rep. Ro Khanna, California Democrat.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries pointed to both positive and “troubling” provisions in the bill. He said leadership was not whipping the vote and his Democratic members should draw their conclusions.

“It’s a member-to-member, case-by-case analysis,” said Mr. Jeffries, New York Democrat.

The bill must pass the Senate and obtain President Biden’s signature to become law. It is expected to get across the finish line, given its importance in guiding defense spending.