Senate passes major NDAA bill, sending it to Biden

The Senate on Wednesday passed a defense bill that gives troops a big pay raise and prohibits the use of military insurance for gender-related treatments among minors, dispatching the legislation to President Biden’s desk before the holiday break.

The National Defense Authorization Act was approved, 85 votes to 14, with nearly a dozen Democrats and three Republicans voting against it.

The $895 billion legislation outlines Defense Department priorities and sets the table for appropriators to provide funding. It’s considered one of the most important bills of each year. The House approved it last week.

Some Democrats balked over a GOP provision that bans the use of TRICARE, the health insurance program for active duty members, for gender dysphoria treatment among transgender youth.

Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer said the bill “isn’t perfect” but included good things, including provisions to compete with China with artificial intelligence for defense.

“Congress has passed the NDAA on a bipartisan basis for over six straight decades, and this year will be no different,” Mr. Schumer, New York Democrat, said. “Many feared that it wouldn’t pass, given the polarization, given the late date. But no, we’re passing the NDAA, and that’s a very good thing.”

This year’s NDAA 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 were struggling to pay for necessities, especially given high inflation.

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

It includes millions for new military housing, child care centers and playgrounds. Other provisions 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 illegal immigrants and drug traffickers at the border.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican, said positive things are in the bill but senators missed an opportunity to provide more money for advanced weapons systems.

Other Republicans hailed a part of the NDAA that fully funds the Rip and Replace program, which removes Chinese components from wireless communication systems, especially in rural areas. 

The bill also expands a Tech Hubs program that is supposed to expand high-end manufacturing projects in rural towns, particularly in upstate New York and the Midwest.