Moulton Celebrates FY2023 NDAA Wins
Annual Must-Pass Defense Funding Package Approved by the House of Representatives
WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. House of Representatives has passed the FY2023 National Defense Authorization Act, which sets the funding levels, expenditures and authorizations for the Department of Defense.
“The National Defense Authorization Act is one of the few truly bipartisan accomplishments by Congress every year. This year’s spending package makes America more secure and it invests more in our greatest asset: our men and women in uniform,” said Congressman Moulton. “The bill is not perfect, of course, but I voted for the NDAA to make sure we continue to sufficiently support the patriotic men and women in our armed services.
“After many hours of debate over more than 600 amendments, I’m proud to have 21 of my provisions included in the House-passed version of the NDAA. These measures will support better mental health resources for our military, expand investment in force modernization, and ensure that the U.S. is operationalizing valuable lessons learned from the war in Ukraine.”
This year’s bill includes a number of initiatives Congressman Moulton championed as a member of the House Armed Services Committee. They include:
- Increased Funding for Artificial Intelligence
Increases funding for artificial intelligence development, testing, and validation across the Department of Defense. - Establishing a Joint Information Operations Course
Establishes a joint information operations course to standardize training in information operations across the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Space Force, and to prepare service members to plan and conduct information operations in an integrated manner across the services. - Expanding the Special Immigrant Visa program
Expands eligibility for the Afghan Special Immigrant Visa program to those injured or wounded prior to reaching the standard one year of qualifying service. - Ukraine Lessons Learned Report
Requires a report of lessons learned from the Russia-Ukraine War to include an analysis of the capabilities, tactics, and techniques used by both parties. - Reducing Uniform Costs for Service Members
Establishes a uniform allowance for Department of Defense Officers and requires the Department to begin tracking uniform costs for both Officers and Enlisted service members for the purposes of tracking out-of-pocket expenses. - Improving Extremist Separation Training
Service members are especially vulnerable to recruitment by extremist groups at the transition stage, where they are finding new employment, moving, and losing a lifelong built-in support system, structure, and sense of purpose. This amendment would improve the current transition assistance program to address those who already have documented violations of DoD’s internal extremism policy. - Mental Health Initiatives, including:
Adverse Childhood Events Screening Report Language: Childhood trauma is not something that goes away. Extensive research tells us that Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are among the most significant risk factors for suicide, future mental and physical health crises, substance use disorder and domestic violence. This amendment also requires a report to better understand the prevalence of Adverse Childhood Events among servicemembers and the correlation with these events on both being a victim of trauma and perpetrating trauma onto others. - Civilian Mental Health Providers Training: Directs the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Veterans’ Affairs, and the Department of Defense’s Uniformed Services University to develop a certification program for students to gain the knowledge and the clinical expertise necessary to develop mental health treatment plans catered to the unique challenges faced by Veterans, service members, military retirees, and families.
The House and Senate Armed Services Committee write the NDAA for their respective chambers of Congress. The House and Senate versions are then negotiated into a final bill which is sent to the president’s desk to be signed into law.
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