WASHINGTON – WASHINGTON - Congressman Rob Wittman (VA-01) today backed House passage of H.R. 3219, the Make America Secure Appropriations Act, which funds the Department of Defense, military construction and veterans affairs projects, energy and water development, and the Legislative Branch.
"Passing this national security funding bill sends a strong signal that we are dedicated to the safety and security of all Americans and the well-being of our veterans," Rep. Wittman said. "The world is an increasingly dangerous place and, having assessed those threats, we must now provide the funding necessary to ensure we can defeat our adversaries and keep America safe. The boost in defense funding will rebuild our military readiness and our Navy's Fleet. Appropriately, the bill funds the full pay raise our troops deserve, supporting the men and women in uniform tasked with meeting the security challenges we face.
"This bill also maintains our commitment to our veterans to make sure they get the care, support, and benefits they have earned and deserve."
The Department of Defense (DoD) portion of the bill provides base funding of $658.1 billion, a 13% increase over 2017 levels, and funds a 2.4% pay raise for our troops, the largest pay increase in 8 years.
The DoD portion of the bill also contains language blocking funds from being used to propose, plan for, or execute a new or additional base alignment and closure round (BRAC) and allows funds to be used on multiyear procurement contracts for up to 13 Virginia-class attack submarines. The submarine provision was added as an amendment co-sponsored by Rep. Wittman. Virginia-class submarines are built in Newport News, Virginia, meaning this provision will boost job growth in the Commonwealth.
H.R. 3219 calls for $88.8 billion in military construction and veterans affairs funding, including $73.3 billion specifically for veterans affairs, a 5% increase over last year's levels.
The Make America Secure Appropriations Act also includes $1.6 billion for the construction of a wall along the southern border with Mexico.
Congressman Rob Wittman represents the 1st District of Virginia. He serves on the House Natural Resources Committee and the House Armed Services Committee, where he is Chairman of the Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee.
