With the end of the current FY2017 Continuing Resolution (CR) set to run out on December 9, Congress appears likely to pass an extension until March 2017. Congressional Republicans, who now control both houses of Congress seem ready to defer action on the final 11 remaining FY2017 appropriations bills until March 2017. There had been [...]
President Obama sent Congress a FY2017 budget amendment request last week that would provide $5.8 billion in additional Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO). This funding will support U.S. military operations in Afghanistan and operations against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in the Middle East The FY 2017 OCO amendment of $5.8 billion [...]
Yesterday, Congress approved a Continuing Resolution (CR) that will keep the government running until December 9, 2016. The House passed the CR (H.R. 5325) by a bipartisan vote of 342-85 as 170 Republicans and 172 Democrats voted for passage. Earlier in the day, the Senate passed the CR 72-26. The president is expected to sign [...]
Department of Defense (DoD) Secretary Ashton Carter urged Congress to end budget gridlock and achieve budget stability through bipartisanship. Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee yesterday, Carter said budget stability is “critical in order for DoD and our people to address all the national security challenges we face.” Carter identified three areas in the [...]
Continuing budget uncertainty, constrained funding levels, and the threat of sequestration are threatening the military’s ability to achieve and sustain readiness levels necessary to meet current mission demands and build the forces capable of meeting future security threats, military leaders told Congress this week. Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), Gen. Mark A. [...]
Congress returns this week (after a seven-week recess) with less than four weeks until the end of the fiscal year and nine weeks until the November elections. Facing this time constraint on FY2017 funding and the desire by members to get back out on the campaign trail, House and Senate leaders will meet this week [...]
President Obama notified Congress this week that he has determined federal civilian employees should receive a 1.6 percent across-the-board pay raise in 2017. This is the same civilian and military pay raises the president included in the FY2017 federal budget request in February. Each year the president is required under Title 5 U.S.C., sections 5303(b) [...]
The Department of Defense (DoD) is making sound progress toward meeting full audit accountability and DoD's leaders expect to meet the goal of full financial statement audit readiness by FY2018, according to DoD's Comptroller Mike McCord. Testifying before the House Armed Services Committee, McCord told the committee achieving auditability is a key element of Secretary [...]
Last week, the House passed the FY2017 Department of Defense (DoD) Appropriations bill (H.R. 5293),278-149. Forty three Democrats joined 235 Republicans voting for passage. House Appropriations Committee chair Rep. Hal Rogers (R-KY) said the bill provides for the defense needs of the country by “funding those military needs that must be addressed now, planning and [...]
This week the Senate passed the FY2017 Defense Authorization bill by a large majority. The bill authorizes force levels, programs, and policies (including military pay raises) for Department of Defense (DoD) budgets and the programs and policies for the Department of Energy (DoE) nuclear weapons program. Appropriations bills provide actual funding. Senate Armed Services Committee [...]