LaLota Secures Wins for Servicemembers, Gabreski Air National Guard, Gold Star Families, and Merchant Marine Academy in Defense Bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Rep. Nick LaLota (R-Suffolk County), a Navy Veteran and member of the House Armed Services Committee, released the following statement after voting to pass H.R. 5009, the Servicemember Quality of Life Improvement and National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025, which included several of LaLota’s priorities and amendments. This year’s National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) builds upon last year's efforts to strengthen our military and deter adversaries by fully funding our national defense and includes a historic pay increase for junior enlisted.

“I voted to ensure our military remains the strongest in the world and our servicemembers are supported by voting to pass this year’s NDAA. This bill includes major wins for Long Island, including $14 million for the 106th Rescue Wing at Gabreski, $64 million for the Merchant Marine Academy, and critical investments in our defense industrial base,” said LaLota. “I was also proud to see two of my bills, the Plain Language in Contracting Act and the Gold Star Children’s Education Act, in the NDAA, along with important provisions to increase pay for junior enlisted by over 14%, take on China, and support Israel. Today’s bill is a win for our military, our allies, and our future.”

To read the full text of the legislation, click HERE.

Background:

The House Armed Services Committee is instrumental in ensuring our military has the policies and resources necessary to defend America.  The culmination of the committee’s work is passing the NDAA, the annual bill that provides funding and policy updates to the Department of Defense. The NDAA authorizes funding levels and provides authorities for the U.S. military and other critical defense priorities, ensuring our troops have the training, equipment, and resources they need to accomplish their missions.

In this year’s NDAA are several of LaLota’s priorities:

• Authorizes a 14.5% pay raise for junior enlisted servicemembers and supports a 4.5% pay raise for all other servicemembers
• Authorizes $14 million for an Air National Guard Combat Rescue Helicopter Simulator at Francis S. Gabreski Airport
• Authorizes $64 million for United States Merchant Marine Academy capital improvement projects
• LaLota’s Plain Language in Contracting Act, requires the Department of Defense to write contract solicitations in plain language
• LaLota’s Gold Star Children’s Education Act, which would make dependents of Armed Forces members who died while serving on active duty eligible for enrollment in Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) schools on a tuition-free, space-available basis.
• Requires the Secretary of Defense to produce a report on the impact of bundled contracts on small businesses and the impact of reducing the number of bundled contracts
• Protects servicemembers’ rights by requiring a report on the comprehensive review of the legal protections afforded to servicemembers abroad
• Addresses chronic underfunding of housing maintenance to address poor conditions like sewage overflows, gas leaks, and mold
• Ensures access to medical care, including mental health services and specialty providers.
• Increases access to childcare by authorizing $176 million for the construction of new childcare centers
• Supports military spouses by making it easier to find and maintain employment
• Improves DoD schools by authorizing over $110 million to build new schools for children of servicemembers
• Enhances career transition assistance, including ensuring the Transition Assistance Program includes a pathway to aid retiring members of the reserve components
• Authorizes $15.6 billion for the Pacific Deterrence Initiative to enhance U.S. deterrence and defense posture in the Indo-Pacific region and over $490 million in INDOPACOM Commander priorities left unfunded in the Biden budget
• Prevents Chinese espionage by prohibiting contracting with the subsidiaries of any Chinese civil-military companies to include any subsidiaries, the sharing of sensitive missile defense information with China, and Chinese nationals from being admitted to nuclear facilities
• Bolsters Taiwan’s defense and supports our Indo-Pacific allies and partners
• Authorizes $6.2 billion for Columbia-class submarine advanced procurement
• Provides incremental funding authority for an additional Virginia-class submarine and wages to support the industrial base
• Declares that it is the policy of the United States to ensure Israel has adequate stocks of air defense interceptors to defend itself against Iran and its proxies, including Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad
• Authorizes full funding for joint U.S.-Israel cooperative missile defense programs (Iron Dome, Arrow, David’s Sling)
• Fully supports deployment of National Guard troops to augment Border Patrol activities at the southwest border
• Increases funding by $10 million for DoD counternarcotics activities
• Expands DoD’s authority to assist Law Enforcement in the interdiction of narcotics traffickers

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