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Senate Passes Bipartisan Defense Spending Bill, Includes Key Priorities Championed by Senator Hassan to Keep New Hampshire Safe and Secure

WASHINGTON – Senator Maggie Hassan today voted to approve the bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020, which includes key priorities championed by Senator Hassan to keep New Hampshire safe and secure.

“We must provide the brave Americans tasked with defending our freedoms and security with the resources that they need to keep our country safe from ever-evolving threats, both at home and abroad,” Senator Hassan said. “I am proud to have worked across party lines to pass this bipartisan legislation, which includes critical priorities for New Hampshire, including a 3.1% pay raise for our dedicated servicemembers, bolstering efforts to combat PFAS contamination at our military bases, and directing crucial funding for projects at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and the New Hampshire National Guard. I urge my colleagues in the House to pass this important bipartisan legislation without delay so that we can better protect our national security interests both in New Hampshire and across the country.”

New Hampshire Priorities Included in the FY20 National Defense Authorization Act:

  • Authorizes a 3.1 percent pay raise for all U.S. military personnel
  • Includes funding for the procurement of 2 Virginia-class submarines, naval vessels to be maintained by the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard
  • Provides funding to establish a National Guard Readiness Center in Concord to enhance mission readiness for New Hampshire National Guard
  • Includes the PFAS Accountability Act cosponsored by Senator Hassan to address contamination for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) at military bases across the country
  • Authorizes 15 KC-46 Pegasus refueling tankers that will be based at Pease Air National Guard Base
  • Includes significant funding for cybersecurity research to help America better defeat threats in the cyber domain
  • Prohibits the Department of Defense from buying firefighting foam that contains PFAS after October 2022
  • Invests in the expansion of the national network of Manufacturing USA institutes to strengthen American manufacturing, which includes New Hampshire’s ARMI/BioFabUSA, a leader in bio-fabrication research, development, and manufacturing.

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