Senator Hassan Votes to Approve Bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act
Bipartisan Legislation Includes Funding to Support Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Second Year of Nationwide PFAS Study
WASHINGTON – Senator Maggie Hassan today voted to approve the bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2019, which included critical priorities championed by Senator Hassan to help keep New Hampshire and the United States safe and strong.
“As our country continues to face ever-evolving threats from abroad and within, it is critical that the brave Americans who put their lives on the line to defend our freedom have the resources and support they need,” Senator Hassan said. “This bipartisan bill that contains critical measures to promote our national security, including a 2.6 percent pay raise for all of our dedicated service members, funding to upgrade facilities at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, authorization of federal resources for the second year of the nationwide PFAS health study, and a repeal of a burdensome per diem travel policy that has hurt our shipyard workers.
“The bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act is a necessary step forward in our efforts to strengthen our national security and to ensure that all hard-working Granite Staters and Americans are safe, secure, and free.”
New Hampshire Priorities Included in the FY19 National Defense Authorization Act:
- Authorizes a 2.6 percent pay raise for all U.S. military personnel
- Includes a military construction authorization for $109 million to begin construction of a Super Flood Basin Dry Dock 1 at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard
- Provides $11.6 million to replace a consolidated warehouse at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and $40 million to build a heavy-lift capacity crane
- Fully repeals a Department of Defense (DOD) policy to reduce per diems for DOD employees temporarily deployed to locations outside their home base, including those at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard
- Authorizes funding to establish a National Guard Readiness Center in Pembroke
- Provides an additional $10 million for the second year of the nationwide health study on the impacts of PFAS in drinking water
- Prohibits the federal government from using telecommunications equipment or services produced by Huawei Technologies Company or ZTE Corporation
###
