HALISTER: House Panel Approves $610.5B Defense Policy Bill For FY 2017

House Panel Approves $610.5B Defense Policy Bill For FY 2017

(Bloomberg) -- House Armed Services Committee approves the $610.5 billion defense authorization bill by a vote of 60-2.
  • Measure, which full House may consider week of May 16, sets funding levels and military policy for fiscal year 2017, starting Oct. 1.
  • Measure features funding maneuver that uses an additional $18b from war funding that is not subject to budget caps to fund high-profile weapons usually financed through the regular Defense Dept. budget
    • “It is fundamentally wrong to send service members out on missions for which they are not fully prepared or fully supported,” Chairman Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, says defending the maneuver
  • War funding available for only 7 mos; will force next president to ask for war supplemental to fund operations against Islamic State, deployments in Afghanistan and elsewhere
  • NOTE: Bill would boost funding authority for Boeing Co. Super Hornet fighter jets and Apache attack helicopters; backs funding for 11 additional Lockheed Martin Corp. F-35 Joint Strike Fighters not requested by Pentagon
  • NOTE: Measure would open draft to women after amdt to lift ban on women being drafted into service was adopted in surprise vote; its sponsor, Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., voted against it
  • Bill would increase tenure of chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the nation’s top military official, to four years from two
  • Among other adopted amendments:
    • U.S. Air Force would be prohibited from retiring Northrop Grumman Corp. surveillance plane, JSTARS, in FY18
    • Govt would be prohibited from housing unaccompanied immigrant children on military bases
    • Link to all adopted amendments
Alert: HALISTER
Source: BFW (Bloomberg First Word)

Tickers
LMT US (Lockheed Martin Corp)

People
Duncan Hunter (United States House of Representatives)
William Thornberry (United States House of Representatives)

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