Washington: The U.S. House of Representatives has passed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026, authorizing $901 billion in War Department spending. This amount exceeds President Donald Trump’s request by $8 billion. The extensive 3,000-plus-page bill, which was passed with a vote of 312 to 112, will now move to the Senate for approval.
According to Namibia Press Agency, the bill received opposition from 18 Republicans and 94 Democrats. The legislation aims to incorporate 15 of President Trump’s executive orders, address ideological concerns at the Pentagon, enhance border security, revitalize the defense industrial base, and restore military ethos, as stated by House Speaker Mike Johnson prior to the vote. Adam Smith, the leading Democrat on the House armed services panel, expressed dissatisfaction with the bill, highlighting a lack of accountability from the Pentagon under Secretary Pete Hegseth and President Trump.
Key features of the bill include a nearly 4 percent military pay rai
se, initiatives to speed up Pentagon arms acquisitions, development plans for the Golden Dome missile defense system, and measures to improve military readiness. The bill allocates $400 million annually over two years for weapons production for Ukraine and imposes restrictions on reducing U.S. troop levels in Europe and South Korea without allied consultation.
Additionally, the legislation eliminates Pentagon DEI offices, cuts $1.6 billion in climate-related spending, repeals the 1991 and 2002 Iraq War authorizations, and permanently lifts U.S. sanctions on Syria. The 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force remains unchanged. The bill also specifies withholding a quarter of Hegseth’s travel budget until unedited footage of strikes on alleged drug boats near Venezuela is provided to Congress.
A non-defense provision mandates the FBI to disclose investigations into presidential candidates and other federal office contenders. Some Democrats criticized the removal of expanded in vitro fertilization coverag
e for active-duty troops, while some Republicans expressed frustration that the bill did not further reduce overseas commitments or include a provision to bar the Federal Reserve from creating a central bank digital currency.
The Senate is expected to pass the legislation with bipartisan support next week, as House and Senate leaders have consolidated their versions of the bill into a single negotiated package. Local media reported that the White House has shown strong support for the bill.