U.S. Congressman Donald Norcross (NJ-01), chair of the Tactical Air and Land Forces (TAL) Subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee (HASC), voted to advance the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for the Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23). The bill will invest in U.S. warfighters and the equipment they rely on, furthering the capacity for the United States to meet its defense needs today and into the future. It will also invest in American workers and manufacturing, fight inflation by securing the national industrial base and supply chain, and secure better wages and protections for Department of Defense employees.

“The United States military is made up of dedicated servicemembers who go wherever duty calls, and their safety is one of my top priorities,” said Congressman Norcross. “That’s why I led the charge to improve the safety of Humvees to avoid preventable deaths and promoted expanding mental health benefits for those enrolled in military health plans. I’m also proud to have championed strong ‘Buy American’ guidelines, which will require the Defense Department to invest American taxpayer dollars back into our national defense industrial base. ‘Buy American’ fosters a highly skilled domestic workforce and encourages our capacity to manufacture what our warfighters need when they need it.”

The annual defense bill touches all aspects of the Department of Defense, from equipment modernization efforts that ensure the U.S. Armed Forces can meet future threats to wages for construction workers and teachers working on U.S. military bases.

“Supporting the U.S. military goes beyond equipping and training the world’s finest warfighters,” continued Congressman Norcross. “We need to support other Defense Department personnel as well. That’s why I’m leading the charge to secure a minimum wage of $15 for federal contractors and fighting to guarantee workers on U.S. military bases at home and overseas know about their rights to organize and bargain collectively. Equipping our warfighters, making sure we can secure our defense supply chain and industrial base – these things are critical for the U.S. to win the future fight.”

Congressman Norcross takes seriously his responsibility to ensure members of the U.S. military are supplied with the equipment and training they need to dominate the battlefield. His track record of standing up for the women and men in uniform includes a provision in the FY23 NDAA that addresses adequate mental health support services through TRICARE and a provision that supplies $193 million to address safety issues in Humvees that had led to a recent string of deadly accidents.

FY23 NDAA includes provisions that benefit South Jersey by:

• Improving “Buy American” standards to ensure the Defense Department is investing American tax dollars back into American businesses and workers, bolstering the defense industrial base and workforce.
• Requiring the Department of Defense to consider the sustainment of domestic shipyards when structuring new shipbuilding acquisition programs, including the Philly Shipyard which employs many residents of New Jersey’s 1^st Congressional District.
• $7.5 million for research and engineering to enable rapid entry and sustainment in the Arctic and other cold regions being conducted at universities including Rowan University.
• $5 million for the research and development of recyclable concrete that has zero carbon emissions being conducted at universities including Rutgers University.
• Over $2.6 billion for the KC-46A Pegasus air tanker program at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, which supports America’s national security and New Jersey’s military families.
• Funding for additional V-22 Ospreys, which will enhance national security while providing stability and predictability to many workers in New Jersey’s 1^st Congressional District who play a critical role in our national industrial base.
• Directing the Department of Defense to provide a status update on its efforts to reduce the risk posed by forever chemicals/PFAS to servicemembers and defense workers.