National Defense Authorization Act: Pay Raise, Policy and Votes
Congress has passed a defense authorization bill every year for more than six decades, which makes it the most reliable vehicle for unrelated policy riders.
Where it stands now
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027
This bill authorizes funding and sets policy for Department of Defense programs and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2027. It mandates specific personnel levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft and ships, and creates an expedited qualification process for domestic sources of strategic materials like magnets and alloys. The legislation also directs the Department of Defense to include foreign military sales projections in its munitions and acquisition planning. Introduced by Representative Mike Rogers (R-AL), the bill passed the House in July 2026 and now awaits action in the Senate.
Next step: Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026
This bill authorizes funding for Department of Defense programs, military construction, and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2026. It sets personnel strength levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft, ships, and missiles, and extends the Pacific Deterrence Initiative. The legislation also repeals the position of Chief Diversity Officer and other diversity, equity, and inclusion provisions within the military. Introduced by Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), the bill has passed the Senate and moved to the House for consideration.
Next step: Awaits further action in the Senate.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026
This bill authorizes funding for Department of Defense programs, military construction, and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2026. It sets personnel strength levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft, ships, and missiles, and extends the Pacific Deterrence Initiative. The legislation also repeals the position of Chief Diversity Officer and other diversity, equity, and inclusion provisions within the military. Introduced by Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), the bill has passed the Senate and moved to the House for consideration.
Next step: Awaiting Senate floor consideration.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027
This bill authorizes funding and sets policy for Department of Defense programs and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2027. It mandates specific personnel levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft and ships, and creates an expedited qualification process for domestic sources of strategic materials like magnets and alloys. The legislation also directs the Department of Defense to include foreign military sales projections in its munitions and acquisition planning. Introduced by Representative Mike Rogers (R-AL), the bill passed the House in July 2026 and now awaits action in the Senate.
Next step: Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026
This bill authorizes funding for Department of Defense programs, military construction, and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2026. It sets personnel strength levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft, ships, and missiles, and extends the Pacific Deterrence Initiative. The legislation also repeals the position of Chief Diversity Officer and other diversity, equity, and inclusion provisions within the military. Introduced by Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), the bill has passed the Senate and moved to the House for consideration.
Next step: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026
This bill authorizes funding for Department of Defense programs, military construction, and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2026. It sets personnel strength levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft, ships, and missiles, and extends the Pacific Deterrence Initiative. The legislation also repeals the position of Chief Diversity Officer and other diversity, equity, and inclusion provisions within the military. Introduced by Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), the bill has passed the Senate and moved to the House for consideration.
Next step: Referred to the Senate Committee on Armed Services.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027
This bill authorizes funding and sets policy for Department of Defense programs and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2027. It mandates specific personnel levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft and ships, and creates an expedited qualification process for domestic sources of strategic materials like magnets and alloys. The legislation also directs the Department of Defense to include foreign military sales projections in its munitions and acquisition planning. Introduced by Representative Mike Rogers (R-AL), the bill passed the House in July 2026 and now awaits action in the Senate.
Next step: Referred to House Committee on Armed Services.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027 (Amendment)
This bill authorizes funding and sets policy for Department of Defense programs and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2027. It mandates specific personnel levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft and ships, and creates an expedited qualification process for domestic sources of strategic materials like magnets and alloys. The legislation also directs the Department of Defense to include foreign military sales projections in its munitions and acquisition planning. Introduced by Representative Mike Rogers (R-AL), the bill passed the House in July 2026 and now awaits action in the Senate.
Next step: The underlying bill passed the House and moves to the Senate.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027 (Grothman Amendment)
This bill authorizes funding and sets policy for Department of Defense programs and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2027. It mandates specific personnel levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft and ships, and creates an expedited qualification process for domestic sources of strategic materials like magnets and alloys. The legislation also directs the Department of Defense to include foreign military sales projections in its munitions and acquisition planning. Introduced by Representative Mike Rogers (R-AL), the bill passed the House in July 2026 and now awaits action in the Senate.
Next step: The House proceeded to further consideration of the underlying bill.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027
This bill authorizes funding and sets policy for Department of Defense programs and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2027. It mandates specific personnel levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft and ships, and creates an expedited qualification process for domestic sources of strategic materials like magnets and alloys. The legislation also directs the Department of Defense to include foreign military sales projections in its munitions and acquisition planning. Introduced by Representative Mike Rogers (R-AL), the bill passed the House in July 2026 and now awaits action in the Senate.
Next step: Sent to the Senate for consideration.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027 (Grothman Amendment)
This amendment to the 2027 defense authorization bill was offered by Representative Grothman of Wisconsin to modify specific policy or funding provisions within the broader act. The specific text of the amendment was not detailed in the summary, but it was debated and voted upon as part of the floor consideration for the military spending bill. The amendment failed to gain a majority of votes in the House. It was rejected during the floor debate on July 22, 2026.
Next step: Amendment failed; bill proceeded to final passage.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027 (Amendments)
This session involved a series of recorded votes on amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027. Amendments from Rep. Harrigan (R-NC) and Rep. Self (R-TX) were adopted, while amendments from Rep. Grothman (R-WI) and Rep. Issa (R-CA) failed. These amendments proposed specific modifications to Department of Defense policy and funding priorities for the upcoming fiscal year. These actions occurred during the floor consideration of the broader defense authorization bill.
Next step: The bill subsequently passed the House.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027
This bill authorizes appropriations for fiscal year 2027 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy. It sets policy for personnel levels, weapons procurement, and research and development across all branches of the Armed Forces. The provisions apply to the entire U.S. military establishment and its contractors worldwide for the 2027 fiscal year. It passed the House after several recorded votes on various amendments.
Next step: Awaits action in the Senate.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026
This bill authorizes funding for Department of Defense programs, military construction, and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2026. It sets personnel strength levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft, ships, and missiles, and extends the Pacific Deterrence Initiative. The legislation also repeals the position of Chief Diversity Officer and other diversity, equity, and inclusion provisions within the military. Introduced by Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), the bill has passed the Senate and moved to the House for consideration.
Next step: Awaits Senate floor debate.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026
This bill authorizes funding for Department of Defense programs, military construction, and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2026. It sets personnel strength levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft, ships, and missiles, and extends the Pacific Deterrence Initiative. The legislation also repeals the position of Chief Diversity Officer and other diversity, equity, and inclusion provisions within the military. Introduced by Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), the bill has passed the Senate and moved to the House for consideration.
Next step: Senate floor debate continues toward a final vote.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026
This bill authorizes funding for Department of Defense programs, military construction, and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2026. It sets personnel strength levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft, ships, and missiles, and extends the Pacific Deterrence Initiative. The legislation also repeals the position of Chief Diversity Officer and other diversity, equity, and inclusion provisions within the military. Introduced by Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), the bill has passed the Senate and moved to the House for consideration.
Next step: Referred to the Senate Committee on Armed Services.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027
This bill authorizes funding and sets policy for Department of Defense programs and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2027. It mandates specific personnel levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft and ships, and creates an expedited qualification process for domestic sources of strategic materials like magnets and alloys. The legislation also directs the Department of Defense to include foreign military sales projections in its munitions and acquisition planning. Introduced by Representative Mike Rogers (R-AL), the bill passed the House in July 2026 and now awaits action in the Senate.
Next step: Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027
This bill authorizes funding and sets policy for Department of Defense programs and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2027. It mandates specific personnel levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft and ships, and creates an expedited qualification process for domestic sources of strategic materials like magnets and alloys. The legislation also directs the Department of Defense to include foreign military sales projections in its munitions and acquisition planning. Introduced by Representative Mike Rogers (R-AL), the bill passed the House in July 2026 and now awaits action in the Senate.
Next step: Awaits House floor consideration.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026
This bill authorizes funding for Department of Defense programs, military construction, and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2026. It sets personnel strength levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft, ships, and missiles, and extends the Pacific Deterrence Initiative. The legislation also repeals the position of Chief Diversity Officer and other diversity, equity, and inclusion provisions within the military. Introduced by Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), the bill has passed the Senate and moved to the House for consideration.
Next step: Sent to the House for consideration.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026
This bill authorizes funding for Department of Defense programs, military construction, and Department of Energy national security activities for fiscal year 2026. It sets personnel strength levels for active duty and reserve forces, authorizes the procurement of aircraft, ships, and missiles, and extends the Pacific Deterrence Initiative. The legislation also repeals the position of Chief Diversity Officer and other diversity, equity, and inclusion provisions within the military. Introduced by Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), the bill has passed the Senate and moved to the House for consideration.
Next step: Referred to the Senate Committee on Armed Services for consideration.
Authorization is not funding
The NDAA authorizes programs and sets policy. It does not hand out money. The actual dollars come from the defense appropriations bill, which can fund less than the NDAA authorizes.
That two-step is why a program can be 'approved by Congress' in the NDAA and still go unfunded.
How it moves
The House and Senate Armed Services committees each write a version, each chamber passes its own, and the differences are reconciled in a conference or an informally negotiated compromise text that both chambers then vote on before it goes to the President.
Amendment fights typically decide the bill's politics: abortion travel policy, diversity offices, drone and AI rules, and aid to allies have all been settled inside the NDAA rather than through separate legislation.
People also ask
What is the NDAA?
The National Defense Authorization Act is the annual bill that authorizes Defense Department programs, troop levels and the military pay raise, and sets defense policy for the coming fiscal year.
What is the military pay raise this year?
The raise is written into the current NDAA text. Tracker items on this page show the bill's status and the vote counts as each chamber acts.