{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.budd.senate.gov/2026/06/16/budd-secures-landmark-ndaa-provisions-to-strengthen-military-airpower-and-enhance-u-s-counterterrorism-operations/", "Budd Secures Landmark NDAA Provisions to Strengthen Military Airpower and Enhance U.S. Counterterrorism Operations", "2026-06-16", "2026", "2026-06", "Republican", "Senate", "NC", "Ted Budd", "B001305", "www.budd.senate.gov", "budd", "https://www.budd.senate.gov/category/news/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 U.S. Senator Ted Budd (R-N.C.), member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), released the following statement after voting in favor of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) in committee markup. During the markup process, Senator Budd secured 49 provisions that have advanced to the Senate Floor.\n\n\u201cInvesting in our national defense not only ensures our military remains the most lethal fighting force in the world but also drives economic growth and strengthens American manufacturing competitiveness. I am proud that North Carolina leads the nation in military readiness as the strategic hub for several of our nation\u2019s largest military installations while also serving as a reliable center for defense manufacturing.\n\n\u201cAs the Senator representing Seymour Johnson Air Force Base and Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, I led several provisions focused on rebuilding our defense industrial base to maintain air superiority and preserve American airpower in modern warfare to compete with China. I also fought to secure the funding needed for military construction projects at installations across the state, ensuring our men and women in uniform who come through North Carolina have the best environments to live, work, and train. We\u2019ve also prioritized strategic funding for counterterrorism efforts in the Middle East, which will bolster defense cooperation with key allies. Above all, this historic NDAA puts our national security first by making critical investments in the men and women who wear our nation\u2019s uniform and helping to build the capabilities needed to defend the homeland against evolving threats,\u201d said Senator Budd.\n\nBelow is a summary of the provisions Senator Budd championed in the recent SASC committee markup that the full Senate will consider in the coming weeks:\n\nPreserving American Military Airpower Dominance:\n\nThe FY 2027 NDAA includes Budd-led provisions to enhance military airpower by expanding fighter aircraft production, providing financial stability to the defense industrial base, saving taxpayer dollars, recapitalizing aging aircraft with modern fighters, and retaining mid-career Air Force aviators. The package specifically includes provisions from his Airpower Acceleration Act, the Retention Enhancements for Tactical Aircrew Initiative (RETAIN) Act, and the Fighter Aircrew Career Flexibility Act, which Budd led alongside Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), introduced in April 2026.\n\nAuthorizing Multi-Year Procurement for F-35 and F-15EX Aircraft (Airpower Acceleration Act)\n\nRequiring the Air Force to Increase the Total Inventory of Fighter Aircraft (Airpower Acceleration Act)\n\nAuthorizing an $8.7M Increase in Funding for Air Force Officer Incentive Pay\n\nAuthorizing a $10M Increase in Annual Pilot Bonuses to Retain Pilots (RETAIN Act)\n\nRequiring the Secretary of the Air Force to Allow Pilots Consecutive Assignments at the Same Duty Location and the Opportunity to Perform Non-Flying Assignments Without Requiring Relocation (RETAIN Act)\n\nEstablishing a One-Time Career Intermission Program for Fighter Pilots and Weapon Systems Officers (4-12 Month Duration) to Help Boost Aviator Retention (Fighter Aircrew Career Flexibility Act)\n\nAuthorizing $7.2B in Funding for Air Force Flying Hour Program for Aircraft Sustainment\n\nAuthorizing $6.1B in Funding for Aircraft Modernization Upgrades Through Air Force Programmed Depot Maintenance\n\nEnsuring Robust Funding for F-35 Procurement, Sustainment, and Modernization\n\nDirecting a Report on How to Increase Availability Rates of Air Force Aircraft\n\nRequiring a Marine Corps Briefing on the Aviation Plan at U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point to Provide Oversight on F-35 Basing\n\nRequiring a Report on the F-15EX Formal Training Unit \u2013 Highlighting the Need for F-15EX Fighter Jets at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base\n\nRequiring a Briefing from the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps on Collaborative Combat Aircraft Development\n\nRequiring the Air Force to have a Plan on Long-Term Air Mobility, Including Next-Generation Airlift\n\nRequiring a Feasibility Study to Increase the U.S. Air Force Academy Cadet Class Size\n\nRequiring a Joint Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps Briefing on Improving Compatibility Between Munitions and Tactical Aircraft Control Software\n\nDelivering for North Carolina Military Installations:\n\nThe FY 2027 NDAA authorizes $651M for military construction projects, which includes funding for planning and design at facilities across North Carolina. Senator Budd successfully worked to include authorizing provisions to support the following facilities, programs, and units:\n\nSeymour Johnson Air Force Base\n\nAuthorizing $13M in Funding for the Aircrew Readiness Facility\n\nFort Bragg\n\nAuthorizing $50M in Funding for the Special Operations Forces (SOF) Operational Training Facility\n\nAuthorizing $31M in Funding to Complete the Aircraft Maintenance Hangar\n\nAuthorizing $54M in Design Funding for the XVIII Airborne Corps New Headquarters at the Joint Deployment Warfighting Complex\n\nCamp Lejeune\n\nAuthorizing $15.4M in Funding for the Ammunition Supply Point Upgrade Phase II\n\nAuthorizing $30M in Funding for the Combat Water Survival Training Facility\n\nAuthorizing $77.5M in Funding for the 10th Marines Operational Complex\n\nAuthorizing $72M in Funding for the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC) SOF Operational Support Facility\n\nAuthorizing $80M in Funding for the SOF Marine Raider Battalion Operations Facility\n\nApproving Report on Hospital Operating Room Closures\n\nMarine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Cherry Point\n\nAuthorizing $11.5M in Design Funding for the 2d Low Altitude Air Defense (LAAD) Maintenance and Operations Facilities\n\nAuthorizing $17.9M in Funding to Complete the CH-53K Gearbox Repair and Test Facility\n\nAuthorizing $47.5M in Funding to Complete the Aircraft Maintenance Hangar\n\nAuthorizing $89.1M in Funding for the F-35 Aircraft Sustainment Center\n\nAuthorizing $62.5M in Funding for the Maintenance Facility and Marine Air Group Headquarters\n\nProtecting Our Homeland & Standing With Our Allies\n\nThe FY 2027 NDAA includes several Budd-led provisions focused on advancing cooperation and strengthening defense capabilities with our allies to keep U.S. national security front and center. This package specifically includes the bipartisan United States-Israel Framework for Upgraded Technologies, Unified Research, and Enhanced Security (FUTURES) Act that Budd led alongside Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), introduced in February 2026. This provision expands cooperation between the United States and Israel on critical and emerging defense technologies, directly benefiting U.S. national security here at home. Similar programs have historically delivered a high return on investment for taxpayers.\n\nAuthorizing $300M in U.S.-Israel Missile Defense Cooperation\n\nCodifying the Abraham Accords Defense Cooperation Act to Expand Defense Cooperation Between the U.S. and our Middle East Partners such as Israel, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE)\n\nExtending Reporting Requirements for the China Military Power Report\n\nReviewing the Impact of Foreign Military Sales Delays to Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, and the Philippines\n\nRequiring the Pentagon to Develop a Strategy to Advance U.S. Interests Across the Western Hemisphere\n\nBanning the DoD from Procuring, Obtaining, or Using Chinese Optical Fiber in Information Networks or Communication Systems\n\nPrioritizing Counterterrorism\n\nConditioning Defense Support to the Syrian Government on Its Efforts to Disarm All Foreign Fighters and Jihadists Who Remain in Syria\n\nProtecting Security Assistance Funding for Kurdish Peshmerga Forces\n\nRequiring Iraq to Certify that it is Preventing Iranian Influence and Protecting Kurds to Receive Funds\n\nRecognizing the Critical Role Kurdish Forces Played in Defeating ISIS\n\nProhibiting the Transfer of Detainees from Naval Station Guantanamo Bay to the U.S.\n\nProhibiting Funding to Construct Facilities Within the U.S. for Transferring Detainees from Naval Station Guantanamo Bay\n\nProhibiting the Transfer of Detainees from Naval Station Guantanamo Bay to Other Countries\n\nProhibiting the Closing or Relinquishing of Control of Naval Station Guantanamo Bay\n\nAuthorizing $303M in Funding for Counter-ISIS Train and Equip Fund\n\nAuthorizing $100M in Funding for U.S.-Israel Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems (C-UAS) Cooperation\n\nAuthorizing $100M in Funding for U.S.-Israel Subterranean Operations Cooperation\n\nDirecting the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy and the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) to Produce a Briefing on Increasing the Effectiveness of the Mission in Somalia Against Al-Qaeda-Affiliated Organizations\n\nInvesting in National Security Technology Advancements\n\nAuthorizing $5M in funding for Defense Innovation Unit OnRamp Hub Geographic Expansion\n\nAuthorizing $5M for Army Pathfinder Airborne\n\nExtending Funding Authorizations to 2038 for the Office of Strategic Capital to Invest in Critical Supply Chains\n\nRequiring a Plan for the Development of Quantum Computing\n\nDirecting a Comptroller General Review of Military Services\u2019 Software Factories to Ensure Compliance with Policy\n\nRequiring a Comptroller General Review of the Authority-to-Operate (ATO) Process and Policy to Streamline Reciprocity for Software Companies\n\nAdvancing development of Nuclear Microreactors for Base Energy Resilience\n\nRequiring the Army to Initiate a Competition for Radar Solutions for the Low, Slow, Small Unmanned Aircraft Integrated Defeat System (LIDS)\n\nStrengthening Military Readiness, Lethality, and Mobility\n\nAuthorizing Multi-Year Procurement for the Army Infantry Squad Vehicle\n\nRequiring a DoD Plan to Scale and Diversify Affordable, Mass Producible Munitions\n\nAuthorizing $35M in Funding for the Army Heavy Dump Truck\n\nDirecting an Army Roadmap for Mass Production of Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS)\n\nRequiring All Military Branches to Establish a Human Performance Strategy to Identify Requirements and Policies to Optimize Human Performance Technology and Services\n\nDirecting the Army to Provide a Briefing on the Feasibility of Constructing a New Cargo Pier at U.S. Army Garrison \u2013 Kwajalein Atoll\n\nSupporting the Security and Well-Being of Special Operations Forces\n\nRestricting the Disclosure of Special Operator Names in DoD Public Announcements\n\nAllowing the Military to Use Animals in Medical Trauma Training\n\nEnhancing the Preservation of the Force and Family (POTFF) Program for Special Operators and Their Families\n\nDirecting the Secretary of the Navy to Provide a Plan Addressing Personnel Shortages at Marine Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC)\n\nTaking Care of Our Warfighters and Their Families\n\nRequiring a Plan to Scale and Expedite the Fielding of Shelf-Stable Blood Products for Combat Casualty Care\n\nAuthorizing Services to Pay for the Shipment of Multiple Vehicles During Permanent Change of Station Moves to Ease Financial Burden for Military Families\n\nRead the full bill text HERE.\n\nBACKGROUND\n\nThe NDAA establishes funding levels and authorities for the U.S. military and other critical defense priorities, ensuring America\u2019s armed forces have the training, equipment, and resources necessary to fulfill their missions.\n\nFor the Senate Armed Services Committee executive summary of the FY27 NDAA, click HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-06-17T06:49:24Z", "2026-06-17T06:50:53Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", 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