{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.kaine.senate.gov/kainehailspassageofdefensebill", "Kaine Hails Final Passage of Defense Bill", "2013-12-20", "2013", "2013-12", "Democrat", "House", "VA", "Tim Kaine", "K000384", "www.kaine.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Kaine Hails Final Passage of Defense Bill\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\tKey provisions of Kaine\u2019s first piece of legislation, the Troop Talent Act, will become law\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tFriday, December 20, 2013\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, today hailed final passage of the\u00a0National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2014 \u2013 the annual defense bill that includes important provisions Kaine advocated for Virginia during committee markup of the legislation in June 2013. The measure was passed, 84-15.\r\n\u201cWith passage of the\u00a0National Defense Authorization Act of 2014, I\u2019m pleased we will be able to provide our nation\u2019s military with budget certainty to maintain readiness, and our servicemembers with the support they deserve. Together with passage of a two-year budget agreement earlier this week, this legislation is a win for Virginia, authorizing full funding for our shipyards in Hampton Roads to continue producing and repairing aircraft carriers, submarines and surface ships. It also includes 36 historic reforms\u00a0to tackle the serious and longstanding problem of sexual assault in the military.\r\n\u201cI\u2019m also proud that key provisions of the first piece of legislation I introduced, the\u00a0Troop Talent Act,\u00a0were included. Providing active duty servicemembers with the tools they need to more easily receive credentials for the skills they acquire through military training will now become law, greatly easing their transition to a civilian career. This is a small but important step to help whittle away at the unacceptably high rate of veterans\u2019 unemployment \u2013 particularly among those returning from Iraq and Afghanistan - and I remain committed to exploring all avenues to address this issue.\u201d\r\nThe following list includes many of the provisions Kaine advocated for Virginia\u2019s defense community that were included in the NDAA:\r\nTroop Talent Act Becomes Law:\u00a0\u00a0Key provisions of Kaine's first bill, the Troop Talent Act of 2013, were included in the authorization act, including the main provision that requires information\u00a0on civilian credentialing opportunities be made available to servicemembers at every stage of military training. It also requires that information on military training and experience be provided upon request to civilian credentialing agencies and other approved entities.\u00a0Kaine's amendment to enhance Department of Defense education assistance standards by requiring\u00a0that participating schools be eligible for federal funding under title IV of the Higher Education Act was also included.\u00a0This provision will ensure that DoD educational programs meet the same standards currently required for other educational federal funding, such as Pell Grants.\r\nShipbuilding and Ship Repair:\u00a0The authorization act supports our shipbuilding priorities and authorizes funding for the USS Gerald R. Ford and USS John F. Kennedy, as well as the submarine fleet. Critical readiness funds were also included for Virginia\u2019s ship repair industry.\u00a0Increased funding, coupled with passage of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 this week, will increase certainty for shipyard workers and other civilian Department of Defense employees.\u00a0\r\nIncludes Whistleblower Provisions on Sexual Assault in the Military:\u00a0\u00a0The authorization bill includes 36 provisions to enhance sexual assault prevention and response,\u00a0including provisions from the Military Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act that was introduced by Senators Warner and Kaine to help\u00a0servicemembers\u00a0report unwanted sexual contact without fear of retribution.\u00a0Kaine also supported many\u00a0additional measures\u00a0to combat sexual assault that were included in the final bill,\u00a0including the presence of a Special Victims' Counsel in each service and the requirement that any decision not to prosecute is reviewed by the service secretary.\r\nRestores Readiness to Operations and Maintenance Accounts Cut by Sequester:\u00a0\u00a0Kaine has pushed for increased readiness accounts to support ship operations and repairs, many of which are done in Hampton Roads. The bill restores $3.5 billion in critical funding in all Operations and Maintenance (O&M) accounts, which will help all service branches maintain readiness for our national security.\u00a0\r\nNo BRAC Round:\u00a0 A new Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) round is not authorized in the defense bill.\r\nReport on Long-term Impacts of Sequestration: Kaine's floor amendment requesting a GAO report on the long-term budgetary costs of sequestration was included in the authorization bill.\u00a0\r\nIncludes STEM assessment:\u00a0Kaine's floor amendment to assess Department of Defense\u00a0\u00a0Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) programs\u00a0was included in\u00a0the\u00a0authorization bill. Kaine is a longtime advocate of STEM education.\u00a0\u00a0\r\nGuantanamo: Facilitates the transfer of cleared detainees, either to their country of origin or otherwise designated overseas location.\r\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.kaine.senate.gov/kainehailspassageofdefensebill"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 4.629392176866531, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}