{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.portman.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=DA2C2463-E18C-477C-9D1C-637C8061AE5D", "Portman and Brown Announce Funding for Military Construction, Research Programs at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Has Been Signed Into Law", "2016-12-23", "2016", "2016-12", "Republican", "House", "OH", "Rob Portman", "P000449", "www.portman.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013U.S. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) announced that the Fiscal Year 2017\u00a0National Defense Authorization Act\u00a0(NDAA) signed into law today by the president authorizes $12.6 million to consolidate the operations of two active Entry Control Points (ECPs) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB). This consolidation will improve security and traffic flow at the base. The NDAA also authorizes $14.4 million for facilities upgrades, equipment installation, and other projects that increase energy efficiency and approximately $1.1 billion for Air Force Research and Development projects and programs run out of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) at WPAFB.\r\n\u201cKeeping Ohio\u2019s aerospace industry strong and competitive is critical not only to our state\u2019s economy, but to the national security of the United States,\u201d Portman said. \u201cThis legislation\u2014now law\u2014will ensure that the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base remains a national leader in delivering world-class national security capabilities to our men and women in uniform by providing resources to help protect and improve the base.\u201d\r\n\u201cWright-Patterson Air Force Base is critical to our nation\u2019s military and to southwest Ohio\u2019s economy,\u201d Brown said. \u201cThis law is an important step in ensuring that Wright-Patterson has the funding needed to upgrade its facility, enhance safety, and bolster the important research being done on base. We will continue working with our Senate colleagues to maintain our commitment to Wright-Patterson.\u201d\r\nNOTE: Senator Portman has long been an advocate for strengthening the research and development capabilities at WPAFB and solidifying its reputation as a national leader in aerospace and defense research, development, and education. In the FY 2016 NDAA, Portman and Congressman Mike Turner (OH-10) secured a provision\u00a0 to expand the Air Force Institute of Technology\u2019s (AFIT) authority to enroll defense industry civilians in AFIT. The provision is already strengthening AFIT by bringing in the best and brightest in the defense industry to Dayton. In the FY 2015 NDAA, Senator Portman and Rep. Turner secured language\u00a0increasing AFRL hiring authority to hire science, technology, engineering, and math bachelor\u2019s and master\u2019s degree students directly into the lab.\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.portman.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=DA2C2463-E18C-477C-9D1C-637C8061AE5D"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8105109445750713, "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"}