07.31.25

Senate Committee Approves FY 2026 Defense Appropriations Bill

 

Bill passes Committee by a vote of 26-3

 

Washington, D.C. – The Senate Committee on Appropriations today approved the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Defense Appropriations Act, providing the U.S. military services with the funding needed to deter China and Russia, support servicemembers and their families, and strengthen the defense industrial base.

 

The measure, which was advanced by a vote of 26-3, provides $851.9 billion in discretionary funding.

 

“At a time when we face numerous complex threats around the globe, this legislation makes much-needed investments in shipbuilding, expands critical munitions production, provides support for our allies, and funds drone and counter-drone technologies that are increasingly changing the battlefield. This bill also invests in the brave men and women that make up our Armed Forces, showing our continued commitment to their readiness, well-being, and mission success,” said Senator Collins, Chair of the Appropriations Committee.

 

“There is no substitute for robust, full-year defense appropriations,” said Senator Mitch McConnell, Chair of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee. “In this era of major power competition, security for future generations of Americans means steady, consistent, predictable, increasing investments in the common defense, year after year.”

 

Bill Highlights:

 

Service Members: $193.1 billion for the pay and benefits of service members and families, which fully funds both the 3.8% pay raise for all service members and the 10% additional pay raise for junior enlisted servicemembers.

 

Military Readiness: $302.8 billion for the sustainment of operations, weapons, training, and readiness activities.

 

Security Cooperation: $5.3 billion to strengthen security cooperation programs, reinforcing the strategic importance of supporting vulnerable partners as a core U.S. national security interest.

 

Procurement and Research and Development (R&D): $171.3 billion for the procurement of weapon systems and $140.5 billion for research, development, and testing of platforms.

  • Increase of $280 million for F-135 spare engines and $500 million for F-35 sustainment spare parts to address operational readiness concerns in the existing inventory.
  • Increase of $216 million for drone and counter-drone capabilities.
  • Increase of $4.6 billion for various air and missile defense efforts.
  • Increase of $5.2 billion to procure additional rounds of munitions across the services, addressing critical funding gaps for replenishment and inventories.
  • Increase of $2.1 billion for additional facilitization to expand production capacity.
  • Increase of $923 million for the Missile Defense Agency to procure additional THAAD interceptors and facilitization. The bill also includes $450 million to restore funding for the SM-3 block 1B missile, which was zeroed out in the request.
  • Increase of $111 million for Coyote interceptors, a Counter-Unmanned Aerial System.

 

Army: $29.1 billion for procurement and $15.3 billion in R&D.

  • Increase of $219.8 million for an additional 15 Abrams tanks.
  • Increase of $360 million to procure additional twelve AH-64E aircraft.
  • Increase of $65 million to support advanced procurement of UH-60 aircraft in FY 2027.
  • Increase of $25 million for Antilock Brake System/Electronic Stability Control for Army High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles (HMMWVs) to provide proven life-saving retrofits.
  • Increase of $175 million for continuation of the Improved Turbine Engine Program.

 

Navy: $70.8 billion for procurement and $27.4 billion in R&D.

  • Increase of $8.7 billion for Shipbuilding for a total of $29.3 billion in the bill, including an additional $1.3 billion for a third DDG-51 destroyer, $450 million in large surface combatant infrastructure investments, $1.9 billion to fully fund Virginia-class subs, an additional $1.3 billion for Columbia-class sub, and $2.7 billion for the submarine maritime industrial base.
  • Increase of $1.4 billion to advance the Navy’s 6th generation strike fighter program.
  • Increase of nearly $650 million to continue development of a classified program.
  • Increase of $100 million to accelerate development of Multi-Mission Affordable Capacity Effector (MACE) - an advanced, hypersonic air-to-surface missile to be employed from Navy fixed-wing aircraft.

 

Air Force: $59.8 billion in procurement and $49.3 billion in R&D.

  • Increase of $1.5 billion for eight C-130J aircraft for the Air National Guard.
  • Increase of nearly $800 million to continue a high priority classified program.
  • Increase of $619 million for two EA-37B Compass Call aircraft to expand the Air Force’s electronic attack capacity.
  • Increase of $647 million to continue the E-7 Wedgetail early warning and control and battle management mission aircraft.
  • Supports the President’s Budget Request for the Sentinel Program at $2.6 billion.

 

Space Force: $3.6 billion for procurement and $15.1 billion for R&D to address offensive space control and other space capabilities that were excluded from the request.

  • Increase of $500 million to continue development of Space Development Agency’s Tranche 3 Transport Layer.
  • Increase of $256 million in classified space control efforts to support of Space Force, U.S. Space Command, and U.S. Indo-Pacific Command priorities.
  • Increase of $55 million to continue the space-based Commercial ISR pilot focused on responsive Combatant Command tasking and an increase of $50 million to transition the Commercial procurement of tactical ISR to the Space Force and establish a program of record.

 

National Guard: $350 million for the National Guard and Reserve modernization fund to address capability gaps and equipment shortfalls and $27.5 million for the state partnership program.

 

U.S.-Israeli Missile Defense: $500 million for Israel Cooperative Programs including Iron Dome, David’s Sling, and Arrow missile defense. The bill also includes $75 million for counter-drone cooperation, $47.5 million for emerging technology cooperation, and $80 million for anti-tunneling cooperation with the State of Israel.

 

General Provisions Highlights:

  • $200 million for U.S. Africa Command and $200 million for U.S. Southern Command.
  • $1.5 billion for the Indo-Pacific Security Initiative, $800 million for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, $225 million for the Baltic Security Initiative, and increased funding for Bahrain and Jordan.
  • $1.9 billion to restore operational readiness across the military departments.

 

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