Himes Votes to Pass National Defense Authorization Act

Press Release

Today, The House of Representatives passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) by a vote of 329-101. The bill funds defense and related programs and is one of the largest pieces of legislation that Congress passes each year. This year, the bill includes $839.3 billion in discretionary spending for our national defense for Fiscal Year 2023.

"The National Defense Authorization Act is an essential investment in our country's strength at home and abroad," said Rep. Himes, "The funding we approved today will drive technological innovation, support our service members and their families, strengthen our counter-terrorism efforts, and more. This bill equips the United States with the necessary resources to defend against present and future threats to our national security."

Himes sponsored 3 amendments that were included in the final bill, including one that would establish an unambiguous statutory prohibition on insider trading.

"The Insider Trading Amendment is the culmination of years of collaboration with lawmakers from both sides of the aisle, legal experts, and regulatory agencies," said Rep. Himes. "By clarifying and codifying the caselaw previously established by the courts, this legislation will eliminate ambiguity and finally provide a statutory prohibition on insider trading."

The Insider Trading Amendment:

Makes it unlawful for a person to trade while aware of material, non-public information if that person knows, or recklessly disregards, that the information was obtained wrongfully, or that making that trade would constitute a wrongful use of that inside information.
Prohibits those with material, nonpublic information from passing along that information to others, or tipping them, if it's reasonably foreseeable that the recipient of the information will trade on that information or pass it along to others who will.
The other two amendments would give the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network more tools to pursue financial crimes operating outside of the traditional banking system and require a report with recommendations to establish a Task Force to monitor defense articles and services going to Ukraine.

The NDAA also includes provisions to support a diverse and talented military and civilian workforce and to invest in the United States' future defense capabilities. These include:

Key pay increases for service members and their families, including a 4.6% pay raise for service members and civilian personnel, 2.4% inflation bonuses for service members earning less than $45,000/year and a $15/hour minimum wage for workers on federal service and construction contracts.
New investments in science and technology competitiveness, including $275 million in additional funding for next-generation capabilities in hypersonics, electronic warfare, artificial intelligence, and software.
Supply chain security, including an assessment of dual-use technology that the Chinese Communist Party might exploit and improving risk management in DoD supply chains involving pharmaceutical products.
Resources for U.S. allies and partners, including $1 billion for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) and funding for the European Deterrence Initiative and Pacific Deterrence Initiative.
Counter-Terrorism support, including the extension of DoD authority to better collaborate with our international partners, and an increase in authorized funding.

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