National Defense Authorization Act

Senator Lisa Murkowski was pleased to see S. 3254, the National Defense Authorization Act for FY13 pass unanimously in the Senate. The bill includes key provisions for Alaska’s military statewide and delivers an extra year of stability to Eielson Air Force Base.

A key amendment proposed by Senator Murkowski that was included in the final bill would delay for a year any structure movement (like the F-16 Aggressor Squadron transfer from Eielson to Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson being considered by the U.S. Air Force). Before the vote, Senator Murkowski spoke about her amendment on the Senate floor, mentioning that her amendment will force the Air Force to do their homework and let her continue to make her case on behalf of Alaskans. Click the photo below to view her speech.

The amendment (Murkowski amendment #3135) essentially scratched the previous deadline for a newly-created “National Commission for the Structure of the Air Force” from March 31, 2013 and extended it to March 31, 2014 – adding an extra year at least for the F-16s to be on the ground in Interior Alaska. Senator Murkowski believes that one year could mean a lot to the Fairbanks community and give the Air Force more time to see the flaws in their original proposal.

The Defense Authorization bill now heads to a Conference Committee with the House of Representatives. Other Alaska related items included in the Senate bill being discussed:

  • Pay Raise: Members of the military will see a 1.7 percent pay raise for the next year
  • Fort Greely Operations: Continued operations at the Ground Based Missile Defense system at Fort Greely – placing a high priority on correcting past technical issues with the system.
  • Military Construction: $18.3 million slotted for two Alaskan Army program projects: Modified Record Fire Ranges for Fort Richardson and Fort Wainwright.
  • Easier Adoption of Retired Service Dogs: Allows for streamlined adoption of Military Working Dogs (MWDs) – the canines who smell out for dangerous improvised explosive devices in war-torn regions – upon returning back to America.