The Fiscal Year 2022 National Defense Authorization Budget Request from the Department of Defense
Full House Armed Services Committee
June 23, 2021 at 10:00 AM ET
Witnesses:
- The Honorable Lloyd J. Austin III
Secretary of Defense
U.S. Department of Defense - General Mark A. Milley
Chairman
Joint Chiefs of Staff
The Biden-Harris Administration Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 Budget requests $752.9 billion for national defense, of which $715 billion will be allocated to the Department of Defense (DOD). The FY22 Defense Budget showcases an $11.3 billion increase from the FY 2021 budget.
The FY 2022 budget includes funding for addressing advanced and persistent threats, including China as a pacing threat and combatting other threats, like Russia, Iran, North Korea, as well as transnational and non-state actors. Taking care of our service members, combatting climate change, and defeating Covid-19 are amongst the other prioritized programs.
According to Secretary of Defense Austin, “President Biden’s FY 2022 Defense Budget meets this commitment with critical investments to help us match resources to strategy, strategy to policy, and policy to the will of the American people… this budget invests in our people, the brave women and men in uniform around the world who serve on behalf of this great nation.”
General Milley also supported the FY 2022 Budget by noting it as a balanced “a down payment on investments of the future.”
The U.S. military is full of men and women who volunteer to serve and protect the United States, its constitution, and its citizens. In order to remain a global power, the U.S. must serve and protect our service members and their families as well. In this sense, the FY 2022 budget aims to do so by increasing pay by 2.7% to military and civilian personnel, increasing Basic Allowance for Housing by 3.1%, and increasing Balance for Allowance for Subsistence by 2.3%. Funding would lead to affordable childcare for children of military personnel, the founding of the Defense Center of Excellence for Sexual Assault Prevention, Response, Education, and Training, and the addressing of “extremism” in ranks. Secretary of Defense Austin stated he will meet with President Biden in the coming weeks to share his recommendation of removing prosecution of sexual assault and related crimes from the military chain of command.
For a recording of the full committee hearing, please visit the House Armed Services hearings calendar.