Stansbury Secures Over $9 Million for New Mexico, Votes to Raise Servicemember Pay in Defense Bill

WASHINGTON—Today, U.S. Representative Melanie Stansbury (N.M.-01) secured $9.1 million to build two new mission headquarter facilities at Kirtland Air Force Base. The funding will sustain the New Mexico base’s strong contributions to national security and benefit economic growth throughout the First Congressional District. Rep. Stansbury voted for the provisions and a 4.6% pay raise for servicemembers as part of the Fiscal Year 2023 National Defense Authorization Act that passed the House this evening.

Rep. Stansbury secured $9.1 million to build new headquarters facilities for the Space Rapid Capabilities Office (SPRCO) and the Joint Navigation Warfare Center (JNWC) at Kirtland. The funds for the SPRCO facility will support the new office’s mission to rapidly develop and field classified space capabilities at Kirtland AFB. The JNWC facility will support an increase of over 120 new personnel as the office carries out additional missions.

“From our servicemembers at Kirtland to scientists at Sandia Labs and AFRL, New Mexicans play a vital role in serving our country and national security,” said Rep. Stansbury. “This year, I’m proud to have secured investments in key facility investments so that Kirtland Air Force Base can continue to be a leader in national security. This National Defense Authorization Act provides a pay raise to our hardworking civilian Department of Defense employees, invests in the health and well-being of our servicemembers and their families, and raises the minimum wage for all employees and contractors.”  

Rep. Stansbury also voted to pass critical provisions in the Fiscal Year 2023 National Defense Authorization Act for New Mexico including:

• A 4.6% pay raise for service members and civilians, in addition to supporting inflation bonuses for many service members and civilians
• A $15 minimum wage for workers on federal service and construction contracts
• A 20% increase in basic research funding, strengthening the pipeline of future innovation
• An extension of National Guard support for the Fireguard program until 2029.
• Additional behavioral health providers

The FY2023 NDAA also:

Supports Military Service Members and Families

• Adds $750 million for commissary to help reduce costs.
• Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH): Adds funds to decrease BAH reduction by 2% and requires a report on a more transparent, fair, and flexible way to calculate the basic allowance for housing.
• Creates a victims compensation fund to ensure survivors of interpersonal crimes have the financial resources they need for financial assistance, safe housing, and any property damage that may have occurred as a result of the crime.
• Child care: Requires the Secretary of Defense to complete a pay study and adjust the pay of child development center employees as compared to similarly trained and qualified public elementary school employees.
• Spouse change of station reimbursement: Authorizes financial reimbursement for moving expenses for spouses with home businesses.
• Access to behavioral health: The bill includes several provisions that would:
  • Increase opportunities to grow the number of available behavioral health providers.
  • Require analysis of the number of providers needed to support care delivered at military treatment facilities and embedded in operational units.
  • Establish a program to better train civilian behavioral health providers to meet the unique challenges of service members and their families.
  • Expand license portability for providers delivering non-medical counseling.
  • Require GAO to review whether TRICARE conforms with the requirements of certain mental health parity laws.

Supports Addressing Issues Related to Wildfires

• Extends the National Guard support for the Fireguard program until 2029.
• Requires the DoD to reimburse states, post-enactment, for any firefighting costs related to wildfires started on lands controlled by the DoD.
• Allows the DoD to transfer aircraft to other departments for the purposes of aiding search and rescue operations or emergency operations related to wildfires.
• Adds the “National Interagency Fire Center” to the list of agencies that the National Guard should consult with during wildfire training 

Accelerates Innovation Across the Science and Technology Ecosystem

• Authorizes a 20 percent increase in basic research funding, strengthening the pipeline of future innovation.
• Authorizes $500 million to create a new class of biomanufacturing capabilities and facilities, providing a crucial capability to transition products successfully proven in the lab to commercial scale.
• Authorizes an additional $100 million to strengthen the domestic supply chain for critical elements of microelectronics production.

Continues Efforts to Address PFAS and PFOA Contamination

• Requires the DoD to send a list of essential uses for PFAS. Also requires the DoD to report on its progress in minimizing the use of certain non-essential PFOS and PFOA containing items.
• Requires the DoD to implement Comptroller General recommendations to set goals for the timely clean-up of formerly used defense sites that fall under the military munitions response program.
• Modifies a prize program created in the FY21 NDAA created to incentivize private sector development of AFFF alternatives to include research on PFAS-free personal protective firefighting equipment.
• Requires the DoD to adhere to the strictest relevant standard (state or federal) when conducting environmental remediation of PFAS contamination.
• Expands the list of non-essential items containing PFAS that DoD is prohibited from procuring for use within the DoD.

Supports Europe and Ukraine’s Capabilities to Counter Russia

• Fully funds the European Deterrence Initiative (EDI) budget request and invests in additional capabilities that support deterrence in the European Command area of operations, totaling $4.6 billion for EDI purposes.
• Includes $1 billion for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), which provides support and assistance to the Ukrainian Armed Forces — an increase of $700 million above the budget request. Harmonizes USAI statutory authorities with changes made in the Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2022, and the Additional Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2022, and allows for the replenishment of stocks of comparable ally and partner equipment provided to Ukraine.
• Expresses the Sense of Congress in strong support of U.S. commitments to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) alliance and European partners.
• Supports enhanced forward U.S. and allied posture to adapt to the new security environment created by Russia’s unprovoked further invasion of Ukraine.
• Combating reliance on Russian energy: Requires all main operating bases in the U.S. European Command area of responsibility to adopt installation energy plans to increase energy resiliency and sustainability in order to reduce reliance on Russian energy and sets a DoD goal of eliminating their use of Russian energy entirely.

Supports and Empowers HBCUs and Other Minority Serving Institutions

• Triples funding for HBCUs, to over $111 million.
• Requires the DoD to submit a report on actions that may be carried out to increase the participation of minority-serving institutions in the research, development, test, and evaluation activities of the DoD following the release of the National Academies study on defense research capacity at HBCUs and other minority serving institutions.
• Establishes the Dellums Fellowship Program to provide scholarships and internships for eligible students, particularly women of color, with high potential talent in science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics.
• Establishes a pilot program to increase research capacity at HBCUs and other minority serving institutions and implements a minority institution subcontracting requirement for UARCs.