Rep. Kirkpatrick Secures Significant AZ Defense Priority Funding Victories in FY2022 Appropriations Legislation

Press Release

(Tucson, AZ) -- Rep. Kirkpatrick announces massive funding victories from the fiscal year 2022 Defense bill on a 33-23 vote.

For 2022, the bill provides funding of $705.939 billion, a modest 1.4 percent increase over the current budget for 2021. This increase reflects President Biden's budget request and has been endorsed by the Secretary of Defense. In total, the bill provides $706.453 billion in discretionary and mandatory funding.

Rep. Kirkpatrick secured funding aligned with her priorities of maintaining a strong defense industry in Arizona, and supporting military families. The legislation:

Allocates $75 million increase for Air Force Environmental Restoration Funding which will help support on-going actions at the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base and Morris Air National Guard Base
Allocates $581 million for further development of the Air Force's Long Range Standoff Weapon (LRSO), the work for which is done in Tucson
Provides $17.3 million to procure additional Tomahawk missiles, which directly supports more than 200 jobs in the Tucson area
Secures $8 million for the research on the manufacturing of high temperature hypersonic materials. Arizona's universities lead the nation in hypersonic research, and this additional funding will accelerate their ability to support national defense programs
Provides $91.2 million for further development and procurement of the EC-37B Compass Call Cross-Deck, which will replace the EC-130H Compass at the Davis Monthan Air Force Base
Funds pediatric, adolescent, and young adult cancer research in the $115 million DoD Peer-Reviewed Cancer Research Program, supporting active military members diagnosed with cancer
Stipulates $155 million for the Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) program to bolster land and wildlife conservation activities on land buffering military installations
"As a member of the House Appropriations Committee on Defense, I work tirelessly to deliver for my constituents, over 60,000 of whom are employed by our Southern Arizona defense industry," said Rep. Kirkpatrick. "This bill provides our servicemembers with the resources they need to defend our nation now and in the future. I am happy to see the bill address the growing issue of PFAS/PFOA contamination in our communities, fund vital cancer research, and support multiple stakeholders within our district."

In addition to Rep. Kirkpatrick's priorities stipulated above, the legislation:

Protects our national security, preserves our domestic advanced manufacturing base to support jobs and economic growth, and invests heavily in research and development with funding recommended by the Secretary of Defense
Supports working families by providing a 2.7 percent pay raise to all 2.1 million uniformed U.S. service members and approximately 750,000 civilian Defense Department employees, and by requiring contractors to pay a $15 per hour minimum wage
Closes the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, eliminates the Overseas Contingency Operations budget gimmick, and limits United States involvement in Yemen
Promotes democracy by countering China with strong funding to protect a free and open Indo-Pacific
Provides for the transport and safe passage of Afghans who have provided faithful and valuable service to the United States and who are under serious threat
Confronts the climate crisis with historic investments for clean energy and climate adaptation to protect facilities, readiness, and global security
Addresses gender-based violence with funding to tackle sexual assault in the military and directs DoD to address extremist ideologies, including white supremacy.
"Democrats have landed on a responsible funding level for the Department of Defense that maintains a strong national security posture today, while making important investments in modernization that will make us even stronger in the years to come," said Defense Chair Betty McCollum (D-MN). "Across the country, millions of jobs are funded by this bill. These are jobs in all Congressional Districts -- union jobs in industry, manufacturing, small businesses, as well as jobs in scientific research and academia. Whether in cyber, or advanced manufacturing, or clean energy or climate change -- this bill will support a high-tech, high skilled workforce of the future. To be clear: this bill is about people, it is about quality of life, it is about American jobs, and it is about America's leadership role in the world."

"The Defense Appropriations bill provides resources requested by the Secretary of Defense to protect our national security. The funding in this bill will help counter threats from the People's Republic of China, Russia, and others. It will also address the existential threat of climate change," Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) said. "As it protects our nation, this bill honors the soldiers and civilians who serve and support our nation's military by providing for them and their families. It sustains and advances our industrial base, supporting millions of good-paying jobs across America. And it will advance our military's quality of life, including with strong funding to combat sexual assault in the military, a serious and pervasive problem that for too long has been overlooked by the Pentagon."

The following amendments to the bill were adopted by the full Committee:

Rep. McCollum -- The manager's amendment makes technical and noncontroversial changes to the bill and report. The amendment was adopted by voice vote.

Rep. Lee #1 -- This amendment repeals the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force. The amendment was adopted by voice vote.

Rep. Lee #2 -- This amendment repeals the 2002 Authorization for Use of Military Force. The amendment was adopted by voice vote.

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