U.S. Senator Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) released the below statement today following the passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) this afternoon. The bill will now head to the President's desk for his signature.
"This will help Boeing create jobs to build new Growler airplanes at their nearby plant, which already employs more than 2,000 Illinois workers," Senator Kirk said. "This funding ensures that more jobs are created for Illinois while also keeping open the EA-18G construction line at Boeing so that our military can continue to utilize these critical airliners."
Included in this year's NDAA is an additional $450 million authorized for the construction of new EA-18G Growler planes, which will be manufactured at the Boeing plant just outside of Illinois in St. Louis, Missouri. The Boeing plant employs thousands of workers, including 2,000 workers from Illinois. The Growlers provide jamming capability to enemy air and ground forces in all branches of the military. The increased construction of these planes will boost the need for jobs in Southern and Central Illinois, and will ensure the continuation of the EA-18G line, which is under threat of closure by 2016 if the construction of additional planes are not authorized. Additionally, $26 million was included for a new Army Reserve Center for the 85th Support Command located in Arlington Heights.
The NDAA also includes an amendment by Senator Kirk to renew the requirement for the Department of Defense (DoD) to submit annual unclassified reports to Congress on the Islamic Republic of Iran's military threats to the United States, Israel, and our other allies. With this DoD reporting requirement on Iran's military threats set to expire in December 2014, the Kirk amendment would extend it for two more years. As Iranian nuclear negotiations continue, the Kirk amendment will ensure that Congress and the American people have the full scope of publicly-available information to better understand Iran's growing nuclear, terror, and other military threats.
The bill also authorizes $1.6 billion over two years to equip and train Iraqi State Forces in the fight against ISIS. Though the Iraqi government will cover 40% of this cost, fighting terror with additional forces in the Middle East will help the United States on the path to eliminating the threat that is ISIS. Another $349 million was authorized for U.S.-Israeli missile defense cooperation, which is critical to defending both countries against acts of terrorism. Earlier this year, Senator Kirk announced that $351 million had been secured for the Iron Dome system in Israel that has proved successful in protecting the people of Israel by intercepting short-range rockets and missiles from Gaza.
Also included in NDAA is language that would authorize a special resource study to determine the feasibility of designating New Philadelphia as a unit of the National Park System.
"As the first town in America founded by a freed slave, New Philadelphia represents all of the promise and freedom that our nation and state have to offer," Senator Kirk said. "I am honored to have introduced this legislation with my colleague Senator Dick Durbin and Congressman Aaron Schock in order to boost tourism in Western Illinois and to bring New Philadelphia one step closer to being designated as a unit of the National Park System."
New Philadelphia is the first town in America founded and built Frank McWorter, a freed slave. In 2012, national park visitors contributed more than $30 billion to local economies and supported more than 250,000 jobs. If designated, the history of the site will be adequately preserved and enjoyed for generations to come.