Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff is delivering key national security and quality of life upgrades for Georgia’s servicemembers, veterans, and military families.
Tonight, the U.S. Senate passed the bipartisan, bicameral National Defense Authorization Act, which includes several of Sen. Ossoff’s bipartisan bills and initiatives to strengthen national security and improve quality of life for Georgia’s servicemembers, veterans, and military families.
The bipartisan bill includes a historic 5.2% pay increase for servicemembers, the largest since 2002 and an increase over last year’s 4.6% pay raise. The bipartisan bill also authorizes key construction projects at nearly all military installations across Georgia.
“Georgians are united in our commitment to a strong national defense and in our gratitude to military servicemembers, military families, and veterans,” Sen. Ossoff said. “That’s why I’ve helped bring Republicans and Democrats together to pass this bipartisan legislation, which will strengthen our national defense and enhance quality of life.”
The bipartisan, bicameral National Defense Authorization Act now goes to the U.S. House of Representatives.
Sen. Ossoff secured inclusion of several key pieces of legislation within the NDAA to strengthen national security and enhance quality of life for Georgia’s servicemembers and military families:
- Sen. Ossoff’s Bipartisan Military Facilities Upgrades Act (Ossoff/Lankford): A key provision from Sen. Ossoff’s bipartisan bill included in the NDAA will upgrade old and failing barracks by giving the Armed Services the flexibility to use operations and maintenance (O&M) funding to replace barracks deemed to be in substandard condition.
- Sen. Ossoff’s Bipartisan Junior Enlisted Housing Affordability Act (Ossoff/Tillis): Sen. Ossoff’s bipartisan billincluded in the NDAA will help junior enlisted servicemembers with families afford housing by improving how the Department of Defense (DoD) calculates housing allowances for junior enlisted servicemembers with dependents.
- Sen. Ossoff’s Bipartisan Military Families Mental Health Services Act (Ossoff/Cramer): Sen. Ossoff’s bipartisan bill included in the NDAA will waive out-of-pocket costs for all active-duty military families on TRICARE for their first three outpatient mental health visits per year, empowering them to receive the treatment they need.
- Sen. Ossoff’s Bipartisan Military Spouse Career Support Act (Ossoff/Schmitt): Sen. Ossoff’s bipartisan bill included in the NDAA will support military spouses’ careers by expanding the reimbursement of licensure and business costs to spouses of servicemembers who are transferring to the reserve component.
- Sen. Ossoff’s Bipartisan Investing in VETS Act (Ossoff/Ernst): Sen. Ossoff’s bipartisan bill included in the NDAA will help service-disabled veteran business owners compete for Federal government contracts by requiring the Federal government and its 24 agencies to set a goal to award at least five percent of contracts each fiscal year to service-disabled Veteran-owned Small Business, which is the same requirement in place for Woman-Owned Small Businesses and Small Disadvantaged Businesses.
- Sen. Ossoff’s Fort Eisenhower Child Development Center Expansion Act (Ossoff/Warnock): Sens. Ossoff and Warnock’s bill included in the NDAA extends the authorization needed to ensure completion of a new child development center at Fort Eisenhower.
- Sen. Ossoff’s Defense Forensics Enhancement Act (Ossoff/Warnock): Sens. Ossoff and Warnock’s bill included in the NDAA extends the authorization needed to ensure completion of a new forensic laboratory at the Fort Gillem enclave.
- Sen. Ossoff’s Robins Air Force Base Battle Management Enhancement Act: Sen. Ossoff’s bill included in the NDAAauthorizes construction of a new Battle Management Operations Complex at Robins AFB, which will support new missions at the installation.
- Sen. Ossoff’s Fort Eisenhower Cyber Center Enhancement Act: Sen. Ossoff’s bill included in the NDAA authorizes construction of new classrooms at the Cyber Center of Excellence at Fort Eisenhower.
- Bipartisan COMFORT Act (Sens. Ossoff, Sinema, Sullivan, Shaheen): Sen. Ossoff’s bipartisan bill with Sens. Sinema, Sullivan and Shaheen included in the NDAA will help military families access counseling services by authorizing nonmedical military family and life counselors to practice at any military installation regardless of their state of licensure.
Sen. Ossoff also secured inclusion of several key authorizations for projects on nearly all of Georgia’s major installations (please note these are authorizations — funding for these projects must be included in future government appropriations bills):
| Installation | Project | Authorized Amount |
| Fort Eisenhower | Cyber Instructional Facility Classrooms | $73,000,000 |
| Fort Eisenhower | Privatized Housing Equity Investment | $50,000,000 |
| Camp Merrill | AST Barracks Planning and Design | $1,320,000 |
| Fort Moore | Dexter Elementary School Planning and Design | $500,000 |
| Hunter Army Airfield/Fort Stewart | GSAB Hangar Planning and Design | $6,400,000 |
| Hunter Army Airfield/Fort Stewart | Military Intelligence Battalion Hangar Planning and Design | $2,220,000 |
| MCLB Albany | Consolidated Communications Facility | $64,000,000 |
| MCLB Albany | Army Reserve Center | $40,000,000 |
| Robins Air Force Base | Battle Management Operations Complex | $35,000,000 |
| NSB Kings Bay | Electrical Transmission Improvements | $49,500,000 |
| Dobbins Air Reserve Base | Security Forces Facility | $22,000,000 |
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