What Is In or Not In the $900B Defense Spending Bill

The $900 billion NDAA defense bill includes $400 million in 2026 and 2027 for a total of $800 million for Ukraine. There will be no oversight as usual. The bill does not cut climate funding or all DEI.

This is NOT in the bill:

• It permanently repeals all existing Defense Department diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) offices, programs, training, and activities, as well as future DEI-related endeavors.

• It cuts climate change-related programs at the Defense Department.

Some of the NDAA’s major highlights are as follows:

• A 3.8% pay raise for all military servicemembers, in addition to reauthorizing and expanding military bonuses and special pays; increases family separation allowance for deployed servicemembers; and requires a study to improve the calculation of Basic Allowance for Housing to ensure it keeps up with rising rental costs.

• $400 million for Ukraine security assistance.

• It extends the Pacific Deterrence Initiative (PDI) to improve U.S. posture in the Indo-Pacific region, including funding increases for new technologies needed to deter China, such as hypersonic missiles, AI, autonomous systems, cyber, mobile micronuclear reactors, and high energy lasers. That includes over $2.7 billion in essential military construction projects and expands in that region.

• Full funding ($1 billion) towards the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative.

• $1.5 billion in new security assistance for the Philippines.

• It formally establishes and authorizes $175 million for the Baltic Security Initiative to strengthen the defensive capability and interoperability of the Baltic states.

• Full funding for the deployment of National Guard and active-duty troops in support of border patrol at the United States’ southwest border, including over $1 billion to fight drug trafficking ($398 million for Defense Department support of counter-narcotics operations and $216 million for National Guard counter-drug programs—$100 million over the budget request).

• Reforms to military construction that costs 35% more on average than commercial construction, including accelerating construction and reducing costs by granting military departments multiyear contracting authority and authorizing the use of accelerated design-build and progressive design-build contracting methods to cut costs and speed up projects.

• Oversight of Defense Department spending by way of fully funding the department’s Inspector General audit activities and requiring the department to submit quarterly reports to Congress on the status of balances and activities of funds previously approved within the One Big Beautiful Bill Act earlier this year.

• More than $131 million for the construction of new military dining facilities and over $1.5 billion for new construction of barracks and family housing.

• More than $335 million to renovate military hospitals and build new medical facilities, which includes better access to specialty care by lowering the threshold for travel reimbursement for medical appointments from 100 to 75 miles.

• More than $491 million to design and build new childcare centers, including annual reviews of childcare costs and a pilot program to increase childcare financial assistance in high-cost areas.

• More than $206 million to build new schools for children of servicemembers and allows National Guard and reserve members called to active duty to enroll their children in Defense Department schools. It also authorizes $50 million in Impact Aid assistance to public schools with military dependent students, and an additional $20 million in assistance to local schools teaching children with severe disabilities.

• It extends military recruitment bonuses.

• It prohibits the retirement of certain F-15E, A-10, C-130, E-3, RQ-4, and Grey Eagle aircraft, as well as the closure of the E-7A Wedgetail production line.

• $26 billion in shipbuilding funding for the construction and support of numerous vessels including the third Columbia-class Ballistic Missile Submarine, one Virginia-class Submarine, one anti-submarine warfare auxiliary ship, and future procurements.

• More than $38 billion for the development, procurement or modification of aircraft including full funding for the U.S. Air Force’s F-47 and Navy’s F/A-XX 6th Generation Aircraft programs.

• Builds the “Golden Dome” to update national missile defense policy.