TPA Joins Bipartisan Coalition Urging 'NO' Vote on NDAA, Citing Bad Process and Continued Taxpayer Waste

Last week, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY2016 passed the House of Representatives in a 270-156 vote. The future of the bill is still in doubt for a couple of reasons. First, the Senate must still pass the legislation. The vote could come as early as Tuesday but even if the bill passes there is still another hurdle to getting the NDAA (as reported out of conference) through, the White House. Last week the President issued a veto threat in response to the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) Account to bypass the spending caps put in place through the Budget Control Act (BCA) of 2011 and sequestration. TPA has always said the OCO is a slush fund used to bypass the base budget and avoid the spending caps but the solution is not to break the caps (as the President wants), the best way forward on Pentagon spending is to slash the waste, develop an overall national security strategy, and then fund based on that strategy and the priorities that come with it. Keeping that in mind, TPA signed this coalition letter, along with twenty other groups, urging Congress to reject the bloated NDAA and the process that brought it this far.

Read the full letter below:

September 30, 2015

Dear Members of the House and Senate:

We, the undersigned groups, are writing to urge a “no” vote on the Fiscal Year 2016 National Defense Authorization Act as reported out of conference. We are deeply troubled by the $38 billion added to the Overseas Contingency Operations slush fund. The disregard for the goal of the Budget Control Act of 2011 (BCA) caps on discretionary spending, the use of a budget gimmick to flout the budget ceiling’s caps, and the lack of transparency surrounding the bill all make the passage of this NDAA irresponsible.

The Armed Services Committees have indicated that the conferenced NDAA uses extra funds added to the Overseas Contingency Operations account to pay for base budget priorities. This is a cynical maneuver that enables lawmakers to claim they maintained the statutory cap on defense spending, while exploiting BCA provisions that allow OCO or emergency spending outside of the caps.

The NDAA plays an important role in Congress’ oversight of the Pentagon and its responsibility to our troops and safety. When it is used to create a slush fund of unaccountable cash to fund pet projects in and out of the Pentagon’s budget, it grievously undermines the budget process.

We urge you to vote no.

Sincerely,

American Friends Service Committee
Campaign for Liberty
Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation
Center for Defense Information
Center for International Policy
Council for a Livable World
London Center for Policy Research
National Priorities Project
National Security Network
National Taxpayers Union
Niskanen Center
Peace Action
Progressive Democrats of America
Project on Government Oversight
Taxpayers for Common Sense
Taxpayers Protection Alliance
United for Peace and Justice
USAction
U.S. Labor Against the War
Win Without War
Women’s Action for New Directions