Record SASC plan to challenge House

The Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday released its tentative plan to authorize a record-setting $750B in defense spending for FY 2020 in a bill that would give military members a 3.1 percent pay raise in January; numerous R&D plus-ups for military-specific programs, including $125M to research technologies for future warships; and outlines a comprehensive reorganization for military housing, creating a Tenant Bill of Rights - a dispute resolution process - and establishing new quality, health and hazard standards for the private companies contracted to provide and maintain residences for personnel. The Senate measure, which matches the overall defense budget request from the Trump Administration, is expected to be challenged by the Democrats in the House, where lawmakers are drafting their own authorization bill to seek less funding and oppose several of the Senate proposals. One likely area of dispute is the Senate's plan to devote $3.6B to replenish funds the President diverted from military construction projects to pay for a border wall. House Democrats have pledged not to backfill those accounts. The Senate bill also lays out a plan for the creation of a U.S. Space Force within the Air Force, to be headed by a commander, but not an undersecretary. After a year, that commander would be included as a permanent member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for space-related issues. (Source: Washington Post 05/24/19)