The Peru Gazette

Owens Statement on Passage of H.R. 2397, the Department of Defense Appropriations Act of 2014

Bill Increases Active Duty Pay and Supports Quality of Life Programs

Last night, Congressman Bill Owens voted in favor of H.R. 2397, the Fiscal Year 2014 Department of Defense Appropriations Act, which the House passed by a vote of 315 to 109. The legislation funds the nation’s military efforts overseas, as well as critically important health and quality of life programs for service members and their families.

“I am pleased to support the defense spending bill for fiscal year 2014, which is a product of months of bipartisan work in an extremely difficult budget environment,” Congressman Bill Owens said. “It has been a privilege to help produce this legislation that is so critical to the men and women serving at Fort Drum and around the world.
H.R. 2397 provides $512.5 billion in non-war funding, which is approximately $28.1 billion above the current level caused by sequestration cuts, and $85.8 billion in war funding for Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO). Additionally, the bill provides investments in suicide prevention, initiatives to respond to sexual assault in the Armed Services, a potential future East Coast missile site, and a 1.8% active duty pay raise.

“While House passage of the fiscal year 2014 defense spending bill is a positive step, we continue to face a serious fiscal situation that must be addressed through bipartisan compromise,” Owens said. “Continuing to operate under sequestration will force more arbitrary cuts that Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel has indicated may cost civilian defense jobs and possibly erode the force’s readiness. The civilian defense employees at Fort Drum who are currently furloughed, their colleagues serving at defense installations around the world and their families need Congress to work together and solve this problem.”

Congressman Owens serves on the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee, which drafts the annual defense spending bill.