By MOAA Government Relations Staff

The first-ever proposed $1 trillion defense budget includes $150 billion in new spending that addresses key MOAA priorities, including $2.9 billion to restore the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) and end the need for servicemembers to pay 5% of their anticipated housing costs out-of-pocket.

The House Armed Services Committee’s budget reconciliation draft would also fund improvements to unaccompanied housing, address child care and spouse employment concerns, and add $2 billion to the DoD health care budget, along with the temporary BAH increase. The legislation passed the panel April 29 by a 35-21 margin and heads to the House Budget Committee, but as it moves forward under the budget reconciliation process, the final bill remains uncertain while Congress seeks to capture $1.5 trillion in spending cuts across the government.

[TAKE ACTION: Ask Your Lawmakers to Restore BAH]

Other key provisions addressing MOAA priorities found in the $150 billion spending increase:

Active Component

• Unaccompanied Housing Funding: Over $1.2 billion in increases for facilities sustainment, restoration, and modernization.
• Tuition Assistance: A $100 million boost to tuition assistance programs.
• Temporary Lodging Expense (TLE) Expansion: $590 million to extend the time to house-hunt from 14 to 21 days.

[TAKE ACTION: Ask Congress to Address the Hazardous Unaccompanied Housing Conditions Rampant in the Military]

Families

• Child Care Fee Assistance: As DoD continues to find solutions to address child care shortages, the bill includes $100 million to provide fee assistance to more military families.
• Military Spouse Licensure: The development of interstate compacts is a key component of ensuring military spouses working in licensed or credentialed fields can PCS across state lines with minimal interruptions. The bill includes $10 million for continued efforts to enhance license portability.

DoD Health Care

• Defense Health Program (DHP) Funding Increase: DHP will see $2 billion more in funding, designed to address challenges across the military health system. However, the funds will not address TRICARE parity gaps or otherwise expand the military health care benefit.

What Is Budget Reconciliation?

Budget reconciliation is a limited, but expedited, legislative process for Congress to align spending with the budget resolution. In early April, Congress adopted a budget resolution agreeing to a reduction in federal spending. Now, lawmakers are using the budget reconciliation process to conform with the budget resolution they passed.

[RELATED: What Budget Constraints Could Mean for Your Earned Benefits]

This process can only be used to pass provisions that directly affect federal spending, revenues, or the debt limit – discretionary spending remains subject to the annual appropriations process. Additionally, this process cannot be filibustered, meaning a simple majority is needed in the Senate. And any adjustments cannot be in perpetuity – no permanent changes for issues like concurrent receipt, for example, can be made through this process. Even with these guardrails, lawmakers have a lot of latitude to reshape spending for the next decade.

The $150 billion increase in defense spending has answered the call on many MOAA priorities, which will have positive effects for servicemembers, their families, and retirees. However, the potential impact on the network of services our community relies on through other departments and agencies remains uncertain. MOAA will continue advocating for improvements to our community’s quality of life while striving to preserve the benefits we have earned.