Press Releases

Miami, Fla. – Yesterday, Congresswoman Frederica Wilson (FL-24) voted for the bipartisan H.R. 7900, National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023. which supports key improvements in pay for service members and their families, who form the foundation for America’s defense, while also investing in future capabilities that will allow the United States to confront the unprecedented challenges facing our nation at home and abroad. 

The bill also authorizes funding to support historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) as it seeks to strengthen our nation’s greatest tool for defense – our diversity and our talent pipelines, a measure which Congresswoman Wilson fought to include. Additionally, it authorizes $839 billion in discretionary spending for national defense for FY 2023, while making significant quality of life improvements for service members and their families and making key investments in innovation and emerging technologies.

“Our nation’s greatest strength is our diversity, and supporting our national defense must include support for institutions that improve this diversity and nurture talent for the future,” said Congresswoman Wilson. “For more than a century, our HBCUs have educated and empowered the next generation of leaders and have provided pathways to higher education for those traditionally excluded from such opportunities. This appropriations package presented us yet another opportunity to improve our nation’s funding and support for research and scholarship at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), which I was proud to support.”

Passed annually by Congress since 1961, the NDAA authorizes funding levels for the Department of Defense.  This legislation allows the Armed Forces to pay, train and equip U.S. servicemembers; support America’s allies around the world; and carry out essential national security operations.  

A key provision of the H.R. 7900, National Defense Authorization Act includes support for HBCUs and other minority serving institutions, allocating over $111 million for research activities at HBCUs and establishing a pilot program to increase research capacity at minority-serving institutions. Some other the key priorities in the bill include:

• Key pay increases for service members and their families, including a 4.6% pay raise for service members and civilian personnel, 2.4% inflation bonuses for service members earning less than $45,000/year and a $15/hour minimum wage for workers on federal service and construction contracts.
• Civilian harm mitigation measures, reflecting the democratic values of the United States as a strategic and moral imperative by creating a DOD Center for Excellence in Civilian Harm Mitigation.
• New investments in science and technology competitiveness, including $275 million in additional funding for next-generation capabilities in hypersonic, electronic warfare, artificial intelligence, and software.
• Supply chain security, including an assessment of dual-use technology that the Chinese Communist Party might exploit and improving risk management in DoD supply chains involving pharmaceutical products.
• Resources for U.S. allies and partners, including $1 billion for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) and funding for the European Deterrence Initiative and Pacific Deterrence Initiative.

A summary of the provisions in this year’s NDAA is available here.