Meng Statement on 2020 Defense Spending Bill

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY) issued the following statement after the House of Representatives passed the National Defense Authorization Act this week.

"On Wednesday, the House voted to adopt the Conference Report for the National Defense Authorization Act. I was proud to vote for the House-passed version in July, which put forward a strong and progressive national security strategy that honored all of our troops and defended our borders, the bill before us today fails to achieve these goals. Although this bill has retained some important provisions from July, I couldn't ignore my concerns with the final legislation and I voted "no."

I could not look past the absence of important provisions that had been included in the House-passed NDAA, but were stripped in the final negotiated bill. Losing these provisions in negotiations is a step backward from important progress we had made. The final bill fails to address bipartisan concerns about the reliance for almost two decades on an Authorization for the Use of Military Force that has been used well beyond its original intent. It strips bipartisan sanctions that had been levied against Saudi officials who bore responsibility for Jamal Khashoggi's murder. It fails to overturn the immoral and dangerous ban on transgender people serving their country. It fails to restrict U.S. support of the Saudi-led campaign in Yemen. And it fails to adequately remediate sites, including military bases, where our water has been contaminated by polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), or designate those substances as hazardous under the Superfund law.

I am, however, thrilled to see that Congress has finally adopted paid family leave for all federal employees. This is an historic accomplishment, and one that was long-overdue; one should not have to choose between caring for a newborn or an ailing family member and their career. I am also pleased to see that my amendment, requiring the Defense Department to submit a report on the number of military installations that may have lead service lines, has been included, and that the "widow's tax," which penalized Gold Star families, has finally been repealed.

I do not take votes on our national security lightly, but the provisions in this bill risk our security and the wellbeing of our troops. I cannot blindly support a bill that does not include so many important priorities."

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