WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Representative Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA), shared the following statement on her vote on the Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act: 

“I voted YES on the FY25 NDAA, officially named the Servicemember Quality of Life Improvement and National Defense Authorization Act, to reflect the major gains for our servicemembers. As Ranking Member of the Bipartisan Quality of Life Panel on the House Armed Services Committee, I am immeasurably proud that the bill contains more than twenty of the provisions we recommended. While this bill isn't perfect, it is a good bill for our servicemembers and their families who will benefit from: 

• a 14.5% pay raise for junior enlisted servicemen and woman 

• a 4.5% pay raise for all others 

• location-specific cost of living allowances 

• improved access to specialty medical providers 

• repairs to dilapidated and unsafe barracks and dorms and new housing 

• employment support for military spouses 

• easier transfer of professional licenses between states for military spouses  

• fully funded childcare fee assistance programs for eligible families 

• more mental healthcare and easier access to medical services 

 I was proud to champion some other key provisions included in the final bill, such as: 

• Perinatal Mental Health Pilot: With my bill Maintaining Our Obligation to Moms (MOMS) Who Serve Act, I secured funding for a pilot program designed to assess how effective our military’s mental health programs are in treating maternal mental health conditions such as post-partum depression. It is the largest investment in perinatal mental health in the history of the Department of Defense.  

• Expanded Leave for Federal Employees also serving in the National Guard: Since 1966 federal employees who also serve in the National Guard have been allowed only 15 days to conduct their training yet training requirements have more than doubled. My provision expands the available leave from 15 to 20 days. 

• Strengthening Our Military Infrastructure: I established new reporting requirements to improve the reliability of our military’s electrical infrastructure and make it more resistant to attack, restore the eligibility of electrical co-ops to receive defense investment in order to help the Department of Defense save on its power bills in rural areas, and prioritize new “black start” exercises to ensure our troops can respond to threats to our grid.  

• Military Service to Public Service Pipeline: I authored a new requirement that when our armed forces turn away a recruit for medical reasons, they are provided with information on other opportunities to serve the nation, such as AmeriCorps. 

• Biotechnology and Intelligence Community Integration: I authored a requirement for the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) to submit a strategy on addressing biotechnology threats, expanding a biotechnology workforce, and efforts to secure supply chains of critical biotechnologies for national security.  

• Critical Mineral Intelligence Sharing: I authored a requirement for the DNI to develop a strategy for sharing information between the intelligence community and private sector about foreign threats that could hurt their ability to compete on energy and critical mineral projects overseas. 

• Counternarcotics Oversight: I authored a requirement for the DNI to appoint a National Intelligence Manager that is dedicated to the counternarcotics mission; resulting in more resources and collaboration focused on the serious drug threat for communities and national security. 

In addition to the many provisions recommended by the bipartisan Quality of Life Panel and those I also championed, the FY25 NDAA also makes necessary investments in military construction, shipbuilding, aircraft and vehicle procurement and munitions. Investments in science and technology are prioritized along with our domestic industrial base and military readiness, to include the creation of a DoD biotechnology roadmap, the acceleration of quantum capabilities available to DoD and cyber risk mitigation. 

This bill protects the interests of our nation and improves the quality of life for the men, women and families who dedicate themselves to it through their service. While it doesn't address everything we asked for and consider important, including the full ability of parents to make their own decisions about healthcare for their children, it marks a rare moment of productive bipartisan agreement on what is arguably the most crucial legislation we take up as a body each year.” 

Houlahan also spoke on this bill on the House Floor today, you can watch those remarks here or read them below.  

“Thank you, Ranking Member Smith.   

And to Chairman Rogers and Ranking Member Smith, thank you both for your leadership and clear vision for our committee which has guided our national security and collective defense.  

This Congress, I had the privilege of serving as the Ranking Member of our military Quality of Life Panel alongside my dear friend and Republican colleague Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska.  

The bill before us today — including more than twenty provisions from that Quality of Life panel — is truly a testament to what this body can accomplish when we come together and do hard work together. 

From inadequate pay and substandard housing conditions to food insecurity and long wait times for essential services, our panel’s findings make clear we still have a lot of work to do to ensure that our military families survive and thrive.  

I’m pleased that the Fiscal Year NDAA includes a 14.5% pay raise for most junior enlisted and a 4.5% pay raise for all service members. This increase is critical for us to retain our all-volunteer enlisted forces and maximize the investments we’ve already made in them.   

It also includes key health care provisions like no-cost contraception and my bill, the MOMS Who Serve Act, which is the largest investment in maternal mental health in the DoD’s history.  

It requires the DoD to fully fund overdue maintenance for housing and fee assistance for child care so that no family is turned away.  

It ensures our spouses have the support they need to ensure pathways to employment and transfer licenses for careers when they move.  

This is the most consequential and important piece of legislation of the entire 118th Congress, and with this bill in law, our nation will be more secure, and our servicemen and women more resolved to face the global challenges of tomorrow.   

But I would be remiss if I closed without noting my serve disappointment in those colleagues who chose to sully this bill with political culture wars that will impact the health care of minors. This is not what we were tasked to do, and I urge us to remain focused and of service.   

Young America, the next generation of our all-volunteer force, and their families, are watching.  

And our national security depends on it.  

Thank you, and I yield back,” said Houlahan.

Houlahan is an Air Force veteran, an engineer, a serial entrepreneur, an educator, and a nonprofit leader. She represents Pennsylvania’s 6th Congressional District, which encompasses Chester County and southern Berks County. She serves on the House Armed Services Committee and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. She is the recipient of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Abraham Lincoln Leadership for America Award which “recognizes members who demonstrate the bipartisan leadership and constructive governing necessary to move our country forward” and the Congressional Management Foundation’s 2022 Democracy Award for best Constituent Services in Congress. 

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