Press Releases

Congresswoman Teresa Leger Fernández issued the following statement after the House passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) today:

“It is disgraceful that Republican leadership stripped my RECA Amendments Act from the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The Senate passed the Amendments with broad bipartisan support and House Democratic leadership was likewise in support of provisioning justice and compensation to New Mexicans who toiled in the uranium industry and downwinders who lived near the Trinity Test site and deserve compensation for the cancers, other illness, and loss of life inflicted upon them for our national security. The Republican leadership’s rejection of the RECA Amendments Act behind closed doors is morally bankrupt. said Congresswoman Leger Fernández. 

“Our bipartisan coalition will not give up — we will fight to pass the RECA Amendments Act. We secured commitments from our Democratic leadership to continue to push for justice for our beloved New Mexico communities. Our Republican co-sponsors are in the fight with us. We are guided and inspired by the Downwinders, the post 71 Uranium miners and the advocates who seek justice.”

“Today, I supported the final version of the bipartisan bill in spite of this disgraceful omission because it secures investments in our national defense and servicemembers — including those serving throughout New Mexico. We worked hard to remove the Extreme MAGA Republican  provisions attacking women’s reproductive healthcare from the final version. This bill also includes a 5.2% pay increase for service members, funds for defense environmental cleanup, and reaffirms our commitment to our allies abroad,” she concluded.

The final version of the NDAA Conference Report has now been passed by the House and Senate and will go to the President’s desk. It:

• Invests in service members, the civilian workforce, and military families by:
  • Supporting the 5.2% pay raise proposed in the President's budget request,
  • Expanding eligibility for the Basic Needs Allowance (program that provides funds for food, housing, etc. for lowest paid; 
  • Making significant investments in military family housing, child development centers, and replacing failing unaccompanied housing (barracks); 
  • Improving FMLA eligibility for federal employees.
• Reaffirms our commitment to partners and allies by: 
  • Enabling key pillars of AUKUS 
  • Reauthorizing the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) 
  • Fully resourcing the European Deterrence Initiative and Pacific Deterrence Initiative
• Increases oversight of equipment provided to foreign countries by requiring GAO to provide reports on how equipment use is monitored.
• Increases oversight of ex-gratia payments, the authority that requires the U.S. to make payments for damage, personal injury, or death to a civilian that is inadvertently caused by the U.S. or a coalition or military org supporting the U.S.

The final version of the NDAA Conference Report does not include:

• Numerous controversial provisions which would have: 
  • Repealed the DOD travel policy related to reproductive healthcare and other non covered care; 
  • Prohibited gender affirming healthcare for transgender servicemembers and their dependents; 
  • Eliminated the Chief Diversity Officer and DEI Advisory Committees; 
  • Blocked Biden Executive Orders related to climate change; 
  • Forced the Air Force to seek a national defense exemption to the marine mammal protection act for the Rice's whale in the Eglin Test and Training Range:
  • Lifted all restrictions on the 1033 program, expanding the list of military equipment that could be transferred to law enforcement agencies;
  • Required universities to disclose sensitive personal information about researchers or would have inflamed bias against certain American researchers conducting national security research.

FY24 NDAA text can be found here.

###