Washington, DC: The United States House of Representatives has approved a sweeping defence policy measure authorising a record $901 billion in military spending for the 2026 fiscal year.
The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) passed on Wednesday with a strong bipartisan tally of 312–112, despite weeks of internal friction between the Republican-controlled House and the Trump administration over military oversight and international commitments.
The bill now heads to the Senate, where leaders expect passage next week before the holiday recess, after which President Donald Trump is set to sign it into law.
.@POTUS and Republicans promised peace through strength.
The FY26 NDAA delivers on that promise by:
✅ Providing a 4% pay raise for troops
✅ Expanding our counter-drone defenses
✅ Advancing the Golden Dome
✅ Supporting National Guard and troop deployment to keep our…
— Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) December 8, 2025
Record Budget and Expanded Commitments Abroad
This year’s NDAA authorises $8 billion more than the amount requested by President Trump in May. The 3,086-page package continues the traditional focus on defence acquisitions and strategic modernization, including measures aimed at maintaining military competitiveness against adversaries such as China and Russia.
Lawmakers also approved a series of provisions reinforcing Washington’s commitment to European security in the face of Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine. Notably, the bill allocates $400 million per year in military assistance to Ukraine over the next two years.
Another clause binds the Pentagon to keep at least 76,000 US troops and major equipment in Europe, unless NATO allies formally endorse changes to force posture.
Troop Welfare Measures and Climate Programs
Reflecting persistent concerns about morale and living conditions across the armed forces, the bill includes an almost 4 percent pay raise for service members and mandates improvements to military housing.
At the same time, negotiators slashed programs strongly opposed by President Trump and some conservatives, eliminating roughly $1.6 billion in funding for initiatives related to diversity, equity, and inclusion, as well as climate-related activities within the Department of Defense.
Peace Through Strength 🇺🇸 https://t.co/qTXs3Zxwak
— Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) December 10, 2025
Rare Public Challenge to the Pentagon
One of the most contentious elements of the bill is a set of provisions demanding greater transparency from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth following a string of lethal US military strikes on alleged drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific Ocean since early September.
At least 86 people have been killed across 22 documented strikes. The Trump administration has defended the campaign as a necessary counter-narcotics effort, though legal experts widely argue that the operations violate both international and US law.
The House inserted a sharp accountability measure threatening to withhold 25 percent of the defense secretary’s travel budget unless Hegseth provides Congress with full details of the attacks. While the NDAA routinely passes with broad bipartisan support, this year’s negotiations unfolded on deeper-than-usual tensions over US strategy abroad and the administration’s management of the military.
Hardline Republicans argued the bill did not go far enough in reducing US commitments overseas, particularly in Europe. The House Armed Services Committee’s Republican chair, Mike Rogers, defended the legislation by stressing that US force readiness is critical in an era of heightened strategic rivalry.
“We need a ready, capable and lethal fighting force,” Rogers said. “The threats to our nation, especially those from China, are more complex and challenging than at any point in the last 40 years.”
Democrats used the moment to underline concerns that the Pentagon is straining the limits of executive power. The committee’s ranking Democrat, Adam Smith, said the bill is only a preliminary step toward stronger congressional oversight.
“The biggest concern I have is that the Pentagon, being run by Secretary Hegseth and by President Trump, is simply not accountable to Congress or the law,” Smith said.
With the House’s approval secured, senators are racing to complete action before the year-end adjournment. Should the Senate pass the bill as expected, the NDAA will shortly land on President Trump’s desk, keeping intact a 63-year streak of annual defence reauthorisations and setting the Pentagon on a historic funding trajectory for 2026.
