Strengthening our national defense

At the Republican National Convention in 1980, President Ronald Reagan said, “We know only too well that war comes not when the forces of freedom are strong, but when they are weak. It is then that tyrants are tempted.” The Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) enacted into law helps embolden our national defense to face down the threats in our world.

Importantly, the FY2025 NDAA includes a plethora of wins for Idaho and America. Inclusion of language based on my bill, the Fighter Force Preservation and Recapitalization Act, works to protect fighter squadrons — such as the Idaho Air National Guard’s 190th Fighter Squadron — from force reductions. Likewise, securing funds for projects at the Mountain Home Air Force Base and the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) will have lasting, positive impacts on local communities, the economy and our national security.   

The FY2025 NDAA: 

• Requires the U.S. Air Force to develop a plan to sustain and recapitalize the fighter fleets for the Air National Guard at a time when pilot and maintenance manning are at critically low levels; 
• Provides additional support for Project Pele, a mobile micro nuclear reactor pilot program on schedule for deployment to the INL by 2025;  
• Provides nearly $460 million for cleanup and waste disposition, regulatory support and construction at the INL; 
• Provides the INL with $45 million for the Naval Examination Acquisition Project and Naval Reactors Facility; 
• Provides $40 Million to the Mountain Home Air Force Base for construction of a child development center; 
• Provides a 14.5% pay raise for junior enlisted servicemembers and a 4.5% basic pay increase for all servicemembers; 
• Expands servicemember access to child care, health care and spousal support; 
• Prohibits taxpayer funding of gender reassignment surgery for children of servicemembers; 
• Limits various Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs in the military, including a one-year hiring freeze; 
• Redirects more than $50 million for U.S. Department of Defense DEI programming toward counter-narcotics; 
• Authorizes funding to improve existing barracks and build new ones; 
• Takes numerous steps to counter Chinese espionage and business at U.S. military facilities; 
• Streamlines bureaucracy to expedite the rebuilding of our nation’s military arsenal; 
• Reaffirms support and allied cooperation for Taiwan, South Korea and the Philippines from adversaries in the Pacific; and 
• Extends the Department of Defense’s authority to support partner forces in the fight against ISIS. 

While this bill, like many pieces of legislation passed in Congress, is far from perfect, I am proud of the advancements of commonsense policies that protect our values, secure our border and ensure our military is prepared as we face and mitigate threats from adversaries at home and abroad. 

Mike Crapo represents the state of Idaho in the U.S. Senate. He can be reached at crapo.senate.gov.