Next week should be a productive one for defense spending bills, with the House’s version likely to see floor time and Senate appropriators set to hold their last hearing before writing their bill.
A congressional staffer told Defense Daily that House leadership is trying to schedule time for floor debate mid-week, though nothing had been finalized. After the June 10 committee markup, House Appropriations defense subcommittee chairman Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-N.J.) told reporters he expected an open process with amendments on a wide range of topics during the markup.
The Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee, meanwhile, has not yet written its bill. It hosted Missile Defense Agency Director Vice Adm. James Syring for a hearing on June 11, and it has one final hearing scheduled for June 18 with Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Martin Dempsey.
Senate Appropriations Committee spokesman Vince Morris said the committee hopes to have the bill ready for a subcommittee markup by late June or early July. Congress will recess for the month of August and will only work for a few weeks after Labor Day before going home for election season, so many lawmakers have expressed a desire to push the defense spending and authorization bills through the House and Senate before the summer recess.
On the authorization side, the Senate Armed Services Committee passed its bill May 22, but the legislation has not advanced since. SASC Chairman Carl Levin (D-Mich.) filed the bill on the floor June 2 but has not yet secured floor time from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.)
The full House passed its defense authorization bill on May 22 and is awaiting further action from the Senate.