June 14, 2022

Warren Announces Key Priorities for FY 2023 NDAA

Washington, D.C. — As the Senate begins negotiations on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, today announced key priorities for the Fiscal Year 2023 NDAA. Senator Warren is pushing for eight of her bills to help prevent civilian harm, electrify the military's vehicle fleet, prevent conflicts of interests and corruption at the Department of Defense, prohibit price gouging by defense contractors, expand medical care for military families, lower the costs of prescription drugs, and reduce America's reliance on foreign countries for critical drugs.

"From protecting civilians and preventing conflicts of interests to investing in military families and tackling price gouging by defense contractors, I'm fighting for important policy priorities in this year's NDAA. I look forward to working with my colleagues during the NDAA legislative process," said Senator Warren. 

Specifically, Senator Warren is calling for provisions of the following bills to be included in the FY 2023 NDAA:

  • The Protection of Civilians in Military Operations Act (S. 4108): would establish a Department of Defense Center of Excellence for The Protection of Civilians within the Department of Defense (DoD) to serve as the focal point of the U.S. government for civilian harm, authorize resources to implement civilian harm prevention policies, and ensure the integrity of civilian harm investigations. This bill is led by Representatives Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), Jason Crow (D-Colo.), Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.), and Tom Malinowski (D-N.J.) in the House.
  • The Department of Defense Civilian Harm Transparency Act (S. 4107): expands a reporting provision Senator Warren secured in the fiscal year 2018 National Defense Authorization to expand civilian harm reporting and public transparency. This bill is led by Representatives Jason Crow (D-Colo.), Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.), Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), and Tom Malinowski (D-N.J.) in the House.  
  • The Military Vehicle Fleet Electrification Act (S. 4380): this bill would transition the nontactical fleet of the DoD to electric or other zero-emission vehicles. The legislation would require at least 75% of all nontactical vehicles, such as cars, vans, and light-duty trucks purchased or leased by DoD or procured or leased by the General Services Agency (GSA) for DoD, to be electric or zero-emission vehicles while applying Buy American and other standards to create good American jobs. This bill is led by Representative John Garamendi (D-Calif.) in the House.
  • The Department of Defense Ethics and Anti-Corruption Act (S. 2396): would enforce limits to the influence of contractors on the military, restrict foreign influence on retired senior military officers, and assert greater transparency over contractors and their interaction with the DoD. Senator Warren has long advocated limiting the revolving door and restricting the influence of defense contractors. Most recently, she has pushed for and received agreement from President Biden's DoD nominees, including Secretary Lloyd Austin, to extend their ethics agreements and industry recusals from two years to four years and to avoid seeking waivers to their ethics agreements.
  • The Stop Price Gouging the Military Act (S. 4374): closes loopholes in acquisition laws that lead to defense contractor price gouging, ties financial incentives for contractors to performance, and provides the DoD with the information necessary to prevent future rip-offs. This bill is led by Representative John Garamendi (D-Calif.) in the House.
  • The Military Housing Oversight and Service Member Protection Act (S. 2368): would ensure medical care for military families affected by unsafe housing by directing DoD to establish a health registry for all service members and families and establishing a presumption of service-connected disability for service members and lifetime medical care for dependents. This legislation is led by Representative Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.) in the House.
  • The Make Taxpayer-Funded Department of Defense Medical Interventions Affordable Act (S. 2486): would require the DoD to provide a public list of all drugs, vaccines, and medical technologies receiving funding from the Department, disclose the costs of developing these inventions and the Department’s patent ownership, and require DoD to use march-in rights on at least ten of these inventions within one year to lower the cost of DoD-funded medical products, including drugs and vaccines, when these products are priced higher than in certain other countries. This bill is led by Representative Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) in the House.

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