The House Armed Services Committee begins marking up its version of the fiscal 2016 defense authorization bill this week, the first public statement on where the lawmakers will come down on pay raises, benefits reform and platform funding.

Draft language will come from each of the panel's six subcommittees, Those partial authorization drafts — and ongoing appropriations drafts emerging from other House debates — will dominate most of the defense headlines this week.

The Senate Armed Services Committee is still working on finalizing its early versions of the bill, but those details won't be made public for several more weeks.

Meanwhile, the House Foreign Affairs Committee will follow up on its Senate counterpart's work on the Iran nuclear negotiations.

The House And Senate Veterans' Affairs committees also boast a full slate of work this week, as appropriators in both chambers look to push ahead on budget details for that department in coming weeks.

Tuesday

Senate Armed Services — 9:30 a.m. — Hart 216
Nominations
The committee will review the nomination of Peter Levine to be the Defense Department's next deputy chief management officer.

Senate Foreign Relations — 10 a.m. — Dirksen 419
State Department
The subcommittee on State Department activities will review efficiency and effectiveness improvements at the department.

Senate Appropriations — 2:30 p.m. — Dirksen 124
VA budget
The subcommittee on Veterans Affairs will review the department's fiscal 2016 budget request, and ongoing reform efforts.

Senate Armed Services — 2:30 p.m. — Russell 222
Irregular warfare
The subcommittee on emerging threats will hear from Defense Department officials on counterterrorism programs.

Senate Veterans' Affairs — 2:30 p.m. — Russell 418
Women veterans
The committee will hear from VA officials and outside experts on efforts to better respond to the needs of women veterans seeking VA services.

Wednesday

Senate Homeland Security — 10 a.m. — Dirksen 342
Border security
The committee will review efforts to secure U.S. borders, focusing on understanding threats and strategies for the northern border.

House Foreign Affairs — 10 a.m. — Rayburn 2172
Iran deal
Outside experts will weigh in on the administration's proposed deal with Iran on nuclear inspections and legislation pending in Congress on the issue.

House Homeland Security — 10 a.m. — Cannon 311
Bioterrorism
The subcommittee on emergency preparedness will look at bioterrorism threats and U.S. emergency response efforts.

House Veterans' Affairs — 10:30 a.m. — Cannon 334
Management failures
The committee will look at recent reports of failures in management and oversight, with a focus on recent reports of problems in the Philadelphia and Oakland VA facilities.

Senate Appropriations — 10:30 a.m. — Dirksen 192
Defense budget
The subcommittee on defense hears from Defense Department officials on their fiscal 2016 budget request for defense innovation and research projects.

Senate Armed Services — 2:30 p.m. — Russell 232A
Acquisition reform
The subcommittee on readiness will review DoD's fiscal 2016 budget request and plans for changes in the defense acquisition system.

Senate Armed Services — 2:30 p.m. — Russell 222
Nuclear programs
The committee will review Air Force and Navy nuclear programs and the nuclear enterprise review recommendations as part of ongoing fiscal 2016 budget request deliberations.

House Armed Services — 2:30 p.m. — Rayburn 2118
NDAA threats
The subcommittee on emerging threats will mark up its sections of the annual defense authorization bill.

House Armed Services — 4 p.m. — Rayburn 2212
NDAA readiness
The subcommittee on readiness will mark up its sections of the annual defense authorization bill.

Thursday

House Armed Services — 9 a.m. — Rayburn 2118
NDAA air and land forces
The subcommittee on air and land forces will mark up its sections of the annual defense authorization bill.

House Armed Services — 9:30 a.m. — Rayburn 2212
NDAA personnel
The subcommittee on personnel will mark up its sections of the annual defense authorization bill.

House Veterans' Affairs — 10 a.m. — Cannon 334
Pending legislation
The subcommittee on health will review new legislation presented to the committee.

House Armed Services — 10:30 a.m. — Rayburn 2118
NDAA seapower
The subcommittee on seapower will mark up its sections of the annual defense authorization bill.

House Armed Services — 12 p.m. — Rayburn 2212
NDAA strategic forces
The subcommittee on strategic forces will mark up its sections of the annual defense authorization bill.

Leo covers Congress, Veterans Affairs and the White House for Military Times. He has covered Washington, D.C. since 2004, focusing on military personnel and veterans policies. His work has earned numerous honors, including a 2009 Polk award, a 2010 National Headliner Award, the IAVA Leadership in Journalism award and the VFW News Media award.

Share:
In Other News
Load More