The U.S. Senate began its August recess Thursday without approving its version of the fiscal 2018 National Defense Authorization Act, leaving the measure in limbo for at least several weeks.
Democrats have blocked floor debate and a vote on the Senate version of the bill over objections to other non-defense legislation, meaning a conference between the House and Senate on the NDAA must wait until Congress is back in session in September.
A major point of contention between the two chambers’ bills centers on the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty.
U.S. officials have determined that Russia is in material breach of the accord, which prohibits the fielding of ground-based cruise and ballistic missiles with flight ranges between 500 and 5,500 kilometers. The Senate and the House have proposed two different U.S. responses to the Russian violation, while the administration considers its own set of options in its upcoming Nuclear Posture Review.
The House on July 14 passed its version of the NDAA, which calls for development of a conventional missile system within the range prohibited by the treaty. The Senate version of the bill, released that same week, includes $65 million for a research and development program for a dual-capable road-mobile ground-launched missile system within INF range.
The White House said in response to the House bill that it opposes any position that would limit its military options for responding to Russia’s violation of the treaty, supporting instead a research and development program like the one proposed by the Senate.
Both the House and Senate remain supportive of National Nuclear Security Administration operations. The House NDAA would authorize up to $14.2 billion for the semiautonomous Department of Energy branch tasked with sustaining the U.S. nuclear deterrent, higher than the $13.9 billion the agency itself requested for the next fiscal year. The Senate bill would give the NNSA $14.5 billion.
The two chambers’ versions of the legislation ultimately must be reconciled before the final bill is sent to the president. Fiscal 2018 begins on Oct. 1.
