Without fanfare, President Obama has signed into law the Fiscal 2010 defense appropriations bill, completing the defense budget process for this fiscal year. He signed the defense policy bill into law back in October. Obama’s signature on the new spending act came on Dec. 19, according to a White House Dec. 21 release. That was the same day that the Senate approved the bill and three days after the House passed it. The legislation provides $636.3 billion for the Pentagon (as well as Energy Department-run nuclear weapons activities). This total includes $128.3 billion for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, and covers a 3.4 percent military pay raise. Despite Administration resistance, the act contains $2.5 billion for 10 more C-17 transports and $465 million to continue the General Electric-Rolls Royce F136 engine program. It also delays the Air Force’s plan to retire some 250 legacy fighters.
A provision in the fiscal 2025 defense policy bill will require the Defense Department to include the military occupational specialty of service members who die by suicide in its annual report on suicide deaths, though it remains to be seen how much data the department will actually disclose.