Heinrich Secures Major Wins For N.M. Military Bases, National Labs, Defense Programs, And Service Members

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) secured major wins in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23) that support New Mexico’s men and women in uniform, military installations, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and job-creating initiatives throughout the state. The Senate passed the NDAA today by a vote of 83 to 11. The legislation has passed both chambers of Congress with strong bipartisan support and now heads to President Joe Biden’s desk to be signed into law.

 

“After serving over a decade on Armed Services Committees in the House and Senate, I’m proud to continue supporting New Mexico’s military installations and the incredible service members dedicated to carrying out our national security missions,” said Heinrich, now Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies. “This bill makes major investments to provide our Armed Forces with the state-of-the-art equipment they need to stay ahead of our adversaries and advance our leadership in emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence and Hypersonics. I'm especially pleased that we are passing provisions that I authored to create a pilot program that will lead the way for the transition of non-tactical vehicles to electric vehicles. This is a great win to make sure all aspects of government are playing their part in the clean energy transition. These provisions, among many others, benefit New Mexico’s economy, and will advance our state’s position as a leader in national security for years to come.”

 

As Chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee that oversees Military Construction and a former member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Senator Heinrich personally secured the authorization of project funding for the following military installations in New Mexico:

 

$22.8 million authorized for Kirtland Air Force Base 

$8 million authorized for Cannon Air Force Base for the planning and design of a Munitions Storage Area

$3.6 million authorized for White Sands Missile Range for the planning and design of a Missile Assembly Building

$600,000 authorized the Army National Guard in Rio Rancho for the planning and design of a vehicle maintenance shop

 

The NDAA sets the Department of Defense (DOD) spending levels and policies for the upcoming fiscal year and authorizes funding for the U.S. Department of Energy's nuclear weapons programs at Sandia and Los Alamos National Laboratories, as well as the Department of Energy's environmental cleanup programs including the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). The FY23 NDAA includes a 4.6% pay raise for both military service members and the DOD civilian workforce.

 

Senator Heinrich has long-championed provisions that benefit New Mexico’s men and women in uniform, national laboratories, and defense programs as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee from 2013-2020. Beginning in the 117th Congress, Senator Heinrich became a member of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, where he serves as Chairman of the Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies.

 

A list of many of the programs and provisions that Senator Heinrich advocated for during the bill writing process that were included in the FY23 NDAA is available as a PDF HERE and below.

 

 

 

Senator Heinrich secured the authorization of $11.16 million for Kirtland Air Force Base to plan and design a 432-room dorm complex to consolidate students for the 351st Special Warfare Training Squadron (SWTS) and 58th Special Operations Wing (SOW) at Kirtland AFB.

 

 

Senator Heinrich secured the authorization of $4.7 million for the planning and design of Air Force's Joint Navigational Warfare Center Headquarters at Kirtland Air Force Base.

 

 

Senator Heinrich secured the authorization of $4.4 million for the planning and design of the Space Rapid Capabilities Office Headquarters Facility. This will support the SpRCO’s mission to develop and deliver operationally dominant space capabilities at the speed of warfighting relevance.

 

Senator Heinrich also supported $45 million for SpRCO at Kirtland Air Force Base for research, development, testing and evaluation that will start in New Mexico.

 

Senator Heinrich led the effort to establish the Space Rapid Capabilities Office (SpRCO) in the Fiscal Year 2018 NDAA.

 

 

Senator Heinrich secured the authorization of $2 million for ADAL Systems & Digital Engineering Lab at Kirtland Air Force Base. This funding will support the planning and design of a 16,000 square foot addition to an existing building in support of integration and engineering functions for Digital Engineering & Model-Based Systems Engineering on the Space Force’s next generation space architecture.

 

 

Senator Heinrich secured the authorization of $540,000 for the planning and design of an Explosives Operations Building at Kirtland Air Force Base. This project supports infrastructure requirements for the incoming AC-130J mission.

 

 

Senator Heinrich secured the authorization of $15 million in the FY23 NDAA to upgrade the high-speed test track at Holloman Air Force Base. The test track will ensure both the effectiveness of the multi-million-dollar test vehicles, as well as the safety of all members of the test and test support teams.

 

 

Senator Heinrich secured the authorization of $4.14 million to accelerate the construction timeline of a combined 98,000 square meters of taxiway extensions, promoting improved circulation and airfield efficiency. By improving airfield throughput, this project will enable mission expansion for the F-16 FTU and insulate pilot production from external, weather-related impacts.

Senator Heinrich played a key role in returning this unit back to Holloman.

 

 

The FY23 NDAA includes authorization for $10 million in funding to conduct additional hypersonic test and evaluation at White Sands Missile Range. This test and evaluation will be conducted in conjunction with New Mexico State University.

 

 

Senator Heinrich secured the authorization of $8 million in new funding for Cannon Air Force Base to plan for the relocation and expanded capacity of a munitions storage area to support operational readiness, eliminate safety violations, and to maximize combat capability by maximizing munition storage consistent with Air Force Special Operations Command mission profiles.

 

 

Senator Heinrich secured the authorization of $3.6 million for a new Missile Assembly Building at White Sands Missile Range. The new building will allow for simultaneous operations, meet current codes and standards allowing the support of current and future missile programs.

 

 

Senator Heinrich secured the authorization of $600,000 to support mission readiness and fund the planning and design of a vehicle maintenance shop to address the operational needs of the Army National Guard in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.

 

 

 

Senator Heinrich again supported full funding to secure Los Alamos National Laboratory’s (LANL) role as the nation’s Center of Excellence for Plutonium Research. The bill authorizes $1.6 billion for LANL’s ongoing plutonium research and pit production programs. The funding supports personnel, equipment, and other activities at LANL to meet pit production requirements by 2026. Highlights include $767 million for plutonium operations and $588 million to support pit production.

 

Senators Heinrich and Lujan also supported language in the FY23 NDAA to create a workforce program through the National Nuclear Security Administration that will help boost employment at LANL.

 

 

Within the FY23 NDAA's $22.3 billion funding for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Sandia's funding in the bill supports and sustains its system integration, engineering, and science programs. Sandia is supporting NNSA's program of record modernizing the stockpile, conducting ongoing assessments of the stockpile, and continuing important stockpile science research.

 

Senator Heinrich also worked to secured $3 million to boost Sandia’s collaboration with efforts to prove out an integrated design and manufacturing flow to demonstrate efficient, cost-effective, low-volume domestic manufacturing for state-of-the-art integrated circuits optimized for the most technologically challenging military weapon systems requirements. Once proven, this approach and process can provide integrated circuits to both U.S. government and commercial users and be modular enough to decouple from a particular foundry, offering increased independence against commercial volatility such as acquisitions & obsolescence.

 

 

The bill authorizes $432 million for environmental cleanup efforts including $4 million for Sandia National Laboratories, $286 million for Los Alamos National Laboratory, and $41 million for Los Alamos excess facilities.

 

 

The bill authorizes full funding of over $462 million to operate the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), including $59 million to continue construction of additional ventilation for the mine and $25 million to continue work on a new utility shaft.

 

 

 

Senator Heinrich supported language to require the Secretary of Defense, in coordination with each of the Services Secretaries, to select an installation for the pilot program and submit a detailed plan to transition all non-tactical vehicles to electric vehicles (EVs) at a location no later than 2025. This would set appropriate conditions to begin a phased transition, allowing the military services to determine the logistics and associated infrastructure required for maintaining and recharging non-tactical EVs. This language also gives the DOD authority to use commercially available technology in their transition to EVs.

 

 

Senator Heinrich secured the inclusion of language in the FY23 NDAA for DOD to establish a policy to increase the disposition of spent advanced batteries through recycling for the purpose of reclaiming and return of precious metals, rare earth metals, and elements of strategic importance (cobalt and lithium) in the supply chain or strategic reserves of the U.S.

 

 

Senator Heinrich secured language in the FY23 NDAA directing the Secretary of Defense to analyze the sourcing and industrial capacity of solar components for satellites to determine and develop appropriate future actions. This policy would help United States industry win additional satellite power sourcing contracts, which would create jobs and further growth in New Mexico.

 

 

Senator Heinrich, the co-founder of the bipartisan Senate Artificial Intelligence Caucus, supported the authorization of over $375 million for AI in the FY23 NDAA. Many of the specific authorizations for artificial intelligence sit within the broader Department of Defense framework for AI developed by the Senate Artificial Intelligence Caucus, jointly led by Senator Heinrich and U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio). In addition to significant funding for basic artificial intelligence research and development, the FY23 NDAA directs the Department of Defense to transition critical technology areas like AI out of the lab and into production weapon systems.

 

 

 

The FY23 NDAA includes $175,719,000, over $6 million above the President’s Budget request, for the Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) program. The REPI program is a key tool used by DOD and its partners to protect the military’s ability to train, test, and operate in the state. DOD created the REPI Program in response to the development of lands and loss of habitat in the vicinity of or affecting its installations, ranges, and airspace that can lead to restrictions or costly and inadequate training and testing alternatives. Through REPI, DOD works with state and local governments, conservation organizations, and willing private landowners to address these challenges to the military mission and the viability of DOD installations and ranges.

 

 

 

Senator Heinrich helped establish the sense of Congress statement that the United States Government should continue to extend the Radiation Compensation Exposure Act which was set to expire in July 2022. RECA was extended on June 7, 2022 for an additional two years.

This act provides monetary compensation to individuals who contracted certain cancers and other serious diseases following their exposure to radiation released during atmospheric nuclear weapons testing during the Cold War or following exposure to radiation as a result of employment in the uranium industry during the Cold War.

 

 

Senator Heinrich supported the authorization of $16.2 million in the FY23 NDAA to address PFAS contamination issues, including a prize competition for developing gear that does not contain PFAS, as well as funding for PFAS remediation efforts.

 

 

The FY23 NDAA broadens the reach and impact of the Basic Needs Allowance by increasing the eligibility threshold and allowance size from 130% of the Federal poverty line to 150% of the Federal poverty line as a baseline, and authorizes the Secretary of Defense to increase this benefit to 200% of the poverty line when appropriate.

The new allowance was announced by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in a September 22, 2022 memo. It is designed to assist military families who are struggling financially in the current economic situation.