Haley Stevens: “our Appropriations Committee is pleased to present to the Senate the Defense Appropriations Conference Report for the…”

“our Appropriations Committee is pleased to present to the Senate the Defense Appropriations Conference Report for the Fiscal Year 2005. I believe passage of this measure today represents the earliest date the Defense bill has ever been sent to the President for signing. This conference report symbolizes a balanced approach to fulfilling the financial needs for the Department for the fiscal year 2005. It provides $416.2 billion in new discretionary spending authority for the Department of Defense. This amount includes $25 million in emergency spending requested by the President for the fiscal year 2005 costs associated with the operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. That provision becomes effective immediately upon the signing of this bill by the President. The conference report fully funds key readiness programs critical to the global war on terrorism such as land forces training, helicopter flying hours, ship steaming days, and spare parts. It fully funds the 3.5 percent military pay raise proposed in the President's budget, and increases levels for basic allowance for housing, eliminating service members' average out-of-pocket housing from 3.5 percent to zero in 2005.”