RELEASE: House Passes Annual Defense Bill Including Gottheimer Provisions to Support U.S. Troops, Fight Terrorism, & Defend Against China, Russia, Iran

<p><strong>WASHINGTON, D.C.&nbsp;</strong>— The House passed key provisions authored and backed by U.S. Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5) to combat foreign terror, protect the U.S. strategic advantage over China, support our ally Israel, strengthen American AI capabilities, defend against Russian threats, support education for service members, and give troops a pay raise.</p>

<p>“The House passed a strong, bipartisan defense bill to help equip and prepare our service members to carry out their mission and defend our country. This bipartisan bill included several key provisions I helped lead to support our service members and reserves, fight global terror, support our allies, and ensure the United States remains a leader in the face of Chinese advancements,”&nbsp;<strong>said Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5).</strong>&nbsp;“I’ll continue working with colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support our active-duty military, combat terrorism and violent extremism, and strengthen America’s national security.”</p>

<p><strong><u>Gottheimer’s key provisions and priorities passed in the bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 include:</u></strong></p>

<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Supporting our troops and their education:</strong> The bill includes a 3.8% pay raise for U.S. service members. The bill also boosts investment for the National Defense Education Program to provide additional scholarships, internships, and resources for STEM education for K-12 and post-secondary STEM talent vital for national defense. </li>

<li>U.S.-Israel Counter Drone Cooperation: The NDAA secures $70 million to accelerate the development of systems to combat the threat of drones alongside our key ally, Israel. </li>

<li><strong>Supporting our allies and their fight against terrorism:</strong> The bill accelerates the redistribution of seized Iranian weapons to U.S. allies to support their fight against terror in the Middle East and around the globe. </li>

<li>Protecting Intelligence Systems from Chinese AI Threats: The NDAA mandates the removal of Chinese AI application DeepSeek and any similar Chinese-developed software from all intelligence community (IC) networks.</li>

<li><strong>Developing American AI in National Security:</strong> The bill creates an AI Institute to strengthen America’s AI capabilities and ensure that our troops have the latest and most advanced technologies at their fingertips.</li>

<li><strong>Supporting Europe’s Wall Against Russia: </strong>The NDAA establishes the Baltic Security Initiative to strengthen our allies on Russia’s borders to defend against Russian threats.</li>
</ul>

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<p>The post <a href="https://gottheimer.house.gov/posts/release-house-passes-annual-defense-bill-including-gottheimer-provisions-to-support-u-s-troops-fight-terrorism-defend-against-china-russia-iran">RELEASE: House Passes Annual Defense Bill Including Gottheimer Provisions to Support U.S. Troops, Fight Terrorism, &amp; Defend Against China, Russia, Iran</a> appeared first on <a href="https://gottheimer.house.gov">Josh Gottheimer</a>.</p>