Mountain State Times

Charleston, WV – U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Cybersecurity and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), secured West Virginia and national priorities in the SASC markup of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2024. The Committee voted 24-1 to advance the bill, and it now heads to the Senate floor for consideration.

“Now more than ever, we need a strong national security and defense strategy that protects our nation from threats at home and abroad, and this bill helps us deliver on that front,” said Senator Manchin. “The NDAA is the most important bill we consider every year that makes our country more secure, defends us against our evolving security challenges, takes care of our troops and their families, and puts West Virginia at the forefront of leading on national security issues. As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, I am committed to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to finalize this essential legislation that includes numerous provisions for the Mountain State.”

The NDAA establishes the funding levels and creates new programs within the Department of Defense (DOD) annually, passage of this bill marks the 63rd year in a row Congress has advanced this critical piece of legislation. The FY24 NDAA authorizes $876 billion, including $844 billion for the Department of Defense and $32 billion for Department of Energy (DOE) national security programs, which Senator Manchin also oversees as the Chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

West Virginia and national priorities included in FY24 NDAA:

1.    Reestablishment of the Chief Management Officer of the DoD: Reestablishes the position of the Chief Management Officer as the third most senior individual in the DOD. This position was originally recommended by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in 2005 to lead business innovation and cost savings initiatives in the Department but was not created until the FY2017 NDAA by Senator Manchin’s Audit the Pentagon Act. It was then disestablished a mere four years later due to claims of ineffectiveness, but the position was never provided with a charter confirming its authority within the Department. Senator Manchin ensured the position will be re-established, and provided a charter within 30 days, to provide the leadership the DOD needs on prioritizing cost savings.

2.    Artificial Intelligence Strategy: Requires the Department to provide an updated strategy and report to Congress on its artificial intelligence developments, regulations, and protections to ensure the United States maintains its competitive edge in this rapidly evolving field.

3.    Assessment of Military Training Areas: Requires two separate studies into the need to modernize the Department of Defense’s military training areas. This strategy has been supported by Senator Manchin in his efforts to construct a Joint All-Domain Training Complex in Southern, WV.

4.    West Virginia National Guard Ridge Runner Irregular Warfare Exercise: Encourages the DOD to continue the Ridge Runner Irregular Warfare Exercise, which is an irregular warfare exercise run by the West Virginia National Guard that brings special operations forces and conventional forces to West Virginia from five other states and foreign partners from fourteen nations to train on irregular warfare concepts.

5.    West Virginia National Guard Locked Shields Cyber Critical Infrastructure Protection Exercise: Authorizes $4,000,000 in funding to the U.S. team for preparation and participation in this exercise, and encourages the Department of Defense to continue the Locked Shields Cyber Critical Infrastructure Protection Exercise, the world’s largest international cyber defense exercise. This annual exercise involves over 38 nations and 3,000 participants, and the U.S. team is led by the West Virginia National Guard from the Morgantown, WV armory.

6.    West Virginia National Guard Mission Assurance Program: Authorizes $4,000,000 in funding to the Army Interagency Training and Education Command within the West Virginia Army National Guard for the establishment of a Mission Assurance program to acquire and maintain all-domain awareness of threats posed to critical infrastructure, and offer assistance to those entities in conducting all-domain threat assessments and remedial actions within their systems.

7.    Special Operations Cyber Development: Authorizes $5,000,000 in funding to Marine Corps Special Operations Command’s Technical Surveillance Cyber Course (MTSCC) to support special operations requirements for expeditionary cyber operations.

8.    Creation of a Cyber Intelligence Center: Require the establishment of a dedicated cyber intelligence center to support the requirements of CYBERCOM, the other combatant commands, the military departments, defense agencies, the Joint Staff, and the Office of the Secretary of Defense for foundational, scientific and technical, and all-source intelligence on cyber technology development, capabilities, concepts of operations, operations, and plans and intentions of cyber threat actors.

9.    Elevates the Vice Chief of the National Guard Bureau: Elevates the Vice Chief of the National Guard Bureau to the rank of four-star general, consistent with the Vice Chiefs of the other military services.

10.    Hiring Freeze on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Positions: Halts the hiring of any new positions solely responsible for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) matters within the DOD until a Government Accountability Office study is provided to Congress detailing the effects of DEI within the DOD.

11.    Report and Briefing on Non-Covered Health Care Policies of the DOD: Requires the DOD and Department of Justice (DOJ) to provide a report and briefing to Congress before July 24th on the legality of the Pentagon’s policies covering travel reimbursement and leave to seek non-covered health care services.

Original source can be found here.