WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rep. French Hill (AR-02) voted for the House Amendment to S. 1071, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2026, which passed the House with a bipartisan vote of 312-112. The bill supports military personnel and families in Arkansas, strengthens our national defense, modernizes our military capabilities, and includes several provisions introduced by Rep. Hill.
Rep. Hill said, “Our military must have the capabilities it needs to counter the threats posed by China and Russia and to operate in a world that grows more complex each year. It is our job in Congress to make sure the men and women who serve in our armed forces have the support they need to carry out their mission. This bill does that. It makes critical investments that will keep our military the strongest in the world and takes care of servicemembers and their families by delivering well-deserved pay raises and increasing support for child care. It also ensures that those serving in uniform have the weapons, training, and resources required to deter threats and defend our nation.
“I am also proud that several of my provisions were included in this year’s NDAA to support our bases in central Arkansas, as well as one to strengthen our ability to counter the wrongful detention of Americans abroad.”
Rep. Hill Delivers on Key Priorities:
- Protecting the National Guard Marksmanship Training Center (NGMTC) at Camp Robinson: Rep. Hill’s amendment ensures the NGMTC remains in Arkansas and directs the Secretary of the Army to designate the NGMTC as an institution under the Army’s Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC), make its courses Guard-centric, award Guardsmen a Master Marksmanship Training identifier, and integrate programs into the Army Program Objective Memorandum. This protects Arkansas Guardsmen and ensures that Camp Robinson will be the permanent home of the NGMTC.
- Expanding C-130J Training Capacity at Little Rock Air Force Base: Rep. Hill’s measure requires the Secretary of the Air Force to submit a report on C-130J modernization and recapitalization efforts. This positions Little Rock Air Force Base to support the full transition to the J model, strengthens training programs, and maintains its role as the nation’s premier tactical airlift installation.
- Countering Wrongful Detention: The NDAA includes Rep. Hill’s bipartisan bill, the Countering Wrongful Detention Act of 2025, which creates a formal designation for countries or nonstate actors that wrongfully detain U.S. citizens and allows the U.S. State Department to impose diplomatic and economic consequences to deter and punish those bad actors who seek to use Americans as political pawns.
Additional Wins for Arkansas
- Includes a 3.8% pay increase for all servicemembers.
- Support for organic industrial base sites across Arkansas by adding additional production lines and modernization initiatives.
- Supporting Arkansas’s defense industrial base by directing an evaluation of U.S. stockpiles of critical munitions that are widely produced by major defense contractors located in the state.
- Expands childcare capacity and hiring to support family stability, increase retention, and ease financial burdens on our servicemembers and their families.
- Expands parental and convalescent leave and standardizes related policies
- Supports military housing and education initiatives for military families.
- Mandates new barracks housing standards and requires new corrective action plans for unsafe facilities.
- Expands vital telehealth and mail order pharmacy benefits for veterans and active-duty servicemembers.
- Updates TRICARE and the military health system to improve access, reduce appointment delays, and close persistent coverage gaps.
- Strengthens small business integration in defense programs.
- Continues DOD’s longstanding support for federal and state law enforcement counterdrug operations.
- Expands DOD’s ability to assist in fentanyl interdiction, helping to combat and prevent fentanyl from crossing our border.
Further Background:
House Amendment to S. 1071, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026, would authorize $900.6 billion in funding, $866 billion of which would be for the Department of Defense discretionary base, $34 billion in Department of Energy discretionary base, and $500 million in Defense-related activities. Overall, it would provide for an increase in authorization of $14 billion or 1.6 percent over FY 2025 enacted levels. This is an annual bill that has passed for the last 64 years and supports our warfighters and protects our nation.
