Hearings to examine the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2027.

The Personnel Subcommittee will come to order. The subcommittee meets today to mark up an original bill, the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2027. We will hold the subcommittee markup in open session. I am confident that we can publicly conduct our business without disclosing classified information or adversely impacting the process. In this regard, I ask that any senator wishing to offer an amendment or raise an issue of a classified nature defer that for the full committee's consideration.

While this subcommittee meeting is in open session, The entire contents of the markup book are subject to amendment throughout its consideration by the Armed Services Committee and are therefore embargoed until passed by the full committee and reported to the Senate. Traditionally, the subcommittee has used the Chairman's Mark as a markup vehicle. Without objection, we will use the Chairman's Mark as a markup vehicle to include the budgetary lines as designated for the subcommittee contained in the general provision marked subject to amendment. There being no objection, it is so ordered. I remind members, when calling up an amendment for consideration, please identify the amendment by amendment number.

This courtesy will help eliminate confusion and speed up consideration of all amendments consistent with the practice and precedent of both this subcommittee and the full committee. The following amendments will not be in order and will not be considered. Amendments involving a significant, significant matter that is not within the jurisdiction of this subcommittee. Amendments that contain a significant matter not within the jurisdiction of the full committee. Amendments that involve shared jurisdiction with another committee that has not agreed to consideration of the amendment for inclusion in this subcommittee's markup.

Amendments that would constitute an earmark: amendments to add funding that are not accompanied by an offset. If any senator proposes an amendment that would increase spending, he or she must also identify an offset to pay for it. Unless the offset can be made from funding under the jurisdiction of the subcommittee, the amendment must be offered at the full committee. Now that we have all these details behind us, I want to thank all of you, your staff, for working together to get some important legislation done for service members and their families. The Personnel Subcommittee's FY 2027 NDAA mark strengthens military readiness and improves quality of life for service members and their families through targeted investments in force structure, compensation, healthcare, and workforce modernization.

The package increases active duty and reserve end strengths across the services, enhanced base, special, and incentive pays, and expands travel and PCS flexibilities to support recruitment and retention. It also modernizes personnel management and military justice authorities, strengthens congressional oversight of promotions and force management decisions and advances workforce reforms for both military and civilian personnel. In addition, the mark expands support for military families through child care, spouse employment, education, and exceptional family member program improvements. It enhances TRICARE access, suicide prevention efforts, medical readiness, and combat health capabilities. Finally, it reinforces coordination between the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs to improve healthcare delivery and long-term support for service members, veterans, and their families.

As I've said before, maintaining the world's strongest military requires ensuring that an equitable share of Department of Defense resources is invested directly in the service members, families, and civilian workforce who underpin the force's readiness, resilience, and long-term effectiveness. So at this point, I'd like to invite Ranking Member Senator Warren to make a statement. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you for continuing the subcommittee's tradition of holding this markup in open session. I think it's critical that we show that Congress is continuing to work in a bipartisan manner to support our service members and our military families. This markup comes at a time when President Trump and Secretary Hegseth are risking the life of service members in an illegal war with Iran while making life more difficult for troops and their families back home.

It also comes at a time when the Trump administration continues to politicize the military to serve their own agenda. I am particularly disturbed by Secretary Hegseth's taking unprecedented actions to intervene in military promotions. In DOD's latest list of 22 Navy promotions to become one-star admirals. Zero of these promotions were women, and reporting indicates that the last time the Navy promoted a woman to a one-star role was last June. And Secretary Hegseth reportedly removed the nominations of two women and two Black men from the original promotion list.

It is also unclear why Secretary Hegseth has also now blocked the appointment of 9 Air Force colonels. He has also reportedly delayed the promotion of at least 2 dozen senior Air Force officers, quote, while the Pentagon reviews their ties to diversity, equity, and inclusion policies. President Trump also continues to politicize the military for cheap political theater, including his most recent reported stunt to recruit hundreds of troops to watch his UFC cage fighting event at the White House. This politicization will create lasting damage to our military and lasting damage to our country. DOD has also shown a blatant disregard for the critical role DOD civilians play to support support our military.

It was shameful that this administration failed to include any pay raises for civilian employees in its budget request. This mark includes some funding for civilians through bonuses, but at a time when President Trump's policies drive up costs for all Americans, it is unfair and insulting to deny DOD civilians a pay raise. Now, all of that said, I am proud of the bipartisan work done by this subcommittee to take care of our troops and military families. I would like to thank the chairman and thank the chairman's staff for their continued collaboration and adherence to tradition during the drafting of this mark. I am glad this mark includes funding for the chronically underfunded Defense Health program so that we can better support the health of our warfighters and their families.

It also fully funds Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, which is critical for bringing home service members to their families. I would also like to highlight just a few other important provisions that have made it into this bipartisan mark. This mark continues to push DOD to ensure our service members and their families —have access to high-quality child care by fully updating its pay scales for child care workers, including those who support kids with special needs. I am also glad the mark increases funding for child care and youth programs. While the services have made some progress in updating these pay scales, it is long past time for all branches to fully update them based on the requirements that Congress passed in the FY 2025 NDAA.

The committee will be watching closely to make sure that happens. I guarantee that. This mark also requires GAO to review the TRICARE Pharmacy Program, including whether the Defense Health Agency is effectively assessing conflicts of interest in the program due to vertical integration. Express Scripts, the largest pharmacy benefit manager in the United States, has held the exclusive TRICARE pharmacy contract for nearly 20 years. And during that time, it has forced thousands of local pharmacies out of the TRICARE network, allowing the company to potentially steer more business to its own mail-order pharmacies.

This makes it harder for our troops and their families to fill prescriptions at their local pharmacies, and it allows Express Scripts to rake in more profits and allegedly to charge DOD a higher rate. We need to be doing more to stop this apparent profiteering at the expense of our service members, their families, and the American taxpayer. We unfortunately continue to hear of cases of sexual assault in the military, such as the cases of an Army OB/GYN who has been accused of recording videos of nearly 100 female patients without their consent. DHA took an important step last December to establish a policy requiring all military treatment facilities to offer a chaperone to any patient during sensitive medical examinations. This policy helps keep patients safe.

So I am glad that the mark directs the Defense Health Agency to review which hospitals are compliant with required chaperone policies and to develop a plan and recommendations based on their findings. Congress should go further by mandating this policy in law. I am glad that this mark also continues to push DOD to prioritize the brain health of our warfighters. I've been proud to work on this on a bipartisan basis for years, and I want to thank Senator Ernst for her partnership. This year's bill continues to make progress on this issue by requiring DOD to brief this committee on the feasibility of regular cognitive testing and establishing blast overpressure and traumatic brain injury laws logs to better catch these brain injuries earlier when they are more susceptible to treatment.

Traumatic brain injuries have become the, quote, signature injury of the war against Iran. And the sooner we begin to implement these logs and do a better job tracking these injuries and making regular assessments to catch brain injuries, the better we can ensure that service members get the care they need. I am also glad that the mark encourages DOD to improve early identification of brain injuries, including through partnering with nonprofit organizations that specialize in treating these injuries. The mark requires DOD to brief the committee on opportunities with existing nonprofit partnerships for TBI treatment and early intervention. I want to call out organizations like Home Base in Massachusetts that have a strong track record of getting 95% of the special operators that they treat for these types of brain injuries back into the field.

DOD should continue to work with them to ensure service members have access to the care they need. And I, I really do want to pause here for a minute just to say I know how many of you have fought for this for a very long time. Senator Blumenthal has brought us one story after another. I want to compliment the chairman for your work on this. This is a hard one and it's easy to leave behind.

And also Senator Scott, who was quite aggressive in earlier years in making sure that we got this in front of, um, into our mark each year as we could. It frustrates me that it has been a kicking and scratching to get DOD to do what is necessary to protect the brain health of our warfighters. And when we fail to do that, we pay a terrible price back at home. And the families pay a price, communities pay a price, and it's got to stop. So I want to thank you all for being part of this.

I also want to thank Senator Hirono, who has also talked about this issue. So thank you. These are just some of the key provisions in the Chairman's Mark. I look forward to working with my colleagues on this subcommittee and the full committee to see what else we can do to improve the lives of our service members and our families. I want to thank all of the members of the subcommittee and full committee for their work on this bill, as well as their staff.

I especially want to thank the committee staff: John Clark, Gary Leeling, Andy Scott, Jenny Davis, Noah Sisk, Sophia Kamali, Glenn Deal, Megan Galindo, Madeline Gunther, Brendan Gavin, Katie Magnus, Isaac Jelkullen. Did I get that right? Jelkullen. Greg Lilly and Leah Baver. So thank you all.

All I ever say is, Isaac, thank you very much. Appreciate all the help we've gotten. Thank you, Senator Warren. I had trouble with that name also. Thank you.

Now, we've received 58 amendments, starting with Senator Banks' number 18 and finishing with Senator Rosen's number 630, that have been cleared by both sides. Is there any objection to adopting these amendments? Without objection, the manager's package is adopted. Are there any other amendments?

I will entertain a motion that the subcommittee adopt these agreed amendments as well as the budgetary lines designated for this subcommittee contained in the general provision mark as part of the personnel subcommittee mark.

Is there a second? Second. All in favor say aye. Aye. All opposed say nay.

The motion is agreed to. I move that the recommendations of the subcommittee be reported to the full committee. And that the staff be authorized to draft bill and report language implementing agreements reached today and to make necessary technical and conforming changes.

So moved. Thank you. Is there a second? Second. All in favor say aye.

Aye. All opposed say nay. The motion is agreed to. Is there any other business to come before the subcommittee?

Subcommittee is adjourned.