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Statement of Administration Policy: H.R. 4428 - FY 1987 Defense Authorization Act

July 30, 1986

STATEMENT OF ADMINISTRATION POLICY

(House Rules)
(Rep. Aspin (D) Wisconsin)

The Administration supports House passage of H.R. 4428 at a higher authorization level than was reported by the Armed Services Committee. The Administration supports the adoption of amendments to:

— restore funding for several strategic programs including the Strategic Defense Initiative, the Trident submarine, the Trident II (D-5) missile, Peacekeeper R&D and missile procurement and the Advance Cruise Missile;

— delete the funding limitations and prohibition on production of the miniature homing vehicle Anti-Satellite (ASAT) System;

— restore full funding for the 155 mm Binary Chemical Projectilie and for the Bigeye Binary Chemical Bomb, which recently successfully completed the first phase of operational testing;

— fund the full request for the Rolling Air Frame missile, which is an important NATO cooperative program;

— delete the new general provision that would require iurure budget submissions to include 10 percent of the total Military Construction request for Guard and Reserve construction projects;

— restore funding for several military construction projects, including maintenance and support facilities at Andrews AFB and at Anacostia Naval Station, Sixth Infantry Division facilities in Alaska, an aircraft refueling facility in Morocco, and a strategic homeporting facility at Everett, Washington;

— increase the pay raise for military personnel proposed m the bill from 3 percent to 4 percent as proposed by the Administration, and make it effective in October 1986 rather than January 1987;

— delete the provisions that prohibit the payment of enlistment bonuses to all military services, except the Army, that cap new reenlistment bonus payments at $291.6 million, and that cap funding on permanent change of station;

— delete the provision that increases the enlisted/officer ratio from the current level of 6.0:1 to 6.5:1 by the end of FY 1990 resulting in a loss of approximately 23,500 commissioned officers from FY 1986 levels;

— delete the stockpiling amendments that rescind the Presidential stockpile goal-setting authority and that set goals far in' excess of security requirements; and

— delete the provision that would require the Department of Defense to implement an air charter safety program which is unnecessary and duplicates functions already performed by DOD and FAA.

In addition to the above-noted concerns, the Administration may seek to have certain features of the bill modified in conference to conform more closely to its request.

Ronald Reagan, Statement of Administration Policy: H.R. 4428 - FY 1987 Defense Authorization Act Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/327267

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