WASHINGTON, DC—Today, U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Roger Wicker (R-MS), the Ranking Member and Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, announced that they have filed S. 2296, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 (NDAA).

Senator Reed issued the following statement after filing the bill:

“This year’s National Defense Authorization Act represents a strong, bipartisan commitment to ensuring our military remains focused on its core mission: defending the United States against the growing threats we face around the world. From strategic competition with China and Russia to emerging dangers in cyberspace and space, this bill equips our forces to meet today’s challenges with strength and resolve.

“This legislation also restores important guardrails for the Department of Defense and reaffirms the military’s independence and professionalism. It ensures resources are directed toward real national security priorities, not partisan agendas. I’m proud to have worked with colleagues on both sides of the aisle to get this done, and to ensure that America’s military remains strong, focused, and worthy of the trust the American people place in it.”

The FY26 NDAA authorizes $879 billion for the Department of Defense (DOD) and $35 billion for national security programs within the Department of Energy (DOE).  

Highlights include:

  • Authorizes procurement of five Columbia-class submarines and $2.02 billion for aVirginia-class submarine, an increase of $1.2 billion over the budget request.
  • Provides a 3.8 percent pay raise for military servicemembers.
  • Expands efforts to mitigate and treat traumatic brain injuries and blast overpressure-related injuries.
  • Authorizes full funding for the Pacific Deterrence Initiative (PDI) and provides support to advance the U.S. partnerships with Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and the Philippines, and directs an initiative to strengthen security cooperation across the respective defense industrial bases of U.S. allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific.
  • Extends the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) through 2028 and increases USAI funding to $500 million in FY 2026.
  • Reaffirms that it is the policy of the United States to assist Ukraine in maintaining a credible defense and deterrence capability, and requires DOD to continue to provide intelligence support, including information, intelligence, and imagery collection to Ukraine.
  • Limits the use of funds to reduce or consolidate U.S. force presence in Syria unless the Secretary of Defense certifies that Syrian partners forces can still effectively counter the threat from ISIS.
  • Directs DOD to use all available authorities to provide assistance, including training, equipment, logistics support, and supplies, to support and enhance the military forces of Jordan and Lebanon and provide a plan for how to implement that assistance.
  • Requires reports and provides greater resources for developing UAS technologies and responding to drone incursions.
  • Expands DOD's artificial intelligence (AI) resources and establishes new DOD authorities to coordinate AI initiatives among U.S. allies and partners.
  • Supports reproductive healthcare by establishing a comprehensive in-vitro fertilization (IVF) healthcare benefit for active-duty servicemembers and their families.

Oversight of the Trump Administration:

  • Prohibits any reduction in U.S. military force posture in Europe or the Korean Peninsula below 76,000 and 28,500 personnel, respectively, and prohibits any change in the U.S. military leadership of NATO or the Combined Forces Command – Korea without certain conditions. Further directs the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs and the Commanders of U.S. European Command, Indo-Pacific Command, and U.S. Forces Korea to conduct independent risk assessments of any such changes.
  • Fences 25 percent of the travel budget for the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) until the Secretary provides a bilaterally agreed 5-year Taiwan Security Assistance Roadmap and a number of other overdue reports, including a report on DOD efforts to identify, disseminate, and implement lessons learned from the war in Ukraine.
  • Requires DOD to report its incurred costs from supporting the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in immigration enforcement activities; the number of migrants held at DOD installations and the associated costs; approved Requests for Assistance from DHS to support immigration enforcement operations; and the costs of using military aircraft and facilities to support DHS immigration enforcement operations.
  • Reinstates mandatory training for all military members on rules of engagement, domestic military operations, the code of conduct, and government ethics to protect against escalation during domestic operations.
  • Requires the Secretary of Defense to implement the renaming recommendations for military bases in Virginia that were adopted by the Naming Commission, and prohibits the Secretary of Defense from changing those names.
  • Requires the Secretary of Defense to submit a minimum of 5 days notice to Congress if a military Judge Advocate General (JAG) is being removed, and a statement of the reason for the removal.
  • Requires the President to notify Congress of the removal of a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the reason for the removal not later than 5 days after the removal.
  • Requires the Secretary of Defense to notify Congress when military officers are removed from selection board reports and lists for reasons other than misconduct.

View the bill text of the SASC-passed FY26 NDAA.

View the executive summary of the FY26 NDAA.