Ahead of Congressional Passage, IFPTE Requests House Vote for National Defense Authorization Act for 2023
12/15/2022 UPDATE:
The House passed the NDAA for FY23 by a vote of 350 to 80. See how you Representative voted here.
The Senate passed the NDAA for FY23 by a vote of 83 to 11. Once differences in the House and Senate bills are resolved the legislation will be approved and sent the legislation to President Biden’s desk to be signed into law. See how your Senators voted here.
Ahead of a vote in the House of Representatives to pass the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 (NDAA), IFPTE asked Representatives to vote for the legislation which includes “continued infrastructure investments for Navy shipyards, depots, and other DOD facilities” as well as the Water Resources Development Act.
IFPTE’s letter notes that one of the key priorities, the union is disappointed that the NDAA does not include a provisions that would have prevented a “Schedule F” or a similar attempt by a president to decimate the ranks of the civil service, politicize tens of thousands of positions, and open the door for a patronage system in the federal government.
Some of the IFPTE priorities that are in the NDAA include:
• Continuation of the one-year probationary period for DOD workers, which was restored in last years’ NDAA. The Senate text for the NDAA for FY 2023 had previously included language to continue the two-year probationary period for new hires until DOD complied with a Congressional mandate to report on probation period policy. That Senate language was not included in the final NDAA for FY2023.
• The NDAA contains several sections regarding resources for Child Development Centers and requires Congressional briefings on the subject. The focus on DOD childcare facilities provides an opportunity to highlight IFPTE members whose families who lost access to these childcare facilities during the pandemic and now cannot find affordable childcare, which ultimately harms DOD’s ability to recruit and retain employees with children.
• Inclusion of the Water Resources Development Act of 2022 to authorize waterways construction and flood control projects, operations and maintenance expenditures, feasibility studies, and ecosystem preservation necessary to make sure that our nation’s inland waterway infrastructure provides a fundamental contribution to our national economy and to communities throughout the U.S.
• Extension of DOD’s authority to waive caps on annual pay and premium pay for DOD employees working overseas.
• Inclusion of the Fairness for Federal Firefighters Act, which extends presumption of illness to federal firefighters afflicted by long-term health conditions. The legislation provides resources to support research and proactive measures to improve safety and care for these workers suffering from severe illness.
Read IFPTE’s letter to the House of Representatives here.
Read IFPTE’s letter to the Senate here.