FY 2023 NDAA

Congress Urges Pentagon to Fund COVID-19 Detection Dog Study

COVID-19 detection canine Poncho indicates a positive sample from multiple items presented on a canine training wheel in 2020. US Army Photo

COVID-19 research in the military is going to the dogs. COVID-19 detecting dogs, to be specific.

Language from the text of the Fiscal Year 2023 National Defense Authorization Act, approved by the House on Thursday, calls for the continued funding of Army research that uses scent detection dogs to sniff out diseases like COVID-19 in their early stages.

While...

https://news.usni.org/2022/12/08/congress-urges-pentagon-to-fund-covid-19-detection-dog-study

Pentagon Unclear How Military Would Handle End of Mandatory COVID-19 Vaccines

Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Gregzon Fontanilla, from Guam, prepares a COVID-19 vaccine aboard the America-class amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli (LHA-7) on May 10, 2022. US Navy Photo

The Pentagon has no ready answers on how the Department of Defense would implement pending legislation that would allow service members to refuse the COVID-19 vaccine without facing separation, officials said this week.

Congressional Republicans negotiated with the Democrat-led House and Senate to include...

https://news.usni.org/2022/12/07/pentagon-unclear-how-military-would-handle-end-of-mandatory-covid-19-vaccines

Biden Signs Continuing Resolution Keeping Government Running Through Dec. 16

President Joe Biden on Friday signed a stopgap funding bill into law, preventing a government shutdown on the last day of the fiscal year.
The continuing resolution keeps the government funded through Dec. 16, giving lawmakers more time to pass Fiscal Year 2023 funding bills, including the annual defense appropriations legislation.

The House passed the measure on Friday after the Senate passed the CR on Thursday.

Both chambers are in recess until after Election Day, meaning both the FY 2023...

https://news.usni.org/2022/09/30/biden-signs-continuing-resolution-keeping-government-running-through-dec-16

Sailors Bid Farewell to USS Monterey as Navy Prepares to Decommission 3 More Cruisers This Month

Sailors assigned to the USS Monterey (CG-61) depart the ship for the final time during its decommissioning ceremony Sept. 16 in Norfolk, Va. US Navy Photo

The Navy decommissioned the guided-missile cruiser USS Monterey (CG-61) in a ceremony on Friday as the service continues to take Ticonderoga-class cruisers out of inventory.
Monterey, built at the General Dynamics Bath Iron Works shipyard in Maine, was commissioned on June 16, 1990, in Mayport, Fla., The ship served 32 years, according to a...

https://news.usni.org/2022/09/19/sailors-bid-farewell-to-uss-monterey-as-navy-prepares-to-decommission-3-more-cruisers-this-month

House Passes FY2023 Defense Bill Authorizing 13 Battle Force Ships, Saves 5 LCS

Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer Jack H. Lucas (DDG-125) launching at Ingalls Shipbuilding on June 5, 2021. HII Photo

The House voted to approve its $839 billion defense authorization bill that raises the topline for defense spending by $37 billion and signed off on major additions to the Department of the Navy’s budget.

In a 329-101 vote, the bill authorized 13 battle force ships for the service – five more than the Navy requested in this year’s budget request.

The bill authorizes an...

https://news.usni.org/2022/07/14/house-passes-fy2023-defense-bill-authorizing-13-battle-force-ships-saves-5-lcs

Congress Considering New Leave Rules for Sailors, Marines Seeking Abortions

NASA Photo

Congress is considering new legislation that would remove a barrier for sailors and Marines to get time off for abortions.

Currently, the Navy and Marine Corps do not have a leave policy that would allow pregnant service members to get abortions, especially those that require leaving the state. Although Tricare, the military insurance, covers abortions when the mother’s life is at risk or in the case of rape, federal funding cannot be used for abortions, meaning most service members...

https://news.usni.org/2022/07/06/congress-considering-new-leave-rules-for-sailors-marines-seeking-abortions

HASC’s FY 23 NDAA Authorizes 13 Ships, Establishes Naval Review Committee

The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson (DDG-114) pulls alongside the Henry J. Kaiser-class underway replenishment oiler USNS Guadalupe (T-AO-200) in preparation for a replenishment-at-sea in the South China Sea on Feb. 10, 2022. US Navy Photo

The House Armed Services Committee approved the annual defense policy bill early Thursday that would authorize the Navy to buy a total of 13 ships.

The committee’s version of the Fiscal Year 2023 National Defense Authorization...

https://news.usni.org/2022/06/23/hascs-fy-23-ndaa-authorizes-13-ships-establishes-naval-review-committee

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