Husted secures wins for Ohio as National Defense Authorization Act passes Senate

WASHINGTON - Sen. Jon Husted (R-Ohio) today voted to pass the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Husted also announced that he helped secure critical funding for Ohio and U.S. military projects in the fiscal year 2026 NDAA.

"Working together is possible-and we were reminded of that tonight when the NDAA passed with bipartisan support," said Husted.

"America's military needs aggressive modernization to be prepared for the real and emerging threats posed by our adversaries. With the passage of the NDAA, we are taking an important step in rebuilding our military might, modernizing our forces and standing firmly behind the men and women who defend our freedom. Thanks to President Trump's leadership, America is once again promoting peace through strength. This bill cuts through bureaucratic red tape, invests in innovation and ensures our troops are equipped with Made-in-America technology to meet the threats of today and tomorrow," Husted added.

"I'm especially proud that Ohio will continue to lead the way in America's defense," Husted continued. "This legislation delivers major investments in new infrastructure and technology at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, advances cutting-edge research at NASA Glenn in Cleveland and strengthens key national defense assets across our state."

"Peace is preserved through strength, and deterrence is our surest safeguard against war. This bill puts America back on solid footing to deter our adversaries and protect our national interests. I will continue fighting to ensure our Armed Forces have the tools to win-and that Ohio remains at the heart of America's renewed strength and pride," concluded Husted.

BACKGROUND

The NDAA is the annual law that sets the budget and policies for the Pentagon and other defense-related activities.

The FY 2026 NDAA includes a 3.8% pay raise for military members, ensuring their pay remains ahead of inflation.

The inclusion of the below provisions in the NDAA builds on Husted's support for Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, NASA Glenn Research Center and other key national defense-related assets in the state of Ohio.

Husted secured the following Ohio and national wins in the bill:

• $45 million to build the Human Performance Wing Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB).
  • This building will serve as the modernized headquarters for the Human Effectiveness Directorate of the 711th Human Performance Wing, which advances human warfighter capabilities in training, bioeffects and bioengineering.
  • The directorate currently operates out of a series of outdated facilities spread out over a mile on the base. This new facility will consolidate the directorate's activities under one roof with modern equipment, maximizing collaboration and effectiveness.
• $15 million in planning and design funding for a full refurbishment of WPAFB's primary runway.
  • The primary runway servicing the base has been deteriorating for many years, staying operational only through a series of costly patches and restoration work.
  • A full repair of the primary runway is needed to ensure the base can maintain its current mission set and attract new one.
  • $2.8 million to begin designing a new artificial intelligence (AI) supercomputing center at WPAFB. The construction of the AI Supercomputer Center is essential to U.S. defense capabilities in artificial intelligence, high-performance computing, and advanced modeling & simulation.
  • This investment will ensure the Air Force can meet supercomputing needs for weapon system development and intelligence applications.
• Language to encourage the Pentagon to use existing hypersonic testing facilities instead of wasting taxpayer dollars on building duplicative facilities.
  • This language will ensure the Hypersonic Tunnel Facility (HTF) located at NASA's Neil Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky will remain a critical node of the nation's development of hypersonic weapons.
• Language requiring the Pentagon to develop a supply chain mapping strategy to identify critical vulnerabilities in the supply chains of weapons systems and other military equipment.
• $10 million for Project Pele to build an expeditionary micro nuclear reactor for the military, which will create Ohio jobs.
• Language to support the Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program. Through the CCA program, the Air Force is developing a cost-effective, autonomous "drone wingman" aircraft that will pair with manned fighters to expand their capabilities.
  • Defense tech company Anduril will build its participant in the CCA program, the Fury aircraft, at its $1 billion hyperscale manufacturing facility in Columbus.
  • This language builds off Husted's work to secure funding for the acceleration of the CCA program in the budget law.
• $2 million for the DEEP SENTRY program to infuse AI and machine learning into America's missile defense system, accelerating decision-making and enabling our warfighters to rapidly respond to dynamic aerial threats. Ohio is home to developers of the missile defense software used in DEEP SENTRY.
  • The DEEP SENTRY program supports U.S. missile defense across combatant commands and theaters and serves as a critical technology for President Trump's Golden Dome initiative.
• A provision encouraging the Army and the Air Force to require head and hearing protection for aircraft maintenance workers.
  • Currently, the Navy and Marine Corps mandate head impact and hearing protection for maintenance personnel working on or near military aircraft.
  • However, the Army and Air Force have no such requirement, leaving their aircraft maintainers at risk for head injuries and acute hearing loss.
• A cyber workforce strategy to recruit and retain federal cybersecurity talent.

In July, Husted joined Ohio lawmakers in urging Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to maintain a four-star general as the commander of Air Force Materiel Command, which is headquartered at WPAFB.

Full text of the bill is available here.