House authorizers begin marathon mark-up of defense policy bill

The House Armed Services Committee began what was expected to be a day-long mark-up of the fiscal year 2018 defense authorization bill amid continued disagreement over the appropriate level of government funding for defense and non-defense priorities.

The bill would provide $621 billion in base defense spending and $75 billion to the Overseas Contingency Operations account, of which $10 billion would be allowed for base-budget needs.

The committee's top Democrat, Rep. Adam Smith (WA), noted that the base topline is well above the $549 billion cap mandated by 2011 Budget Control Act.

"This is not going to work, OK?" he said during his opening statement. "We're not just going to -- after seven months of not doing it -- raise the budget caps. We're hoping. We need to get past that."

Smith, like many members of Congress, called for a repeal of the BCA or a raising of the budget caps. But Republicans on the House Budget Committee have yet to agree on a spending level for FY-18 and Senate Democrats have pledged to block any budget legislation that does not equally raise the BCA caps for defense and non-defense.

"The path we're on right now is $549 [billion] unless something changes," Smith said. "We're not going to have enough money to fund everything. We've got to get smart, we've got to make choices."

House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-TX), who noted the committee would consider 330 amendments and more than 1,500 legislative provisions for the bill, acknowledged the fiscal challenge before Congress.

"There are many moving pieces to the broader budget picture that will develop over this year," he said. "But for today and for our responsibilities as the Armed Services Committee, it is important for us to put down this marker for what we need for national defense."