WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (Mo.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, released the following statement today after voting in favor of the FY2017 Defense Appropriations Act in committee. The measure was reported by the full Appropriations Committee, and is ready to be considered on the Senate floor.

“Our service men and women put themselves in harm’s way to keep our country safe,” Blunt said. “It is imperative that we ensure our military has what it needs to carry out its mission. This bill prioritizes programs at Whiteman, Rosecrans, Fort Leonard Wood, Lake City Army Ammunition Plant, and Missouri National Guard installations across the state that are critical to maintaining our defense capabilities. It also bars the president from carrying out his plan to bring terrorist detainees to U.S. soil. I urge all of my colleagues to support the measure when it comes to the floor.” 

Missouri is home to more than 17,000 active duty service men and women, more than 8,000 civilian Department of Defense employees, and more than 20,000 reservists and members of the National Guard.

The bill responsibly supports our defense needs by recommending more than 450 specific budget cuts totaling $15.1 billion, and reinvesting those funds to support unfunded requirements identified by the military branches, as well as readiness and military modernization priorities.

Blunt Provisions Included in the FY2017 Defense Appropriations Bill:

Super Hornets – The bill provides funding for 14 Super Hornets manufactured in St. Louis, Mo. to meet the U.S. Navy’s tactical aviation shortfalls.

C-130 Aircraft – Rosecrans Air National Guard Base in St. Joseph, Mo. is the nation’s premier Air Guard training center for Advanced Airlift Tactical Training. The bill provides funding for additional C-130 aircraft, and for C-130 modernization to meet Air National Guard intra-theater airlift mobility requirements.

Tomahawk Missile Systems – The bill provides $236.1 million for Tomahawk missile systems to meet our nation’s minimum sustainment rate needs for long-range, all-weather subsonic cruise missile capabilities.

Research Investments – The bill provides $2.3 billion in research funding for the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Department of Defense. That funding will support research and development initiatives at the University of Missouri, and among defense industry leaders across the state. The bill also provides increased funding to continue groundbreaking medical research, which will save lives, reduce disability, and decrease the economic burden of traumatic injury.