Senate acts quickly to add funds for military equipment
Spending bill amendment approved unanimously would give $7.8 billion more to the Army and $5.3 billion more to the Marine Corps.
The Senate swiftly added $13.1 billion to the fiscal 2007 Defense appropriations bill Tuesday, an amount that would give the Army and Marine Corps much of the money they need to repair and replace equipment lost or damaged in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Senate Defense Appropriations Chairman Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, introduced the amendment as the first order of business on the spending bill, which he hopes the Senate will pass before the chamber adjourns later this week for a month-long recess.
The substantial add-on, approved unanimously, comes after a week of mounting concerns on both sides of the aisle that the Army, in particular, is nearing a crisis over lost combat readiness and dwindling finances as it awaits billions of dollars for Humvees, tanks and other equipment.
The amendment augments the $50 billion supplemental bridge fund for military operations that accompanies the Defense bill, allocating $7.8 billion to the Army and $5.3 billion to the Marine Corps. The Army has said it needs $17.1 billion for war-ravaged equipment next year, while Marine Corps estimates run as high as $11.7 billion.
Senate appropriators have already approved about $6 billion for Army equipment restoration in their markup of the bill. The Army will likely make up the remaining $3.3 billion in a supplemental spending bill that Congress is expected to approve next spring.
Stevens, initially reluctant to boost the bridge fund, said he decided to add the money after consulting with Defense Department and Office of Management and Budget officials, who cleared the addition to Army and Marine Corps coffers.
"We've had a series of requests from members and from portions of the military establishment to add money to this bill due to emergency requirements that were not presented to us at the time we considered the bill in our committee," he said on the floor.
His amendment steals thunder from Senate Democrats, who had planned to introduce an amendment that would have added a lesser amount -- $10.2 billion -- to the bridge fund for Army and Marine Corps equipment.
The chairman's support also all but ensures the increase will make it through conference on the spending bill with the House, where there already is bipartisan support for more spending to meet emergency equipment needs.
Stevens asked Senate leaders to resume consideration of the bill early Wednesday, and to include at least another full day of debate so it could be passed before the recess and "we can proceed to conference early in September."
"The Army, Navy and Air Force and Marines need these funds -- at the beginning of the fiscal year, not three or four months after the beginning of the fiscal year," he said.
After leaving the floor, Stevens acknowledged the bill still risked getting tied up over amendments, but said, "We don't know that there are any amendments that are substantial."
Mark Wegner contributed to this report.