On Monday, US President Joe Biden made a historic request for $813 billion in funding for the Department of Defense and defense-related programs at other agencies.
The monies include $773 billion in direct Pentagon financing and an extra $40 billion for defense-related initiatives at other agencies, such as the Energy Department’s nuclear energy-related activities.
The $773 billion in discretionary Pentagon spending reflects a 10% increase above the fiscal year 2021 levels.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the request to Congress “reinforces our commitment to the concept of integrated deterrence, allows us to better sequence and conduct operations around the world that are aligned to our priorities, modernizes the Joint Force, and provides meaningful support for our dedicated workforce and their families.”
“Through coordination with our allies and partners, our department’s budget will allow us continue to defend the nation, care for our people, and prosper,” he said in a statement.
According to the Pentagon, the budget plan includes $56.5 billion for air power and related platforms, $40.8 billion for naval power, which includes financing for nine new warships, and $12.6 billion for modernizing Army and Marine Corps fighting vehicles.
For research and development, more than $130 billion has been asked, which Austin described as “an all-time high.”
Service members and civilian Pentagon employees would receive a 4.6 percent wage raise, the “biggest in a generation,” according to the White House, and the Biden administration is requesting $479 million from Congress to execute recommendations from an independent commission.that probed sexual assault in the military.
The proposal continues to maintain China is the Pentagon’s “pacing challenge,” and Austin said the proposal will “will help us prepare for other future challenges, as well, including those posed by climate change.”
More than $3 billion is being allocated to meet the challenges presented by climate change.