INSIGHTi

FY2022 NDAA: Procurement Authorizations
February 28, 2022
The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) typically authorizes appropriations for Department of
Defense (DOD) procurement programs in Title I of Division A of the legislation. DOD procurement
accounts fund the purchase of new equipment and modifications to existing weapons, including ships,
aircraft, ground combat vehicles, munitions, and other products and services. The Departments of the
Army, Navy, and Air Force have multiple procurement accounts, including those related to subordinate
services (i.e., Marine Corps and Space Force). The Procurement, Defense-Wide account supports Special
Operations Command (SOCOM), the Missile Defense Agency, and other agencies reporting to the Office
of the Secretary of Defense. Congress typically appropriates funding for the National Guard and Reserve
Equipment Account (NGREA) to procure items for the reserve components.
Summary of Procurement Authorizations
President’s Budget Request
The FY2022 President’s budget requested $133.6 billion in discretionary funding for DOD procurement
programs—$8 billion (6%) less than the enacted FY2021 level. Of this amount, $132.2 billion fell within
the scope of the NDAA. In a memorandum to DOD employees, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III
identified among his priorities innovation and modernization, including the divestment of “legacy systems
and programs that no longer meet our security needs.” In an overview of the FY2022 budget request,
DOD identified $2.8 billion in divestments among the Departments and SOCOM, including certain ships
(e.g., Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruisers and Littoral Combat Ships), aircraft (e.g., A-10 close air
support aircraft and KC-10 and KC-135 refueling tankers), and other systems.
House-Passed NDAA
The House-passed NDAA would have authorized $147.1 billion for procurement programs—$14.9 billion
(11.2%) more than the request. The House legislation would have authorized $17 billion in increases to
the request (i.e., funding beyond the amounts for certain programs requested in the budget or for
programs not requested in the budget). The net effect of these increases would have been offset by $2.15
billion in decreases to the request.
The Biden Administration opposed the House bill’s “restoration of funding to systems that limit DOD’s
ability to divest or retire lower priority platforms not relevant to tomorrow’s battlefield.”
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SASC-Reported NDAA
The SASC-reported NDAA would have authorized $144.1 billion for procurement programs—$11.8
billion (9.0%) more than the request. The legislation would have authorized $12.4 billion in increases to
the request. The net effect of these increases would have been offset by $0.6 billion in decreases to the
request.
The Administration opposed the SASC bill’s restoration of funding for certain “vulnerable and costly
platforms that no longer meet mission or security needs.”
Enacted NDAA
The enacted NDAA authorized $146.9 billion for procurement programs—$14.7 billion (11.1%) more
than the request. The legislation authorized $16.4 billion in increases to the request, including for certain
DOD unfunded priorities. The net effect of these increases was offset by $1.7 billion in decreases to the
request. Among the accounts with the biggest increases from the request were National Guard and
Reserve Equipment, ground combat vehicles, ships, and aircraft. Among those with the biggest decreases
were ammunition. See Table 1.
Table 1. Summary of Procurement Authorizations in the FY2022 NDAA
(in billions of dollars)
Account
Request
House-passed
SASC-reported
Enacted
Difference (%)
Aircraft Procurement, Army
$2.81
$3.31
$3.13
$3.36
19.6%
Missile Procurement, Army
$3.56
$3.65
$3.69
$3.65
2.5%
Weapons & Tracked
$3.88
$4.72
$4.53
$4.70
21.1%
Combat Vehicles, Army
Procurement of
$2.16
$2.44
$2.44
$2.46
13.8%
Ammunition, Army
Other Procurement, Army
$8.87
$8.93
$8.88
$8.99
1.3%
Aircraft Procurement, Navy
$16.48
$19.61
$19.18
$19.8
20.2%
Weapons Procurement,
$4.22
$4.13
$4.34
$4.13
-2.0%
Navy
Procurement of
$0.99
$0.98
$1.03
$0.90
-8.7%
Ammunition, Navy &
Marine Corps
Shipbuilding & Conversion,
$22.57
$28.42
$25.12
$27.28
20.9%
Navy
Other Procurement, Navy
$10.88
$11.03
$11.52
$11.17
2.7%
Procurement, Marine Corps
$3.04
$3.62
$3.72
$3.62
19.0%
Aircraft Procurement, Air
$15.73
$17.47
$18.6
$18.13
15.3%
Force
Missile Procurement, Air
$2.67
$2.57
$2.67
$2.58
-3.5%
Force
Procurement of
$0.80
$0.79
$0.80
$0.71
-10.1%
Ammunition, Air Force
Other Procurement, Air
$25.25
$25.79
$25.73
$25.75
2.0%
Force

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Account
Request
House-passed
SASC-reported
Enacted
Difference (%)
Procurement, Space Force
$2.77
$2.77
$2.80
$2.79
0.7%
Procurement, Defense-
$5.55
$5.89
$5.88
$5.92
6.8%
Wide
National Guard & Reserve
$0.00
$0.95
$0.00
$0.95
n/a
Equipment
Total
$132.21
$147.06
$144.05
$146.88
11.1%
Source: CRS analysis of funding tables in H.Rept. 117-118, p. 346; S.Rept. 117-39, p. 378; and explanatory statement
accompanying the FY2022 NDAA (P.L. 117-81) in the Congressional Record, December 7, 2021, p. H7362.
Notes: Totals may not sum due to rounding. Dol ars rounded to nearest hundredth; percentages rounded to nearest
tenth. "Difference (%)" column is the percentage difference between enacted and requested amounts.
Selected Increases and Decreases
Among the largest line-item increases for procurement programs in the enacted NDAA from requested
amounts, in terms of dollar value, were
 $2.9 billion for the Navy to procure two more DDG-51 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers
(for a total of three ships);
 $1.1 billion for the Air Force to modify F-35A fighter aircraft to the Block 4
configuration (also called Continuous Capability Development and Delivery, or C2D2);
 $950 million for the Departments to buy National Guard and Reserve Equipment;
 $889 million for the Navy to procure 12 F/A-18E/F fighter attack aircraft; and
 $749 million for the Navy to procure nine more V-22 tilt-rotor aircraft (for a total of 17
aircraft).
Among the largest line-item decreases, in terms of dollar value, were
 $263.5 million for the Army to procure next-generation night vision devices (mostly for
the Integrated Visual Augmentation System, or IVAS);
 $180 million for the Navy to procure three fewer auxiliary vessels (i.e., used commercial
cargo ships on reserve for military sealift);
 $87.1 million for the Navy to modify the RIM-162 Evolved SeaSparrow Missile (ESSM),
a surface-to-air missile for ship defense;
 $76 million in advance procurement funding for the Navy to procure a TAO-205 John
Lewis-class oiler in a future fiscal year; and
 $75.5 million for the Air Force’s Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM), a GPS guidance
kit for bombs.
Limitations on Divestments of Certain Aircraft, Ships
Various provisions in the enacted NDAA limited DOD’s ability to divest certain aircraft and ships, either
by prohibiting the use or limiting the availability of funds for their retirement or inactivation, or by
establishing minimum inventory requirements. Section 134 prohibited the use of funds for the retirement
of A-10 aircraft; Section 137 limited the number of KC-135 tankers available for retirement; and Section
138 established a minimum inventory requirement for tactical airlift aircraft (e.g., C-130 cargo aircraft).
Section 1018 prohibited the use of funds for the retirement of Mark VI patrol boats and Section 1019
limited the availability of funds for the retirement or inactivation of cruisers.

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F-35 Affordability Targets and Transfer of Program Responsibilities
Section 141 of the enacted NDAA required the Secretaries of the Air Force and Navy to limit their F-35
inventory beginning in FY2029 unless they meet certain affordability targets. Section 142 required the
Secretary of Defense to transfer “all functions relating to the management, planning, and execution of
sustainment activities for the F-35 aircraft program from the F-35 Joint Program Office” to the
aforementioned service secretaries.
Cost Estimate for B-52 Commercial Engine Replacement Program (CERP)
Section 135 of the enacted NDAA limited the availability of a percentage of funding for the Air Force’s
B-52 Commercial Engine Replacement Program (CERP), an effort intended to replace the TF33 engines
on the B-52H bomber fleet, until the Secretary of Defense submits a report to the congressional defense
committees on a cost estimate for the program.


Author Information

Brendan W. McGarry

Analyst in U.S. Defense Budget




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