Updated February 1, 2024
Defense Primer: The NDAA Process
The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) provides
submission is sometimes delayed. The Administration often
authorization of appropriations for the Department of
submits policy proposals (i.e., requests for legislation) to
Defense (DOD), nuclear weapons programs of the
the committees of jurisdiction in conjunction with the
Department of Energy, and other defense-related activities.
budget request. DOD periodically submits packages of
In addition to serving as an authorization of appropriations,
legislative proposals for inclusion in the NDAA.
the NDAA establishes defense policies and restrictions, and
The authorizing committees begin their work on the NDAA
addresses organizational administrative matters related to
in parallel with one another. Both committees conduct a
the DOD. Unlike an appropriations bill, the NDAA does
series of hearings on the budget request and related matters,
not provide budget authority for government activities.
which typically lead to the drafting and markup of separate
Nevertheless, historically it has provided a fairly reliable
bills in the House and the Senate.
indicator of congressional sentiment on subsequent
appropriations for particular programs.
Hearings
Upon receipt of the President’s budget request, the HASC
FY2024 was the 63rd consecutive fiscal year for which a
and the SASC begin a series of posture hearings in which
defense authorization was enacted. This regular enactment
the senior civilian and military leadership of the DOD, the
of legislation for more than six decades depends upon
military services, and certain defense agencies are invited to
adherence to process and consistency in procedures,
testify before the committees on the budget request. The
schedules, and protocols.
subcommittees also conduct related hearings, with a focus
Committees of Jurisdiction
on issues specific to that subcommittee’s jurisdiction. For
The House Committee on Armed Services (also known as
example, the SASC may hold a hearing with the Secretary
the House Armed Services Committee, or HASC) and the
and Chief of Staff of the Army on that year’s budget
Senate Committee on Armed Services (also known as the
request for the Army, and the Airland Subcommittee might
Senate Armed Services Committee, or SASC) have
follow with a hearing specifically looking at the Army’s
jurisdiction over all bills, resolutions, and other matters
ground vehicle procurement programs.
relating to the common defense under the Rules of the
Markup
House and Senate. Referred to as the authorizers or the
In a typical year, the committees will have reviewed the
authorizing committees, the HASC and the SASC each has
President’s budget request and associated policy proposals
subcommittees that are assigned jurisdictional
and prepared authorizing legislation for markup in
responsibilities by the full committee. In the 118th
committee by late April or May. These meetings are called
Congress, the HASC established seven subcommittees:
markups, because committee members mark up the
• Cyber, Information Technologies, and Innovation;
legislation by considering, debating, and voting on
• Intelligence and Special Operations;
amendments to the authorizing bill.
• Military Personnel;
Subcommittee Markup
• Readiness;
In current practice, both the HASC and the SASC begin the
•
markup process in subcommittee, with each of the
Seapower and Projection Forces;
subcommittees considering the subcommittee Chairman’s
• Strategic Forces ; and
Mark, which is a draft legislative proposal with funding
• Tactical Air and Land Forces.
recommendations for matters in the bill under that
subcommittee’s jurisdiction. At completion of markup, each
The SASC established seven subcommittees:
subcommittee votes to report the proposal, as amended, to
• Airland;
the full committee.
• Cybersecurity;
Full Committee Markup
• Emerging Threats and Capabilities;
Once the subcommittees have all finalized their markups,
• Personnel;
the full committee convenes to consider, debate, and vote
• Readiness and Management Support;
on amendments to each of the subcommittee marks. During
•
full committee markup, the full committee Chairman’s
Seapower; and
Mark, which contains legislation and funding
• Strategic Forces.
recommendations for matters that are not assigned to a
The NDAA Timeline
specific subcommittee, is also considered, debated, and
voted on. The full committee Chairman’s Mark addresses a
The NDAA process begins on or about the first Monday in
variety of cross-cutting issues such as general defense
February of each year, with the submission of the
policy, matters related to the organization and management
President’s budget request to Congress, though the
of the DOD, acquisition and industrial base policy, and
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Defense Primer: The NDAA Process
matters related to foreign nations and overseas contingency
Conference
operations.
The Constitution requires that the House and Senate
approve the same bill in precisely the same form before it is
Common HASC Committee Practices
presented to the President. To this end, each chamber must
The enrolled version of the FY2024 NDAA (P.L. 118-31)
pass its own version of the same measure and then attempt
included 973 pages of bill text and discretionary
to reach agreement with the other chamber about its
authorizations totaling $874.2 billion. To shepherd a bill of
provisions. An agreement may be reached by the exchange
this magnitude through the legislative process, the HASC
of alternatives between the chambers. Alternatively, the
has adopted several common practices in drafting and
House and Senate can each agree to create a conference
marking up the NDAA.
committee to propose a package settlement of the
competing proposals.
For example, in 2023, prior to committee consideration of
the legislation, the committee promulgated guidance for
A conference committee is traditionally used to resolve
House Members to submit Community Project Funding
differences between the chambers on the NDAA. Conferees
requests for inclusion in the bill. During markup, the
are House and Senate members, drawn mainly from the
committee typically also requires that committee members
HASC and SASC, who are expected to resolve
provide, before offering any amendment that involves the
disagreements between the House and Senate positions and
jurisdiction of other House committees, a letter from the
provide an agreement in the form of a conference report.
respective committee chairman indicating a waiver of the
Conferees may also be appointed from other committees
right of referral. This requirement is also imposed on
with jurisdiction over components of the bill; each chamber
legislation in the underlying mark. Doing so avoids
may limit the provisions on which its conferees may
potential delays that could result from a sequential referral
negotiate. The conference committee will typically begin its
of the bill to other committees. In addition, the committee’s
work as soon as possible following passage of a proposal in
markup practice has often required that amendments that
each chamber. Completion of the conference report is not
would increase spending for an item identify a suitable
on a specified timeline, but many of the authorities
offset.
provided by the NDAA expire at the end of the fiscal year.
Therefore, considerable effort is put toward completing the
Common SASC Committee Practices
NDAA conference prior to October 1 of each year.
Under Senate rules, committees and their subcommittees
Once reported by the conference committee, a conference
may vote to hold closed meetings for specific reasons (e.g.,
report is subject to debate during floor consideration, but is
to avoid disclosing certain national security information).
not amendable. (In the Senate, reaching a vote on the
The SASC full committee markups (and most
conference report may require three-fifths of the Senate to
subcommittee markups) are generally conducted in closed
invoke cloture.) If the House and Senate each agree to the
session. In addition, the SASC proposal is typically
conference report, the NDAA is enrolled for presentation to
reported to the Senate as an original bill (i.e., its text has not
the President.
been previously formally introduced).
Floor Consideration
CRS Products
Once reported favorably out of committee, the NDAA may
CRS In Focus IF10516, Defense Primer: Navigating the NDAA
be scheduled for floor consideration. In the House, current
CRS In Focus IF10514, Defense Primer: Defense Appropriations
practice is to consider the bill under the provisions of a
Process
special rule that structures the conditions of debate and
CRS Report R42843, Introduction to the Legislative Process in the
possible floor amendments to the bill. The rule has
U.S. Congress
sometimes made in order (i.e., allowed to be offered)
hundreds of amendments (many of which are offered and
CRS Report R46497, Authorizations and the Appropriations
agreed to en bloc). After being considered, debated, and
Process
amended in the House, the House-passed version of the
CRS Infographic IG10005, From Bill to Law: Stages of the
NDAA is sent to the Senate and typically either referred to
Legislative Process
SASC or placed on the Senate calendar.

In the Senate, after SASC has reported its proposal, any
floor debate and amendment consideration is typically
Note: For questions on the legislative process,
structured pursuant to multiple unanimous consent
congressional clients may contact Valerie Heitshusen; for
agreements. The Senate has sometimes considered more
questions on the NDAA, congressional clients may contact
than 100 floor amendments. However, one or more cloture
Brendan W. McGarry. Acknowledgment: This primer was
processes (by which three-fifths of the Senate, typically 60
originally coauthored by Lynn M. Williams, former CRS
Senators, votes to limit consideration) may be necessary to
Specialist in Defense Readiness and Infrastructure.
reach a final vote on certain amendments, and on the bill

itself.
Valerie Heitshusen, Acting Section Research Manager
If the Senate passes its own bill first, it is sent to the House;
Brendan W. McGarry, Analyst in U.S. Defense Budget
often, instead, the Senate takes up the House bill it has
received and considers amendments to it (including the
IF10515
proposal reported by SASC).
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Defense Primer: The NDAA Process


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https://crsreports.congress.gov | IF10515 · VERSION 19 · UPDATED

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