NJ House Members Vote On $900B Military Budget, Bill Heads To Senate

An enormous military spending bill passed a House vote on Wednesday, getting a “yes” vote from seven Congress members in New Jersey and a thumbs-down from four others.

The 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) authorizes nearly $900 billion for the nation’s military – nearly $8 billion more than the amount President Donald Trump requested in May.

Congress rolls out a new version of the bill each year to establish defense priorities and provide direction on how the funding can be spent. The “must pass” legislation typically sees several changes and amendments before a final version is agreed upon by the Senate and House of Representatives.

The House passed a compromise version of the NDAA by a vote of 312-112 on Wednesday evening. The bill now heads to the Senate for a vote, and then potentially to the desk of President Trump – who has said he intends to sign it.

Congress has greenlighted the bill every year for more than six consecutive decades.

There have been both cheers and jeers for the nation's current levels of military spending. Some say that a well-funded military strengthens national security, supports servicemembers and creates jobs. But critics question whether the nation’s rising military budget is a good use of taxpayer money at a time when every dollar counts.

HERE'S HOW NJ HOUSE MEMBERS VOTED

In New Jersey, the NDAA got “yes” votes from seven House members on Wednesday: Herb Conaway Jr., Josh Gottheimer, Tom Kean Jr., Donald Norcross, Nellie Pou, Chris Smith, and Jeff Van Drew.

Four New Jersey House members voted “no” on the NDAA: LaMonica McIver, Rob Menendez, Frank Pallone Jr., and Bonnie Watson Coleman.

Two of the Republicans who voted for the bill – Reps. Kean and Van Drew – said it is a “win” for national security.

Kean noted that this year’s NDAA includes a 3.8 percent pay raise for troops. He also pointed to funds that will support Picatinny Arsenal in Morris County, which is one of the largest employers in the region.

Kean also said the bill provides critical resources for security at the southern border, strengthens counterterrorism efforts and includes riders such as the Safer Skies Act, which empowers authorities with the necessary tools to defeat drones when they present a threat to the public.

“Our bill also advances America’s military dominance by revitalizing the defense industrial base and investing in key priorities like missile defense, autonomous systems and new warships,” Kean said.

Van Drew called the compromise legislation a “strong defense bill,” also praising the “well-deserved pay raise” for the troops.

“We are helping law enforcement protect our kids, getting better equipment into the hands of our police, strengthening the 177th Air National Guard Fighter Wing with a major investment, and continuing the upgrades at Coast Guard Training Center Cape May,” Van Drew said.

The bill also saw support from Rep. Gottheimer, a Democrat, who said it will “combat foreign terror, protect the U.S. strategic advantage over China, support our ally Israel, strengthen American AI capabilities, defend against Russian threats, support education for service members, and give troops a pay raise.”

“I’ll continue working with colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support our active-duty military, combat terrorism and violent extremism, and strengthen America’s national security,” Gottheimer said.

Missing from the vote this session was New Jersey Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill, who resigned from the House in November. Sherrill was required to turn over the seat as a condition of becoming governor, which will take place in January.

• See Related: Special Election To Replace Mikie Sherrill (Here’s What Happens Next)

Prior to resigning, Sherrill was one of two New Jersey Congress members serving on the House Armed Services Committee, which conducts annual “markup” hearings for the NDAA. Sherrill and the other Garden State member of the committee – Rep. Norcross – each voted “yes” for the bill during a markup in July.

'RUBBER STAMPING BLOATED BUDGETS'

Two other Congress members from New Jersey – Sens. Cory Booker and Andy Kim – took a different stance on the NDAA in October, voting against an early version of the bill in the Senate.

“Once again, the Senate has advanced a National Defense Authorization Act that significantly increases the Pentagon’s spending without ensuring proper oversight, transparency, or accountability into how that money is spent – especially at a moment when the Department of Defense is being politicized under Pete Hegseth’s reign,” Booker said.

• See Related: Booker, Kim Of NJ Vote Against Colossal U.S. Military Budget Bill

Other Congress members from both sides of the aisle have been leery about the steadily increasing topline of the nation’s military budget.

“Today I voted ‘no’ on the National Defense Authorization Act because Congress cannot continue writing blank checks for endless war while millions of Americans struggle to afford housing, health care and basic necessities,” Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota said after Wednesday's vote.

“This year’s NDAA authorizes nearly $900 billion for the Pentagon, more than we spend on education, health, climate and poverty programs combined,” the Democratic lawmaker continued. “It pours billions into weapons systems the Pentagon itself has said it does not need. It increases funding for defense contractors who profit from global instability and it advances a vision of national security rooted in militarization instead of diplomacy, human rights, or community wellbeing.”

“I will always support giving service members what they need to stay safe, but that does not mean rubber stamping bloated budgets or enabling unchecked executive war powers,” Omar added.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, a Republican, said the NDAA is “filled with American’s hard earned tax dollars used to fund foreign aid and foreign country’s wars.”

“These American People are $38 trillion in debt, suffering from an affordability crisis, on the verge of a healthcare crisis, and credit card debt is at an all-time high,” Greene said. “Funding foreign aid and foreign wars is America Last and is beyond excuse anymore.”

“I would love to fund our military, but refuse to support foreign aid and foreign militaries and foreign wars,” Greene said.

IMPACT OF DEFENSE INDUSTRY IN NEW JERSEY

According to the New Jersey governor's office, the defense sector is a significant employer in New Jersey, with more than 54,000 personnel working directly on the three major military bases, including more than 46,000 at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, 6,000 at Picatinny Arsenal, and 1,500 at Naval Weapons Station Earle.

An additional 22,000 New Jerseyans are employed as contractors or within the supply chain.

The Department of Defense allocated approximately $9.4 billion to New Jersey in Fiscal Year 2023. This funding represented about 1.3 percent of the state’s Gross Domestic Product, and included $2 billion for salaries of active duty and civilian personnel, and more than $7 billion in defense contracts awarded within the state.

Currently, New Jersey is home to roughly 7,091 defense contractors who collectively receive about $7.3 billion in federal military contracts.

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