The Senate Armed Services Committee will continue to work toward its goal of completing its version of the fiscal 2021 National Defense Authorization Act markup by the end of May, but remains flexible “because of the uncertainty associated with the coronavirus in the weeks ahead,” spokeswoman Marta Hernandez said in the statement last week.
“At this point, no decisions have been made, but as this crisis evolves, the committee will announce changes to the anticipated markup schedule,” she said.
The timing and format for upcoming nomination hearings is being decided in the context of guidance from government health and local officials and congressional leadership.
The annual NDAA sets spending limits and defense policy for the Pentagon, as well as for nuclear-weapon programs managed by the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA).
For the budget year beginning Oct. 1, the NNSA requested nearly $20 billion in funding. The Senate Armed Services Committee had scheduled an April 9 “paper hearing” on the spending proposal, but canceled it to avoid diverting Defense Department focus from dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.
In late March, the House Armed Services Committee canceled its planned NDAA markup due to the crisis. A new session has not been scheduled.
