The House of Representatives passed a key defense bill with nine amendments authored by Congresswoman Katie Porter (CA-45) that would support medical treatment, military families, and fiscal responsibility, while continuing to support and promote a strong national security. These amendments were accepted on a broad bipartisan basis and included in the bill that passed the House, include provisions to support civilian academic medical centers and teaching hospitals, protect military families in private housing, and safeguard servicemembers from payday loans.

“When I talk about putting Orange County families first, that must include doing right by our military and veteran families,” Congresswoman Porter said. “Every year, this is one of the most important national security bills that Congress works on. This legislation not only supports provides for our national defense, but also for the brave men and women who serve our nation. I was proud to work hard on behalf the people of Orange County and fight to include measures to protect military families from scams and support innovative scientific research in the 45^th District and across the country.”

Nine Porter amendments were included the FY2020 National Defense Authorization Act, which would:

• Require an investigation into any retaliation against military families that report issues in private housing (introduced in partnership with Senator Kamala Harris of California)
• Protect our servicemembers, veterans, and surviving spouses from predatory payday lenders
• Allow servicemembers to enforce their right to free credit monitoring (introduced in partnership with Senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey)
• Allow spouses and dependents of active duty servicemembers to participate in a national pilot program to help them find jobs, based on California’s successful Work For Warriors program
• Require DoD to initiate a joint partnership program between the military and civilian academic medical centers and teaching hospitals, and encourage these partnerships to focus on institutions with burn centers (introduced in partnership with Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana)
• Explore routine neuroimaging as a method of preventing, diagnosing, and treating brain injuries (introduced in partnership with Senator Kamala Harris of California)
• Increase funding for University Research Initiatives, which support scientific advancements and emerging technologies
• Make permanent the requirement for a public annual report on the operational tests and evaluations of major Pentagon systems
• Require a report to improve the financial management of the Pentagon

The legislation that passed the House also included 14 amendments co-led by Congresswoman Porter.

###