Case Opposes Defense Funding Measure That Fails To Properly Oversee Proposed Massive Increases In Defense Spending And To Fairly Balance National Security And Pressing Domestic Needs

This press release from Representative Ed Case (D-HI) was published on 2026-06-24 and titled "Case Opposes Defense Funding Measure That Fails To Properly Oversee Proposed Massive Increases In Defense Spending And T".

Case Opposes Defense Funding Measure That Fails To Properly Oversee Proposed Massive Increases In Defense Spending And To Fairly Balance National Security And Pressing Domestic Needs

(Washington, DC) – U.S. Representative Ed Case (HI-01) reported that his U.S. House Appropriations Committee today approved its final Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 funding bill – the Defense Appropriations Act. The measure, the twelfth of twelve annual federal funding measures considered by Appropriations, provides funding for federal agencies and programs in the Department of Defense (DoD) and intelligence community, including the military branches of services, the Central Intelligence Agency and the National Security Agency. Case, who is in his eighth year on Appropriations, serves on its Subcommittee on Defense, which is responsible for developing the bill. Case voted against the FY 2027 Defense bill that proposes $1.1 trillion in discretionary spending, $234 billion more than the current fiscal year. Total defense spending would grow to nearly $1.5 trillion annually if combined with the proposed reconciliation, or mandatory spending, bill requested by the Present. “While the measure funds many critical Hawai‘i and Indo-Pacific priorities I requested, I regrettably had to vote against this version because the proposed increase in total defense spending is not accompanied by any substantial Congressional oversight of such massive new spending levels, and comes as the Congressional majority and President Trump propose steep cuts to domestic programs that support working people struggling with the cost-of-living crisis,” said Case. (Click here to watch Case explain the flawed overall structure for the President’s funding request and the bill.) Case also stressed that the bill embraced a partisan approach to various aspects of our nation’s security. For example, it fails to include the $400 million for the bipartisan Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, continues funding for a National Guard Reaction Force to be deployed into American cities and fails to provide any checks on the President’s military operations in Iran. During the Committee’s debate over the bill, Case also spoke in strong opposition to recent actions by the Secretary of Defense to fire qualified military leaders and undermine military promotion boards that have become political rather than merit based, which has disproportionally targeted women and minorities. He explained that two recent military leaders that served in Hawai‘i were harmed by these purges - General Charles “CQ” Brown (former head of Pacific Air Forces and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs) and Admiral Stephen Barnett (former Head of Navy Region Hawai‘i). Case warned of the negative message sent throughout the current and future officer corps and enlisted ranks and implications for recruitment, retention and merit-based service and advancement, asking rhetorically what the 75% of Hawai‘i that are minorities would consider their opportunities in the military to be. (See Case’s speech here .) Case also warned about the dangers of approving further funding for the Golden Dome missile defense program when the Department of Defense has failed to provide an overall plan and detailed information on the program and proposed spending which even at conservative estimates would cost over $1 trillion. (See Case’s speech here ). Despite his opposition to the bill, Case highlighted programs and provisions that he requested and secured in the Defense funding measure that are especially critical to Hawai‘i, including: · Protecting the special contracting preference for Native Hawaiian businesses. · $10 million for Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility long-term environmental monitoring, additional scientific studies and targeted remediation efforts to facilitate the permanent closure of the site. · $10 million of additional funding for the Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) program, which help address shared environmental concerns affecting the military and local communities in Hawai‘i. · $10 million to advance Indo-Pacific-focused advance manufacturing efforts in Hawai‘i. · $10 million of additional funding for Regional Centers for Security Studies, to include the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (DKI-APCSS) in Honolulu. · $44 million to continue efforts to replace O‘ahu’s outdated air surveillance radar, which is needed to defend Hawai‘i from missile attacks. · $309 million for the Navy’s Environmental Restoration program plus an additional $239 million for the cleanup of Formerly Used Defense Sites. These funds will help accelerate efforts to remediate per- and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) contamination and remove unexploded ordnance and discarded military munitions in Hawai‘i and throughout the nation. · Funding for two Virginia-class fast attack submarines, which are critical to protecting the Indo-Pacific and are maintained at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard. · $160 million for the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, which maintains critical scientific laboratories at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. · $264 million for the Sea-Based X-Band Radar, which help