NDAA FY25 Passed House Friday, June 14 by Narrow Margin: What’s Happening with the Countering CCP Drones Act Now?
The legislative process within the US continues, because the House version of the fiscal yr 25 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA FY25) has made it’s way through the total House of Representatives. The House version of the NDAA FY25 accommodates the Countering CCP Drones Act, an act which could limit the longer term use of Chinese manufactured drone technology, including DJI drones.
NDAA is a critical bill for the US: failure to pass or act upon the bill isn’t really an option. Nevertheless, there continues to be a multi-step means of negotiation before the small print contained within the NDAA, including the incorporation or not of the Countering CCP Drone Act, are finalized. As a rough outline:
1. Proposal and Drafting: The NDAA is often initiated by the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) and the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC). Committee members draft the bill, often incorporating input from various stakeholders, including the Department of Defense, military leaders, and other relevant entities. This has already occurred.
2. Committee Consideration: The HASC and SASC hold hearings to debate the proposed NDAA, allowing testimony from experts, military officials, and other stakeholders. Committees review, amend, and vote on the bill in a process generally known as markup sessions. Members propose changes, that are debated and voted on. The House Committee passed the NDAA by a vote of 57:1 on May 22. On Thursday, June 13 the Senate also accomplished markup and moved their version of the NDAA through committee, by a vote of twenty-two:3.
3. House and Senate Floor Motion:
- House of Representatives: The bill is reported out of the HASC and placed on the House calendar. It’s debated and might be further amended. A vote is taken, and if passed, it moves to the Senate. This happened on Friday, June 14: the NDAA passed with the Countering CCP Drones Act included by a narrow margin of 217:199.
- Senate: The bill is similarly reviewed by the SASC, placed on the Senate calendar, debated, and possibly amended. A vote is taken, and if passed, it often differs from the House version. This has not yet happened.
Next Steps within the Process for NDAA FY25 and the Countering CCP Drones Act
4. Conference Committee
- Reconciliation: If the House and Senate pass different versions of the NDAA, a conference committee consisting of members from each chambers is formed to reconcile differences.
- Conference Report: The conference committee produces a conference report that merges the 2 versions right into a single bill. This report is then sent back to each the House and Senate for approval.
5. Final Passage
- House and Senate Votes: Each chambers must approve the conference report without amendments. This typically requires a majority vote within the House and 60 votes within the Senate to beat any potential filibuster.
6. Presidential Motion
- Presidential Approval: The ultimate version of the NDAA is shipped to the President for approval. The President can:
- Sign the Bill: It becomes law.
- Veto the Bill: The President rejects the bill, sending it back to Congress with reasons for the veto.
- Do Nothing: If the President neither signs nor vetoes the bill inside ten days (excluding Sundays) while Congress is in session, it robotically becomes law. If Congress adjourns during this era, the bill doesn’t turn out to be law (pocket veto).
7. Veto Override (if vital)
- Congressional Override: If the President vetoes the NDAA, Congress can try to override the veto. This requires a two-thirds majority vote in each the House and Senate.
8. Enactment
- Becoming Law: Once the NDAA is signed by the President, passed and not using a signature, or a veto is overridden by Congress, it becomes law and is enacted. The provisions throughout the NDAA are then implemented by the suitable federal agencies, primarily the Department of Defense.
NDAA FY25 is currently still in the midst of the method, so it’s difficult to make predictions about what the ultimate bill will seem like. The Countering CCP Drones Act, impactful to the drone industry, might be eliminated or modified significantly before agreed upon. Current general news is more focused on other points of contention contained throughout the bill: the so-called “culture war” issues introduced by more conservative lawmakers within the House.
For more information, including the total text of the bill, or to trace the NDAA FY25, see the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee page here.
See the present wording of the Countering CCP Drones Act here.
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