Graves’ defense bill brings wins for 139th Airlift Wing, Lake City Army Ammunition Plant

WASHINGTON (KQTV) -- Congressman Sam Graves (MO-06), a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee, is working to bring millions of dollars in resources to North Missouri through the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

The NDAA passed the House Armed Services Committee on June 5.

"As threats around the world continue to increase, we have to give our warfighters the tools and resources they need to successfully defenc out country," said Graves. "Peace through strength requires increasing production of critical weapons, developing the workforce needed to produce them and investing in our military. This year's defense bill does that right here in North Missouri, providing more capability for the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant in Independence and making critical upgrades at the 139th Airlift Wing in St. Joe so they can continue working towards getting C-130J models."

The bill would:

• Allocate $900 million for procuring eight C-130Js that could potentially be based at Rosecrans Air National Guard Base.
• Authorizes $63 million for an aircraft parking apron at Rosecrans.
• Includes C-130 fleet protections through FY28, including the minimum inventory requirement and the prohibition on reducing Air National Guard C-130 Aircraft.
• Advocates for Joint Maritime Over-Water Training at Rosecrans building on the 139th's expertise in advanced tactics
• Fosters the development of an Advanced Mobility Tactics and Survivability Center to be based at Rosecrans, leveraging their experience with the Advanced Airlift Tactics Training Center

Nearly $900 million for small arms ammunition produced or will be produced at Lake City Army Ammunition Plant. The bill also allocated $2.4 billion for the munitions industrial base, including facilities like Lake City Army Ammunition Plant.

The bill brings other wins across the state, specifically to manufacture numerous pieces of aircraft in St. Louis and the procurement of bombers at Whiteman Air Force Base:

• Requires the Department of War to review and fix barriers that prevent Missouri military families from enrolling children in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System when their custody paperwork is valid under Missouri law
• $2.2 billion for procurement of B-21 long-range bombers, which will be based at Whiteman Air Force Base
• Support for the F-15EX II and T-7 Red Hawk and authorization for F-15 EX II multi-year procurement, both manufactured in St. Louis.
• $770 million to manufacture MQ-25 Stingrays manufactured in St. Louis.
• $563 million to modernize and sustain F/A-18E/Fs and EA-18Gs manufactured in St. Louis.
• $170 million for military construction at Whiteman Air Force Base to support the B-21 bomber.
• Expands U.S. production capacity, unleashes private sector investment, opens the door to new and innovative entrants, reduces needless regulations, and creates thousands of skilled jobs for Missourians. 

Overall, the bill would also allocate $40 million for mobility aircraft connectivity, increasing safety for aircrews operating in hostile environments. Service members would receive a 5% to 7% pay raise. It also expands military bonuses and special pay.

In addition, the bill would strengthen oversight and funding for the revitalization of military housing and barracks. It also includes the National Guard Relief Foundation as a Military Welfare Society to being parity in services to National Guard members.

The FY 2027 NDAA now heads to the House floor for further consideration.