The $633 billion defense bill for the next year was signed into law by President Barack Obama overnight, and there are some local impacts for our vast military communities here in the east.
All military personnel will get a 1.7 percent pay raise, including activeduty, reserve and national guard. The bill also paves the way for nearly a half-billion dollars in construction projects for military bases in North Carolina.
It repeals provisions from an earlier defense bill that threatened fleet readiness center east in Havelock, and puts a stop to the potential for another round of BRAC, or base realignment. This is according to Senator Kay Hagan's office.
The bill also includes cuts in defense spending that the president and congressional Republicans agreed to in August 2011, along with the end of the war in Iraq and the drawdown of American forces in Afghanistan.
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