WASHINGTON – A sweeping defense bill was approved by a key Senate committee today after being shaped and strengthened by U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill, a senior member of the panel.

The annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), sets spending and policy for the Pentagon for the next fiscal year. After days of debate over the legislation and dozens of amendments, the Senate Armed Services Committee today gave final approval to the bill, sending it to the full Senate for consideration.

McCaskill worked with fellow Missouri Senator Roy Blunt to successfully include an amendment keeping the E/A-18 Growler production line open. McCaskill also included provisions building on last year’s historic reforms to curb sexual assaults in the military, strengthening POW/MIA-recovery efforts, protecting taxpayer dollars from being spent on insecure infrastructure projects in Afghanistan, and boosting accountability by strengthening whistleblower protections.

“Missouri has a proud tradition of military service, and I’m proud to once again help craft policies to bolster our national security, and maintain the critical role our state plays in keeping America safe,” said McCaskill, who also chairs the Senate Subcommittee on Financial & Contracting Oversight. “This legislation includes huge steps forward on stronger accountability over taxpayer dollars, on keeping our promises to our military veterans, and on our continuing effort to better protect and empower victims of sexual assault. And its wide, bipartisan support is a welcome reminder that America’s security doesn’t have to be a partisan issue.”

McCaskill-an outspoken advocate for transparency-once again insisted on a committee vote to open up to the public the full committee’s consideration of the defense bill. That motion was defeated 18-8. McCaskill was the first Senator in years to hold any portion of the debate open, public session.

Provisions successfully included by McCaskill in the legislation include:

• E/A-18G Growler Aircraft: McCaskill and Blunt secured an amendment that authorizes $100 million for the Navy to keep the Growler production line open and directs the Navy to take steps to ensure the Navy retains the option of buying more EA-18G aircraft if further analysis of airborne electronic attack (AEA) force structure indicates the Navy should buy more EA-18G aircraft. The amendment also directs the Navy to brief the defense congressional committees by September, 2014 on options available to the Navy for ensuring that the Navy will not be precluded from buying more EA-18G aircraft if that is what the Navy analysis concludes should be done. An estimated 15,000 people work at the plant that manufactures Growler and Super Hornet aircraft in St. Louis, Mo.

• Further Reforms to Curb Sexual Assault in the Military: Last year, McCaskill helped shape and pass into law an historic overhaul of how the military handles rapes and sexual assaults. McCaskill has proposed additional legislation that would continue to build on these historic reforms-cosponsored by Senators Kelly Ayotte and Deb Fischer-adding more provisions to protect and empower victims and increase reporting and prosecutions, including the elimination of the “Good Soldier” defense. The Senate approved the legislation unanimously in March, and McCaskill successfully pushed for its inclusion in the annual defense bill. McCaskill also won inclusion of a measure that would require the Department of Defense to maintain a database that will capture the names of alleged sexual assault offenders who are named in a restricted report. This would enable criminal investigators to know if suspects under investigation for a sexual assault might have been named in earlier restricted reports, which could point to a repeat offender.

• Strengthening POW/MIA Recovery Efforts: This McCaskill amendment would create one Department of Defense agency responsible for POW/MIA matters, with one federal official in charge. This would be the first official step in restructuring POW/MIA accounting following McCaskill’s investigation last year into the troubled recovery efforts. The amendment addresses the key deficit identified by the Government Accountability Office and McCaskill, which is that there was no one agency or official in charge to coordinate and be held accountable for POW/MIA recovery.

• Limiting Afghanistan Reconstruction Funding: McCaskill included two amendments that will curb wasteful spending on infrastructure projects in Afghanistan. The first amendment prohibits funding for any infrastructure project in Afghanistan that government employees or members of the military cannot access for purposes of conducting oversight, while the second amendment ends funding for the Afghanistan Infrastructure Fund.

• Contractor Requirements and Whistleblower Protections: McCaskill included amendments that extend whistleblower protections to subgrantees, prohibit contractor reimbursement for time and materials spent responding to Congressional inquiries, and bolster the prohibition on reimbursement for fees accrued in defense against whistleblower retaliation claims.