House GOP releases ‘Reconciliation 3.0’ with $60B for defense

WASHINGTON — House Republicans have unveiled the outlines of their “Reconciliation 3.0” funding bill with $60 billion for defense, a number that does not even hit the $67 billion sum requested by the White House to pay for defense-related expenses tied to the Iran War.

The budget resolution, published today ahead of a markup on Thursday, kickstarts a third reconciliation process, which would allow Republicans to bypass the filibuster in the Senate and pass the bill on party lines.

For defense hawks, the bill is likely to be a bit of a disappointment, falling short of the $67 billion requested in June in a supplemental spending request to cover operations in Iran.

It also fails to address the $350 billion request for reconciliation dollars issued by the Pentagon as part of its fiscal 2027 budget submission— a sum that department leaders have said is critical for boosting munitions production, drone procurement, and several high-profile weapons programs like the F-35.

The $95 billion budget resolution tasks the House Armed Services Committee to come up with a plan for spending the $60 billion allocated for defense.

That sum could go toward the areas laid out in June’s supplemental spending request, which included $21 billion to recoup munitions expenditures, $17.3 billion for operational costs, $5.1 billion for cybersecurity and autonomy, $2.4 billion for drones, $4 billion for systems related to airborne moving target indication and the space data network backbone, and $12.1 billion for classified programs, among other needs.

Beyond defense, the reconciliation proposal also includes $12 billion for agriculture, $13 billion for intelligence, and $10 billion that would go to the administrative committees to implement the SAVE America Act.

Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wisc., who is set to pick up the gavel for the Senate Budget Committee following the death of Sen. Lindsey Graham, told Politico on Tuesday that he has already started talks with House Budget Chair Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, about advancing the reconciliation legislation. Both chambers must adopt the budget resolution before a more detailed reconciliation bill is formulated and passed.