57

Funding Highlights:

•	 Provides $495.6 billion in discretionary funding for the base budget of the Department of 

Defense to carry out our national defense strategy and protect national security. This includes:

| Ending the war in Afghanistan and, pending the signing of a Bilateral Security Agreement, 

maintaining a small force of Americans and international partners to train and assist 

Afghan forces and carry out limited counterterrorism operations in pursuit of any remnants 

of al Qaeda;

| Supporting Government-wide efforts to rebalance diplomatic, economic, and military 

resources to the Asia-Pacific region while also upholding responsibilities elsewhere;

| Protecting the homeland and ensuring a safe, secure, and effective nuclear deterrent;

| Sustaining our ability to project power and win decisively against both state adversaries 

and terrorist threats;

| Making progress toward restoring balance to the Joint Force by gradually raising 

readiness levels negatively impacted by sequestration while supporting the transition to a 

smaller military that is more agile and technologically superior;

| Providing funds to recruit and retain the best-trained All-Volunteer Force; support military 

families; care for wounded, ill, and injured servicemembers; make further, measurable 

progress toward eliminating sexual assault in the military; and help servicemembers 

effectively transition to civilian life; and

| Sustaining investments in science and technology programs, which drive innovation in 

military capabilities as well as in the civilian economy.

Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative:

•	 Through the Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative, supports:

| Accelerated modernization of key weapons systems, faster progress toward restoring 

readiness lost under sequestration, and improvements to the Department’s facilities. 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
58 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

The Department of Defense (DOD) provides 

military forces and capabilities to deter war and 

protect the security of the United States and 

its interests around the world. The Budget provides $495.6 billion for DOD’s base budget in 

2015, which adheres to the levels agreed to in the 

Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 (BBA). This funding level will allow the military to protect U.S. interests and fulfill the updated defense strategy—

but with somewhat increased levels of risk. The 

Department can manage these risks under the 

President’s 2015 Budget plan, but risks would 

grow significantly if sequester-level cuts return 

in 2016, if proposed reforms are not accepted, and 

if uncertainty over budget levels continues. 

As the war in Afghanistan nears an end, DOD 

is making a strategic rebalance to the AsiaPacific region while maintaining a military presence and engagement with allies and partners in 

the greater Middle East and elsewhere to protect 

our Nation’s interests. The Budget supports this 

adjustment and makes strategic investments 

in the priorities identified in the 2012 Defense 

Strategic Guidance and the 2014 Quadrennial 

Defense Review, such as increasing our ability to 

effectively address the security challenges and 

opportunities of cyberspace, continuing to invest 

in research and development to feed innovation 

in both the military and civilian sectors, and combatting terrorism around the world. The Budget 

also maintains our commitment to providing 

servicemembers with the right mix of equipment, 

infrastructure, and training to keep our forces 

ready for a wide range of contingencies and missions. The Budget supports DOD’s efforts to improve the defense acquisition system and, for the 

first time in its history, to achieve auditable financial statements. The Budget sustains our commitment to the All-Volunteer Force—the backbone 

of our modern military—and strives to better 

support our servicemembers and their families, 

including those who are making the transition 

from military to civilian life.

Responsibly Ends the War in 

Afghanistan

Thirteen years after it began, the war in 

Afghanistan will end in December 2014, when 

Afghan forces assume full responsibility for 

their country’s security. Pending the signing of a 

Bilateral Security Agreement, American and coalition forces will continue to train and sustain 

the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) 

after 2014, and the United States will work collaboratively with the ANSF to target al Qaeda 

and other entities that threaten the safety and 

security of the United States and our allies. While 

most U.S. troops will depart, those who remain 

will train key Afghan units, oversee military assistance programs, and support ongoing counterterrorism efforts. To support these activities, the 

Budget will provide the resources necessary to 

maintain our commitment to sustain the ANSF, 

provide logistical support to coalition partners 

Reforms:

•	 Takes steps to slow the growth in military compensation and benefit costs to free up funds 

for training and modernization while ensuring we continue to honor and support our men and 

women in uniform.

•	 Retires aging aircraft and adjusts the planned acquisition and refurbishment of select naval 

assets, allowing for critical investments in new weapons systems and platforms.

•	 Aligns infrastructure with current needs and includes institutional reform efforts, such as a 

20 percent cut in operating budgets for headquarters staff, which will consolidate duplicative 

efforts and streamline Department-wide management functions.
THE BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2015 59

in Afghanistan, return U.S. forces to their home 

stations, and repair or replace lost or damaged 

equipment. 

The President continues to assess the size of 

the residual force needed in Afghanistan to carry 

out these activities and other ongoing responsibilities. As a result, the Budget includes a placeholder for DOD’s 2015 Overseas Contingency 

Operations (OCO) funding equivalent to the 

amount provided in the President’s 2014 Budget. 

The Administration continues to propose a multiyear cap that limits Government-wide OCO funding to $450 billion over the 2013-to-2021 period. 

The Administration plans to submit details of the 

DOD OCO request as a Budget amendment after 

making a determination on enduring force levels 

in Afghanistan.

Supports Strategic Rebalancing Toward 

Asia

DOD and other agencies are devoting increased 

time and resources to strengthening and transforming U.S. alliances and economic ties across 

the Asia-Pacific region. DOD’s overarching objective in the region is to sustain a stable security 

environment and a regional order rooted in economic openness, peaceful resolution of territorial 

and maritime disputes, free flow of commerce, 

democratic principles of governance, and political 

freedom. Toward that end, the Budget supports 

an integrated “whole-of-government” approach 

involving many Federal agencies, including DOD 

funding for continued rotational forces, militaryto-military cooperation, capacity-building activities, joint training events, and essential force 

modernization. The benefits of these types of investments were made clear in November 2013, 

when the United States, the Philippines, and 

other nations were able to respond quickly and 

effectively to Typhoon Haiyan. The combination 

of U.S. leadership and capable allies and partners 

will help provide for a peaceful and prosperous 

Asia-Pacific region supported by international 

norms, rule of law, and effective institutions.

The Budget provides for a U.S. force posture 

that is geographically distributed, operationally 

resilient, and politically sustainable, giving our 

leaders increased options as they plan for military-to-military engagements, conduct joint and 

multinational training exercises, and prepare to 

respond to unforeseen contingencies. By the close 

of the decade, the majority of U.S. naval forces, including its most capable platforms and systems, 

will be deployed to the Asia-Pacific region. As an 

example of investments in this area, the Budget 

provides $128 million for military infrastructure; 

in Guam to bolster its position as a strategic hub 

in the western Pacific, of which $51 million will 

support important steps toward establishing fully 

capable Marine Air-Ground Task Forces throughout the region. 

Protects Readiness and Modernization 

Priorities

Training and readiness are the foundation of 

ensuring a capable military that provides the 

Nation with a range of options to deter or defeat 

aggression or intimidation against the United 

States and its allies, friends, and interests. 

However, sequestration degraded the ability of 

the force to accomplish its full range of assigned 

missions to expected timelines and standards. 

The Budget provides $198.7 billion in operation 

and maintenance funding, in addition to other resources, to continue the Department’s efforts to 

restore readiness and avoid a hollow force.

The Budget also protects investments in critical and emerging military capabilities, aiming 

to ensure that the United States maintains a 

decisive edge in areas such as power projection; 

global strike; nuclear weapons and delivery systems; space and cyberspace; special operations; 

undersea warfare; and intelligence, surveillance, 

and reconnaissance. For example, the Budget 

invests $11.5  billion in basic and applied research and advanced technology development, 

including $2.9 billion for the Defense Advanced 

Research Projects Agency, which conducts highrisk, high-reward scientific research that has 
60 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

fed cutting-edge technological innovation in the 

United States for over 50 years.

Makes Hard Choices in an Era of 

Constrained Resources

The discretionary caps originally put in place 

by the Budget Control Act of 2011 required all 

Federal agencies to make difficult choices to prioritize key missions and programs, streamline 

infrastructure and overhead, and find ways to operate more efficiently. In 2013, sequestration required further sharp cuts, and the BBA provides 

modest relief in 2014 and 2015. To continue to support the Nation’s defense strategy in this context, 

DOD has made strategic choices to reduce end 

strength and force structure, revise some weapons’ investment plans, and control rising compensation and benefits costs. The Department also 

seeks to rightsize its infrastructure in order to 

allocate scarce resources to the highest priorities. 

Builds a Smaller and More Agile Force. 

As DOD makes the transition out of a decade of 

war, it is reducing military end strength and force 

structure to build a smaller force that is more agile and technologically superior. End strength in 

the Army and Marine Corps will gradually fall 

over the next few years. Once implemented, these 

changes will generate substantial annual savings, which will help the Department fund readiness and training more fully. The 2013 National 

Defense Authorization Act requires comparable reductions in DOD’s civilian and contractor 

workforces.

Modernizes DOD’s Compensation and 

Benefits System. Since 2001, military pay and 

benefits have grown 40 percent more than in 

the private sector. The Budget proposes reforms 

to slow this cost growth, including changes to 

TRICARE, lower commissary subsidies phased 

in over time, and modestly slower growth in the 

Basic Allowance for Housing, while still providing a robust compensation and benefits system 

that honors the service of our men and women 

in uniform and their families. For calendar year 

2015, the Budget provides a 1.0 percent increase 

to basic pay, a 1.5 percent increase in the Basic 

Allowance for Housing, and a 3.4 percent increase in the Basic Allowance for Subsistence. 

All of these changes have been recommended by 

the uniformed military leadership and are necessary to slow the growth in compensation and 

benefit costs in a responsible way and preserve 

funding needed for investments in platforms and 

readiness.

Retires Unneeded Weapons Systems. In 

concert with reductions in ground forces personnel, the Budget includes significant changes 

to many of DOD’s weapons programs. For example, the Army plans to retire its aging Kiowa 

Warrior helicopters and instead use upgraded 

Apaches teamed with unmanned aerial vehicles 

to meet the Kiowas’ armed reconnaissance mission. The Navy plans to temporarily decommission selected cruisers and return them to service 

after significant modernization overhauls.  The 

Air Force plans to retire all of its single-mission 

A-10 Warthog aircraft and reduce the size of the 

C-130 fleet.  These decisions position DOD to 

better support its highest priority missions.

Aligns Infrastructure with Current 

Needs. In order to align DOD’s infrastructure with its mission and force structure, the 

Budget requests authorization for a new round 

of Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) in 

2017. Without a new round of BRAC, DOD will 

be forced to maintain unnecessary infrastructure 

with resources that it could otherwise use to field 

needed military capabilities. Further, the Office 

of the Secretary of Defense has directed DOD 

components to reduce headquarters operating 

budgets by 20  percent over the next five years, 

and it will also reorganize itself consistent with 

that goal.

Generates More Value Out of Every 

Defense Dollar. Generating more value out of 

each defense dollar is a critical goal of DOD’s ongoing efforts to improve the defense acquisition system, operate with greater energy efficiency, and 

achieve audit readiness. In the area of acquisition 

reform, the Department has expanded its Better 

Buying Power initiative to achieve affordable 

programs, promote effective competition, control 
THE BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2015 61

costs throughout the product lifecycle, and create 

incentives to drive productivity and innovation 

in both industry and Government. The Budget 

also continues to invest in energy efficiency initiatives at DOD, which consumes almost threequarters of all the energy used by the Federal 

Government. These include improving the fuel 

efficiency of existing equipment, developing and 

fielding innovative energy technologies, expanding renewable energy sources, and improving the 

energy efficiency of buildings. Importantly, DOD 

is executing nearly $1.2 billion in third-party-financed contracts for enhanced energy conservation performance in response to the President’s 

$2 billion goal. DOD continues to make progress 

in improving the quality of its financial information. The Marine Corps recently achieved the first 

ever clean audit opinion on a military Service 

budget statement, and each Service is making 

great efforts to build on that momentum.

Strengthens the All-Volunteer Forc

People are at the heart of our military power, 

and the Budget provides the resources necessary to sustain the All-Volunteer Force, including investments in family programs, health and 

wellness, and veteran transition programs. 

Supports Military Families. Supporting 

military families continues to be a top 

Administration priority. The Budget provides 

robust funding to ensure consistent and effective 

family services are available, including mental 

health and counseling services, deployment and 

relocation assistance, child care and youth programs, military spouse employment programs, 

and others. In addition, the Budget invests in 

expanding strategies for program delivery to 

address the fact that most servicemembers and 

their families no longer live on DOD installations. 

For example, the Department continues to leverage the Military OneSource platform to provide 

confidential, no-cost counseling and information 

on the full range of issues and challenges military 

families face, anywhere in the world.

Cares for Wounded, Ill, and Injured 

Servicemembers. To provide quality health 

care for the Nation’s 9.6 million eligible military 

beneficiaries, the Budget provides $47.4 billion 

for the DOD Unified Medical Budget to support 

the DOD Military Health System. The Budget 

sustains strong programs that support wounded, 

ill, and injured servicemembers and their families and help servicemembers transition into civilian life and the workforce. In particular, DOD 

is improving its support for servicemember mental and emotional health by increasing collaboration among its suicide prevention programs and 

working to eliminate the stigma associated with 

accessing mental health services. 

Addresses Sexual Assault in the Military.

Sexual assault remains a significant problem in 

the military, just as in the civilian world. DOD will 

undertake 16 distinct initiatives aimed at eliminating sexual assault from the military, including 

major efforts to ensure an appropriate command 

climate for every member, accountability for perpetrators and commanders, and proper care and 

services for victims—including dedicated legal 

representation throughout the reformed military justice process. In addition, the President 

has directed DOD to complete a full-scale review 

of its progress in preventing and responding to 

sexual assault in the military by December 1, 

2014. This review will include benchmarks and 

metrics to assess the effectiveness of DOD’s efforts, as well as an examination of options for 

reforming the military justice system to enhance 

victim reporting, protect victims’ rights, and hold 

offenders appropriately accountable. The Budget 

provides the funds needed to implement these 

initiatives and to continue making improvements 

to DOD’s sexual assault prevention and response 

programs.

Helps Servicemembers Transition to 

Civilian Life. The Administration continues to 

build on last year’s work to support service men 

and women as they make the transition from 

military to civilian life. DOD has partnered with 

other Federal agencies to ensure that all servicemembers participate in effective pre-separation 

programs that help them plan and prepare for 

this major transition, including Transition GPS 

(Goals, Plans, Success), which reflects the first 
62 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

major redesign of the interagency Transition 

Assistance Program in over 20 years.  The 

Budget supports initiatives to ensure separating 

servicemembers have the skills needed to pursue employment after military service, providing pre-separation counseling and employment 

workshops and mandating compliance with a 

Career Readiness Standard before transition. In 

addition, the Budget provides targeted resources for Wounded Warriors in order to reduce disability evaluation processing time, ensuring that 

recovering servicemembers have active recovery 

plans and that those who transition to veteran 

status will have timely access to the benefits they 

deserve.

Proposes Additional Investments in 

Defense

The Budget’s Opportunity, Growth, and 

Security Initiative provides $26.4 billion for 

DOD to accelerate modernization of key weapons 

systems, make faster progress toward restoring 

readiness lost under sequestration, and improve 

its facilities. 

Accelerates Modernization of Key 

Weapons Systems. Consistent with the reductions in discretionary spending required by 

the Budget Control Act and the BBA, DOD has 

reduced or slowed down planned purchases of 

a variety of weapons systems and equipment 

over the last three Budgets. The Opportunity, 

Growth, and Security Initiative would allow 

DOD to accelerate the schedules for developing and buying new or upgraded systems in order to ensure that the United States maintains 

technological superiority over potential adversaries. For example, it provides enhanced resources 

for procurement of manned and unmanned aircraft, helicopters, ground vehicles, and communication systems. It also expands the research and 

development efforts that underpin all defense 

modernization programs.

Makes Faster Progress Toward Restoring 

Readiness Lost Under Sequestration. In 

2013, significant reductions in funding degraded 

readiness throughout the Joint Force by requiring sharp cuts to training, maintenance, and support. For example, the Air Force had to ground 

33 squadrons and reduce an additional seven 

squadrons to basic “takeoff and land” training for 

several months. Although the base budget provides the resources needed to continue gradually 

restoring readiness and balance, the Opportunity, 

Growth, and Security Initiative provides the resources to expedite progress by supporting increased activity at depot maintenance facilities 

around the country; greater training support; 

and increased funding for fuel, spare parts, and 

transportation costs.

Improves DOD Facilities. Sequestration 

required significant funding cuts for DOD facilities, forcing the Department to defer some sustainment, restoration, and modernization (SRM) 

costs, as well as some military construction projects. The base budget provides the funds necessary to keep DOD bases, housing, and other 

facilities safe, secure, and operational, but not 

enough to avoid long-term deterioration. The 

Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative provides additional resources for SRM and construction at hundreds of DOD installations that will 

generate jobs and reduce future costs to replace 

buildings, roads, runways, and other facilities.