WASHINGTON, DC - Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (MD) released the following statement today after final passage of the Ike Skelton Defense Authorization Act:

"Today the House voted for final passage of the Ike Skelton Defense Authorization Bill. This legislation makes crucial investments in our national security, nuclear counterproliferation and counterterrorism efforts, and the well being of our troops. I have been consistently committed to making sure that this critical national security legislation be completed by the Congress, as has been done for 48 years running. I am pleased to see its passage, and particularly so in the name of our outgoing Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Ike Skelton.

"For more than three decades, Ike Skelton has been one of Congress's leading voices on defense policy. His hard work, his diligence, and his insight have made this a stronger nation. Chairman Skelton did so much to shape this bill, along with a host of others. I'm proud to count him as a friend; his absence will be deeply felt."