Cloud, Deluzio, and Moore Introduce the Depot Investment Reform Act to Fix Outdated Funding Model and Strengthen Military Readiness

WASHINGTON—Congressman Michael Cloud (TX-27), along with Congressmembers Chris Deluzio (D-PA) and Blake Moore (R-UT) introduced the Depot Investment Reform Act, legislation designed to improve military depot responsiveness by updating the formula used to determine federal investments in these depots.

Military depots are the foundation of America’s maintenance and readiness strategy—responsible for repairing and returning aircraft, vehicles, and weapons systems to the field without delay. The Corpus Christi Army Depot (CCAD) stands out as the military’s premier rotary-wing maintenance facility, supporting global missions and anchoring South Texas’s defense workforce. Yet despite their importance, depots like CCAD are still forced to operate under outdated funding models that fail to keep pace with real-world demands. The Depot Investment Reform Act updates the decades-old funding formula that currently bases depot investment levels on the average workload from the past three fiscal years—an approach that lags behind real-world operational needs. This bill reforms how depot funding is determined by including:

• The average workload of the previous fiscal year;

• The current fiscal year, and;

• A projection for the next fiscal year.

“The Corpus Christi Army Depot (CCAD) is the world’s largest rotary-wing repair facility—supporting over 2,000 jobs and contributing more than $1 billion to our economy,” said Congressman Cloud. “The Depot Investment Reform Act ensures facilities like CCAD receive the timely, targeted resources they need to keep our military fleet mission-ready. This is about strengthening America’s strategic advantage and ensuring our military has the support needed to defend freedom around the world.”

“America’s military needs to be ready and prepared for whatever comes our way,” said Congressman Deluzio. “This is a top priority in my work on the House Armed Services Committee, and I am proud to join the Senators to help improve our military depots and boost our military readiness.” 

“I led this bill with Congressman Deluzio, Congressman Cloud, Senator Fetterman, and Senator Cotton to address longstanding investment shortfalls in our nation’s depots, which are required to operate during times when it is not profitable for private industry to do so,” said Congressman Moore. “This bill ensures that annual Department of Defense investments into our depots are more closely tied to future workload and readiness needs and will help our depots better plan, staff, and manage during emergency situations.”

This forward-looking approach will help depots receive adequate funding during surges in operational demand and enable them to plan for the future with greater certainty. By replacing the outdated three-year average method, the bill empowers America’s military maintenance infrastructure to keep pace with national security needs around the world.

Senators John Fetterman (D-PA) and Tom Cotton (R-AR) introduced the companion bill in the U.S. Senate last week.

Link to bill here.

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