The House took a major step toward permanently restoring the Pentagon’s historic “Department of War” name Wednesday, approving the change as part of a sweeping $1.15 trillion national defense package.
The fiscal 2027 National Defense Authorization Act passed 216-212, with six Democrats joining 209 Republicans and one independent in support. Seven Republicans voted against the legislation, according to the official House roll call.
The annual defense policy bill would formally rename the Department of Defense for the first time in nearly eight decades. It would also provide service members with pay raises ranging from 5% to 7%, depending on rank.
Junior enlisted troops in ranks E-5 and below would receive a 7% raise, while those in ranks E-6 through O-3 would receive 6%. Officers ranked O-4 and above would receive a 5% increase, according to Stars and Stripes.
The legislation goes far beyond the name change. House Armed Services Committee documents say it would accelerate the production of munitions, rebuild depleted weapons stockpiles and expand the use of emerging technologies, including hypersonics, autonomous systems and quantum computing.
It would also strengthen missile defense and nuclear deterrence while directing more resources toward countering China, Russia, Iran and North Korea. The bill seeks to cut nearly $30 billion in wasteful programs and push the Pentagon toward completing a clean financial audit within two years, according to the committee’s summary.
“Our national security depends on a ready, capable, and well-equipped fighting force backed by a robust and innovative defense industrial base,” House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) said after the vote.
“Peace Through Strength begins long before the battlefield — it is forged in America’s factories, depots, and shipyards,” Rogers added in a statement.
Trump, Hegseth pushed historic change
President Donald Trump signed an executive order in September 2025 authorizing “Department of War” and “Secretary of War” as secondary titles for the Pentagon and its leader.
The order allowed the terminology to be used in official communications, ceremonial settings, and other non-statutory documents. It did not, however, change the department’s legal name, which requires congressional action.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth quickly embraced the rebranding, directing changes to the Pentagon’s website, social media accounts, and signs. At the executive order’s signing, Hegseth said the administration intended to “raise up warriors, not just defenders.”
The original War Department was established in 1789 under President George Washington. The National Security Act of 1947 reorganized the military under the National Military Establishment, which Congress renamed the Department of Defense in 1949.
Trump has argued that restoring the original name would project strength and signal that the American military is prepared to defeat its enemies — not merely contain them. His executive order said the historic title demonstrates America’s “ability and willingness to fight and win wars.”
The cost of completing the rebranding could depend heavily on how quickly and broadly it is implemented. The Congressional Budget Office previously estimated that a modest use of the secondary title could cost roughly $10 million, while a rapid department-wide rollout could reach $125 million. A permanent statutory change could cost hundreds of millions of dollars, according to the CBO analysis.
Battle shifts to Senate
The bill’s narrow passage reflected broader disputes over military spending, the war with Iran and a provision expanding defense cooperation between the United States and Israel.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) sought to remove Section 219, which would establish a U.S.-Israel Defense Technology Cooperation Initiative and direct Hegseth to appoint a Pentagon official to oversee it. Their amendment was not included in the final House package.
Massie, who voted against the bill, called the provision “a betrayal of American sovereignty.” Rep. Keith Self (R-Texas) defended the language and characterized Massie’s interpretation as a “tortured reading of the verbiage,” The Hill reported.
The House legislation now faces an uncertain path in the Senate, where Democrats blocked consideration of that chamber’s defense bill last week amid objections to the Iran war. The Senate Armed Services Committee’s version also endorses the Department of War name, but it proposes a smaller, across-the-board 3.6% military pay raise.
The two chambers would ultimately have to resolve those differences and approve identical legislation before the historic name change could reach Trump’s desk.
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