Maya McGinnis

Now, that doesn't even keep up with inflation.

But there's a caveat here.

This appropriations bill, it's not the only thing funding the Defense Department.

Rashmi Agarwal is a director at the Government Accountability Office, and she says there's money for the military and President Trump's tax and spending measure, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

It was passed in July of 2025, but they provided about $156 billion in

in additional funding for the department.

Add that in, Agarwal says, and total Pentagon spending for this year is way up, closer to almost a trillion dollars.

That's the largest budget that they've had to date.

Agarwal says the One Big Beautiful Bill Act includes money for shipbuilding and weapons.

Todd Harrison at the American Enterprise Institute says there's also about $25 billion for President Trump's proposed Golden Dome missile defense system.

President Trump is already looking ahead to next year when he wants to spend $1.5 trillion on the military.

I'm Nancy Marshall-Genzer for Marketplace.