In a letter to key lawmakers, the Association of the U.S. Army is advocating for adequate funding for Army programs, a pay raise for troops and resources to improve quality of life for service members and their families.

“We believe it is essential for the Army and the Department of Defense (DoD) to have the resources it needs to counter growing threats,” retired Gen. Bob Brown, AUSA president and CEO, writes in the Nov. 4 letter to the chairs and ranking members of the Senate and House Armed Services Committees.

“Sufficient investment” must be made in the fiscal 2023 National Defense Authorization Act to support the Army’s People First strategy, readiness and modernization priorities, the letter says.

AUSA asks lawmakers to fund the Army, to include its unfunded priorities, “to help to mitigate inflation and improve our industrial base.”

It also recommends a pay raise of at least 4.6%, as included in both the Senate and House versions of the NDAA, for service members, and a similar increase for DoD civilians. “As you know, providing appropriate compensation is an important incentive for recruitment and retention—particularly as recruitment remains a challenge,” the letter says.

Programs to improve quality of life for soldiers and their families, including child care, spouse employment, quality housing and health care, and efforts to combat suicide and improve behavioral health resources also are critical, the AUSA letter says.

In terms of modernization, AUSA asks Congress for “continued support for the Army’s core modernization priorities to enable future capabilities and support for the Army’s training and sustaining priorities to assure near-term readiness—this includes ensuring a strong and expandable organic industrial base,” the letter says.

Through it all, from supporting COVID-19 response efforts to surging forces to Europe to bolster America’s NATO allies, the “Army is indispensable,” the letter says.

Read the full letter here.