[JURIST] US President Barack Obama [official website] on Thursday vetoed the National Defense Authorization Act of 2016 (NDAA) [HR 1735, PDF] because military defense spending would exceed caps set under the Budget Control Act of 2011 [text, PDF] and the NDAA would restrict the transfer of detainees held at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive]. The proposed $612 billion NDAA includes a $38 billion increase [Defense News report] in defense spending through the Overseas Contingency Operation (OCO) Fund, which is outside of the provisions of the Budget Control Act; a sequestration measure that established limits on military spending from FY2012-2021 [Congressional Research Service backgrounder]. The White House alleged that the proposed NDAA used the OCO as a slush fund to avoid budget restrictions [Washington Post report] for defense spending, while holding non-defense spending at the Budget Control Act limits. President Obama supports an equal $38 billion dollar increase in non-defense military spending under the NDAA; however, this is opposed by Congressional Republicans.

Additionally, President Obama opposed the bill because it includes a provision that allegedly restricts the US military’s ability to close down Guantanamo Bay. The NDAA maintained a ban on the transfer of detainees to the US and introduced heightened reporting requirements for international transfer. Human Rights Watch (HRW) [official website] argues the veto signals [HRW report] a renewed effort to close the detention facility. According to the Guantanamo Docket [NY Times backgrounder], there are 114 detainees that remain in Guantanamo Bay. President Obama has used his veto power in four other instances [NY Times report] since taking office in 2009.