Troops living in barracks will be getting free Internet in the near future, after Congress approved the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act.
The sweeping $895.2 billion defense bill includes authorization from Congress for the military to roll out high-speed wireless Internet access for troops living in unaccompanied barracks.
“The Secretary of a military department may provide, to a member of the armed forces who resides in military unaccompanied housing (as defined in section 2871 of this title) within the United States, broadband internet access service, at no cost to such member,” the bill says.
According to Congress’s text, the Secretary of Defense must issue a formal policy and guidance on the free barracks Internet no later than 90 days after the defense bill goes into effect.
The annual defense bill got Senate approval last week. It outlines a series of authorizations for various military projects, as well as several measures aimed at improving living standards and benefits for active-duty military members and their dependents. That includes significant pay increases for junior enlisted troops, as well as more money for barracks repairs.
The measure authorizing free Internet in the barracks specifies that the service must “[meet] or [exceed] any speed benchmark established for broadband internet access service by the Federal Communications Commission.” Additionally, the Department of Defense’s policy must ensure that it “maximizes access to such service in individual rooms and spaces” in barracks.
Free Internet has been a project for the Pentagon for months, following extensive efforts to hear from troops about ways to improve quality of life within the active-duty services and increase retention within the ranks. In September, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin released his “Taking Care of Our People” memorandum, outlining several steps including better childcare services and various types of financial assistance to help servicemembers and dependents’ quality of life.
As part of that memo, Austin directed the different military services to start pilot programs testing out free wireless Internet at barracks during the 2024 and 2025 fiscal year. The efforts would “form the basis of a long-term plan to build a Wi-Fi-connected force,” Austin wrote. In his memo, Austin noted that aside from helping troops conduct online training and connecting with counselors, Internet access in the barracks helps with quality of life, letting servicemembers stay in touch with family and friends. The Pentagon considers Internet access to be mission critical for troops.
The Department of Defense sped up some of those actions in October, with a defense official saying that the Pentagon was prioritizing high-speed Wi-Fi installation at more remote or smaller military barracks. It’s unclear how far along the pilot programs authorized by Austin in the fall are, or what findings they’ve reached so far.
As for how long it will take to set up the free barracks Wi-Fi as authorized by Congress, that’s unclear. Speaking in October on efforts on getting Internet access to remote installations, Brendan Owens, the Defense Department’s assistant secretary for defense for energy, installations and environment, said that some barracks are “very well set up to be able to just very easily plug in a router.” Other locations, particularly remote ones, require more work.
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