The full House Appropriations Committee has cleared by a voice vote a defense policy bill that would allocate $517.1 billion in discretionary budget and $58.6 billion in overseas contingency operations funds for fiscal year 2017.

The committee said Tuesday the proposed FY 2017 defense authorization legislation would direct approximately $16 billion from OCO funds to the Defense Department’s base budget.

The bill shows a $3 billion increase from the enacted discretionary budget for FY 2016 and contains amendments introduced by Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-New Jersey) and Rep. Barbara Lee (D-California).

Lee’s proposed amendment would call for Congress to “debate and determine whether or not to authorize the use of military force against” the Islamic State militant organization.

The vote comes a week after the House Appropriations Committee’s defense subpanel introduced the bill.

The proposed legislation would authorize $120.8 billion in total funds to procure new weapons systems and related equipment, $70.8 billion for research and development initiatives and $209.2 billion for operations and maintenance programs in support of military readiness efforts, according to the bill’s summary.

U.S. Army Gen. David Rodriguez has highlighted U.S. Africa Command’s partnerships with countries Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Burundi to address militant organizations in the region such as the Islamic State militant organization, Boko Horam and al Shabab, DoD News reported Tuesday.

Jim Garamone writes Rodriguez, Africom chief, told reporters in Brussels that the command is working to “regionalize” operations on the continent as well as integrate these efforts with international partners such as European Union countries.

Rodriguez added the proportion of troops that African nations provide for United Nations peacekeeping missions grew to 47 percent from 24 percent in a span of 10 years, Garamone quoted.

Rodriguez also noted Secretary of State John Kerry attended a meeting in Italy to support the U.N.-backed Libyan Government of National Accord which will work to build on anti-terrorism operations against ISIL, Garamone wrote.

The U.S. Army Research Laboratory and its partners Beyond Photonics and Halo Photonics have built a Doppler light detection and ranging system to support the airdrop operations of Army Pathfinders.

ARL worked to develop the Man-Portable Doppler LiDAR system to retire the pilot balloon tracking mechanism as a response to a request for information from U.S. Army-Africa, the service branch said May 11.

The helium-filled balloon is tracked to measure wind profile and support battlefield airdrop operations while MPDL is a 45-pound system that works to operate on 24-volt batteries, the Army added.

“Pathfinders currently face challenges impacting operations and warfighter safety,” said Deryck James, ARL meteorological technician for the atmospheric sensing branch.

He added that LiDAR systems like MPDL work to facilitate environmental awareness and precision airdrops for Pathfinders.

MPDL is designed to aid Pathfinders as they work to infiltrate areas and set up parachute drop zones and helicopter landing zones for aerial missions, the Army added.

James and David Ligon from ARL’s atmospheric sensing branch trained members of the Georgia National Guard on the new Doppler LiDAR system.

Georgia National Guard soldiers will also be trained to use MPDL before the system is fielded during the Central Accord 2016 joint exercises in Gabon, Africa, the Army said.