Washington, D.C. - Congressman Rob Wittman (VA-01), Chairman of the House Armed Services Readiness Subcommittee, praised the passage of legislation to fund the Department of Defense (DoD). H.R. 4870, the DoD Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2015, provides approximately $490 billion in discretionary budgetary authority for DoD, and includes an amendment authored by Wittman that prohibits funds from being used to propose, plan for, or execute an additional Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Round.
“Today’s challenging budgetary environment requires that we fully maximize our limited resources," Wittman said. "This legislation is a significant step in ensuring that our men and women in uniform are fully equipped with the resources necessary to complete their mission. We must ensure that if these courageous individuals must be in harm’s way, they do so with overwhelming superiority.
“While I am pleased that the House has passed this bill by such a wide margin, our work here is not done. Compounding budget cuts and arbitrary, unrealistic budget decisions have done serious harm to our readiness capabilities. We must continue to focus on restoring this lost readiness while also effectively providing for the current and future needs of our men and women in uniform.”
H.R. 4870 includes $1 billion for operation and maintenance accounts for improving military readiness, as well as a 1.8 percent pay increase for all military personnel. In addition, the amendment authored by Wittman reinforces a provision in H.R. 4435, the National Defense Authorization Act of Fiscal Year 2015, which established a prohibition on conducting an additional BRAC round.
“Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are opposed to another round of BRAC,” Wittman said. “As we examine our military and future readiness capabilities, force structure realities absolutely must drive infrastructure decisions. DoD has not concluded a force structure assessment, and an overseas basing structure assessment is also still ongoing. We must right-size our overseas investment before we initiate another BRAC round state-side.”
The bill also prohibits funding to be used for the transfer of detainees from the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba to the U.S., in addition to establishing a one-year ban on Guantanamo Bay prisoner transfers to any country.
“This prohibition is especially necessary in light of the unclear rationale behind the Administration’s recent decision to transfer five Taliban leaders from Guantanamo Bay. Allowing these detainees to potentially return to the battlefield to fight against the United States and our allies is a significant and indefensible risk. I am pleased that this provision passed with bipartisan support, and I urge the Senate to consider the full bill as soon as possible.”
Congressman Rob Wittman represents the First District of Virginia. He serves on the House Natural Resources Committee and the House Armed Services Committee where he is the Chairman of the Readiness Subcommittee.
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