I am extremely pleased that we were able to consider this measure without extraneous and controversial provisions that would have endangered its passage.  Our troops and the civilian employees in the Department of Defense have performed valiantly and made enormous sacrifices to safeguard the United States, and H.R. 1815 recognizes their commitment by providing much-needed assistance to them and their families.   The conference report includes a pay raise of 3.1 percent for military, increases certain enlistment and re-enlistment bonuses, and allows certain members of the reserves to buy into the TRICARE health care program for themselves and their families.  The measure also increases the end-strength of the Army and the Marine Corps, which should help relieve some of the stress on troops who have experienced repeated deployments. 

The legislation also contains $50 billion in supplemental funding to provide force protection equipment, such as up-armored Humvees and jammers for improvised explosive devices, to our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as to replace equipment that has been degraded by the high operations tempo.  Though the military has accomplished a great deal with what they have, we have clear indications that we are wearing down our equipment, perhaps faster than we can replace it.  The investment in this bill is an important step, but we must not forget that it will take billions more to completely reset and recapitalize our force. 

This bill also contains important language to ensure that Department of Defense does not contract out existing government work without realizing actual cost savings.  Earlier in the year, I drew the committee’s attention to DOD’s practice of reorganizing or reclassifying existing government work in order to circumvent required contracting rules without demonstrating savings.  The language in this measure closes that loophole and goes much farther by establishing much clearer standards about how DOD can contract out work.  I thank the chairman of the Readiness Subcommittee, Mr. Hefley, as well as the committee staff, for working with me and my office to address my original concern, and I will continue to work with the committee to monitor the implementation of this new language to ensure that all parties involved are treated fairly and that taxpayer dollars are used as effectively as possible.

Finally, H.R. 1815 demonstrates its interest in maintaining a strong Navy through a continued commitment to the next-generation destroyer, DD(X).  It also includes language affirming the committee’s support of the VIRGINIA-class submarine and directing the Navy to initiate a program to improve future submarine technology in a cost-effective manner.  This provision should be welcome news to Electric Boat, a major employer in my district, which has announced as many 2,400 layoffs in 2006, primarily due to insufficient submarine design and construction work.  To prevent our submarine force from shrinking to dangerously low levels, I will continue my efforts to integrate cutting-edge technology into VIRGINIA-class submarines and to increase procurement of these ships to two per year.  Given other nations’ investments in their navy and undersea capabilities, we cannot afford for the United State to lose its undersea dominance.

Again, I commend the Chairman Hunter, Ranking Member Skelton and my colleagues on the committee for a well-balanced bill, and I urge its adoption.  Thank you, Mr. Speaker.