Transcripts For CSPAN Key Capitol Hill Hearings 20150515 : v

CSPAN Key Capitol Hill Hearings May 15, 2015

The Defense Committee but we see overlaps. My amendment would make changes to d. O. D. Computing systems using software bought and modified for the purpose will not result in the disruption of their service. I want to recognize an unsung hero of the computing age who invented the first compiler for a Computer Programming language and was a visionary who worked to make it possible. Rear admiral grace Murray Hopper is not well known outside of the technology field, but i admire her work. This will provide the chief privacy officer with the tools it needs. The chair the gentlelady is recognized for 0 seconds. Ms. Jackson lee thank you. Chief privacy officers with the tools it needs to make changes to the d. O. D. Computer networks. In this world of hacking and the importance of securing our infrastructure of cybersecurity, i believe that this amendment will contribute to the improvement of the d. O. D. And protect against cyberattack. With that, i thank them for including my amendment and i yield become. The chair the gentleladys time has expired. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Thornberry im pleased to yield one minute to my colleague, mr. Hurd, of texas. The chair the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Hurd i rise in support of my amendment, number 5. As chame of the o. G. R. Subcommittee of Information Technology over the past five months, one thing has become painfully clear to me. The i. T. Infrastructure of the federal government is behind the times and those who maintain our already outdated systems have a difficult job due to red tape and bureaucratic hurdles. Compounding this issue is theres a shortage of Skilled Labor in i. T. Security in the public and private sectors. My amendment would modify existing lew to allow all critical to Network Defense who have received the appropriate training to take the necessary exams backing their skills with certification. A large number of these individuals receive the valuable training needed to protect our networks and defend cyberdomains but the skills are not always backed by certification. This not only means little accountability in the system but those who choose to leave the federal government have a hard time explaining qualifications to future employers. This applies an internationally recognized certification to individuals in critical roles. It will not seek additional funding to implement this policy change. It will enhance u. S. National security. I thank the chairman for his support and the work on this bill. The chair the gentlemans time has expire. The gentleman from rhode island. Mr. Langevin we have no speaker at this time, i continue to reserve. The chair the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Thornberry mr. Chairman, we dont have any speakers either. The chair does the gentleman wish to reserve . Mr. Thornberry we reserve. The chair the gentleman from rhode island is recognized. Mr. Langevin if there are no additional speakers on our side, i yield back the balance of our time. The chair the gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry i yield myself 30 seconds to note there are 15 amendments in this en bloc package, eight sponsored by republican and seven by democrats this truly is bipartisan participation in this in formulating this package. I hope that all the sponsors of these 15 amendments will support this bill on final passage. I urge adoption of the en bloc and yield back the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The question is on the amendment. On the 5e789s en bloc offered by the gentleman from texas. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. The en bloc amendments are agreed to. For what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition . Mr. Thornberry pursuant to h. Res. 260, i offer another en bloc package, number five. The chair the clerk will designate the amendments en bloc. The clerk en bloc number five consisting of amendments 72 77 84, 86, 87 88, 89, 92, 93, 95 97, 98, and 100. Printed in house report 114112, offered by mr. Thornberry of texas. The chair pursuant to House Resolution 260, the gentleman from texas, mr. Thornberry and the gentleman from rhode island, mr. Langevin each will control 10 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry thank you, mr. Chairman. Im pleased to yield one minute to a colleague on the Armed Services Committee Also vice chair of the subcommittee on readiness, the gentlelady from new york. The chair the gentlelady is recognized. While i rise in support of this en bloc position, i am opposed to the selling of apaches. We worked to have a review no less than 60 days. Mr. Palazzos provision would scratch this and limit our review time. More importantly this amendment would have devastating impacts on the armys combat aviationbury gade and on states like new york, kansas, hawaii, arizona and others. Ms. Stefanik let me be clear. Any apache delie will have great effects on the readiness. The National Guard is set to receive fully modernized black hawks, however, derail delaying or stopping apache transfers would inhibit lift and rescue operations, which are critical to a states emergency response. While i will not vote against this package, i will continue to fight for an ontime transfer of the apay chees from the apa choo e apaches from the National Guard to the army. The chair the gentleman from rhode island. Mr. Langevin let me first say i want to thank chairman of the committee for his bipartisan cooperation. At this time we have no speakers at this point. I reserve the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Thornberry thank you, mr. Chairman. Im pleased to yield one minute to the distinguished gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. Rothfus. The chair the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Roth fust i thank my friend for yielding. Mr. Rothfus i thank my friend for yielding. Since its establishment, the National Guard has responded to national crises. After september 11 2001, they were once again called on to stand to post, deployed for months on end, leaving loved ones behind. Unfortunately, the armys aviation structure is said to have a set to have a devastating impact not only on the National Guard in pennsylvania but all of the National Guard, leaving them less operational. Last year, congress wisely created the committee on the future of the army to create a deliberate approach. We need to allow the commission to do its work and ensure that the congress has sufficient time to consider the commissions report and recommendations before the army takes any further harmful and irreversible actions. The amendment i have offered with representatives palazzo and walls will ensure congress has that opportunity. I urge your support. I yield back. The chair the gentleman yields back. The gentleman from rhode island is recognized. Mr. Langevin i continue to reserve. The chair the gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry im pleased to yield one minute to the distinguished gentlelady from north carolina, mrs. Ellmers. The chair the gentlelady is recognized. Mrs. Ellmers sprk thank you, mr. Speaker. Thank you mrs. Ellmers thank you, mr. Speaker. Thank you for continuing to work with me on issues facing fort bragg including the deactivation of the 440th air force wing. My amendment is simple. Im demanding accountability for what i believe to be a misguided and shortsighted decision. The airborne and special Operations Unit are unique because there are paratroopers within the Global Response force who were on call 247, packed and ready to deploy anywhere in the world within hours. It is safe to say that the level of readyness required for these forces is unparalleled. In the midst of a global in the midst of global uncertainty, the idea of deactivation such as the vital element is simply baffling to me. I see this as a dangerous action to our paratroopers and i demand accountability for this illadvised decision. As the representative of fort bragg, i will not stand by idly when i see a decision that negatively affects the brave men and women serving our country. Mr. Speaker, i yield become the remainder of my time. The chair the gentleladys time has expired this gentleman from rhode island is recognized. Mr. Langevin thank you mr. Chairman. At this time, we continue trow serve. The chair the gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Thornberry im pleased to yield one minute to the distinguished gentleman from new york mr. Kepko. The chair the gentleman is recognized. I rise in support of amendment number 86 to bring awareness to an issue that affects the future of our air force, and it can be boiled down to one specific fact. We need more remotely piloted aircraft pilots. The military has increasingly emphasized the use of Unmanned Aerial Systems to support operations around the world. We should continue providing the assets necessary to protect and enable our Service Members to do their job. Air force leadership has recently made several remarks stating the need for 300 annually trained r. P. A. Pilots. However we can only muster a fraction of that number at this time. I stand before this body today to ask support for report to congress and request clarification on how the department of defense, specifically the air force plans on solving this problem. I ask my colleagues to not restrict the operational needs of our air force and ask for strong support of this amendment. I thank the gentleman from texas for his time and urge adoption of my amendment. The chair the gentlemans time has expire. Does the gentleman from rhode island wish to reserve in mr. Langevin continue to reserve. The chair the gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Thornberry im pleased at this point to yield one minute to the distinguished gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. Thompson. The chair the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Thompson i rise to offer an amendment on behalf of our nations Service Members this amendment is verbatim to a bill that congressman tim ryan and i introduced earlier this year, the medical evack medical valuation for services. It will help the military identify Behavioral Health issues by instituting a Mental Health assessment for all nbing recruits. A recent study found a need to address mental Health Issues in a timely manner finding that one in four soldiers enter the forces with a mental issue. This cannot be used to determine promotion, it will simply ensure we have a better baseline of a Service Member in the course of their career. They put their lives on the line every day in the service of our nation. Its our responsibility to offer to do everything in our power to guarantee they return home safely this amendment has strong bipartisan support and is part of a large number of military mental advocacy groups which understand our troops deserve as much support as we can provide them. 108 of our military took their lives from october to december, 2014, by suicide. Lets stop this tragedy. I strongly urge my colleagues to support, certainly this amendment and the underlying bill. Thank you. The chair the gentlemans time has expired. Does the gentleman wish to reserve . The gentleman reserves. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Thornberry at this point im pleased to yield two minutes to the distinguished gentleman from florida, mr. Mica, for purposes of a colloquy. The chair the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. Mr. Mica i thank the distinguished gentleman from texas for yielding. And also for entering into this colloquy. I rise in concern to a potential air force determination. Under section 2667 of title 10, referencing an enhanced use Lease Agreement offered by the Canaveral Port Authority for use of the department of defense lands directly adjacent to ka 1 2 reals harbor canaverals harbor port. The Canaveral Port Authority is in fact an independent Governmental Agency established by the Florida Legislature back in 1939. Therefore, the Canaveral Port Authority is a Public Organization under section 2667 of title 10, it could be determined by the secretary of the air force that the Public Interest would be served as a result of the enhanced use Lease Agreement thats being offered. And that competitive procedures that is not compatible with the Public Benefits served by this, in fact, this Public Interest. Thusly its in the Public Interest to deal with a public entity. The competitive procedures for selection of leases under this section should allow the air force to negotiate solely with the Canaveral Port Authority. Will the gentleman yield . Michael smith yes. I fully agree that section 2667 of title 10 provides the secretary of the air force the flexibility to enter into a lease with a public entity. Mr. Thornberry i further understand that such a lease would be at full market value. So along with the gentleman, i look forward to hearing from the secretary of the air force as to her determination in this particular case. Michael smith i thank the gentleman and yield back the balance of my time Michael Smith i thank the gentleman and mr. Mica i thank the gentleman and i yield back the balance of my time. Mr. Langevin were still going to reserve. The chair the gentleman from rhode island still wishes to reserve. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Thornberry thank you, mr. Chairman. We have no further speakers at this point. The chair the gentleman reserves . The gentleman from rhode island is recognized. Mr. Langevin mr. Chairman we have no speakers on our side. So i will yield back the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Thornberry mr. Chairman, i would yield myself the remaining time just to mention that in this en bloc package there are amendments from nine republicans and eight democrats. We have heard discussed over the last two en bloc packages a number of important issues such as cybersecurity, about equipping and training our National Guard again, members from both sides have contributed to this product but make their contributions count this bills going to have to pass. I hope that all the members who offered these 17 amendments of this en bloc and the other packages will support final passage not only of this en bloc passage but the final of the entire bill. With that i yield back. The chair the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The question is on the amendment en bloc avenue amendments en bloc eafered offered by the gentleman from texas. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. The en bloc amendments are agreed to. It is now in order to consider amendment number 83 printed in house report 114112. For what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition . Mr. Burgess i have an amendment at the desk. The chair the clerk will designate the amendment. The clerk amendment number 83 printed in house report 114112 offered by mr. Burgess of texas. The chair pursuant to House Resolution 260, the gentleman from texas, mr. Burgess, and a member opposed each will control five minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. Mr. Burgess i thank you for the recognition. My amendment today reflects the frustration that many in congress have felt for some time over the department of defenses lack of Real Progress on being able to produce a full accounting of where the money that that is been given to them over the years, where that money has been spent. In 1990 Congress Passed the chief Financial Officers act requiring every department and every agency in the federal government to produce verifiable Financial Statements which could be fully audited. Each major agency has been able to complete this task except one, the department of defense. Congress has allowed the department of defense to continue to not comply with this law for now going on 25 years. Its time for that to end. While the department of defense might claim it has taken steps toward completing an audit, purportedly to be accomplished by 2017, congress has little verifiable proof that this will actually occur. The amendment that i offer today with barbara lee from california asks the department of defense to rank in order from most ready to be audited to least ready to be audited every entity within the department which is required to provide Financial Statements for the overall effort of the departmentwide audit. Congress needs to know which offices within the department of defense are making significant strides toward this goal and which offices are not. The amendment requires no additional analysis, no additional explanation simply a list. If congress is serious about exercising its oversight role through the power of the purse, then this is the least we should expect from the department to provide to congress, a pulse check to show members where the audit truly stands. Ms. Lee, ms. Schakowsky and i are not the only ones who have been concerned about the pentagons lack of progress in this arena. In 2013 the Government Accountability office, congress was eyes and ear Congress Eyes and ears on the ground for keeping the governm

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