[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 116 (Thursday, August 1, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H9796-H9801]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 3517, MILITARY CONSTRUCTION APPROPRIATIONS
ACT, 1997
Mrs. VUCANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to the previous order of the
House, I call up the converence report on the bill (H.R. 3517) making
appropriations for military construction, family housing, and base
realignment and closure for the Department of Defense for the fiscal
year ending September 30, 1997, and for other purposes, and ask for its
immediate consideration.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the order of the House of today,
the conference report is considered as having been read.
(For conference report and statement, see proceedings of the House of
Tuesday, July 30, 1996, at page H8958.)
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman from Nevada [Mrs.
Vucanovich] and the gentlemen from North Carolina [Mr. Hefner] each
will control 30 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Nevada [Mrs. Vucanovich].
general leave
Mrs. VUCANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend
their remarks on the conference report to accompany H.R. 3517, and that
I may include tabular and extraneous material.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from Nevada?
There was no objection.
Mrs. VUCANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, The conference report we present to the House today for
military construction, family housing, and base closure recommends a
total appropriation of $9.9 billion. This represents a $1.2 billion, or
10-percent, decrease from last year. The conference report is $50
million below the House-passed level and is within the subcommittee's
revised 602(b) allocation.
Mr. Speaker, the House conferees had more than 200 differences to
resolve, representing over $1 billion. We have done so in an equitable
manner. At the same time, we held to our priorities and provided an
additional $195 million for troop housing and $271 million for family
housing above the President's request.
Overall, the agreement recommends $4 billion for items related to
family housing; $2.5 billion for the implementation of base
realignments and closures; and $3.2 billion for military construction.
Mr. Speaker, the projects to be implemented with this appropriation
are still subject to authorization. We have worked closely with the
National Security Committee in crafting this bill. This cooperation has
been invaluable and I understand they support this agreement.
[[Page H9797]]
As always, I want to express my appreciation to all members of the
subcommittee and especially our ranking member, Mr. Hefner, for this
cooperation in crafting this agreement. It has been done in a
bipartisan manner and is an equitable compromise.
This bill represents an investment program that has significant
payback in economic terms and in better living and working conditions
for our military personnel and their families. I urge my colleagues to
support this conference report.
Mr. Speaker, I include the following material for the Record:
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Mrs. VUCANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
I rise today in support of the military construction appropriations
conference report, which was signed by all the conferees, and has
strong bipartisan support.
I also want to compliment the distinguished chairwoman of the
Military Construction Subcommittee for her fine work. Mrs. Vucanovich
has worked hard to produce a good bill that responds to needs of our
service men and women, and she has done so in a bipartisan fashion. She
will be missed on both sides of the aisle. Our service people and their
families will also miss Mrs. Vucanovich, who worked so very hard for
their well being.
The bill contains almost $10 billion in total funding and responds to
the highest priority requirements of the Joint Chiefs and
administration.
There has been a significant reduction in funds for military housing
with all the base closures, bottom up reviews and 5-year plans. I am
very pleased that the conference agreement continues our bipartisan
effort to address the quality-of-life issues for both enlisted
personnel and families of military members, including facilities in
North Carolina. It may not seem that glamorous to fund barracks, family
housing and child care centers, but if you have had any exposure to the
military way of life, you know that providing a decent place to live is
an important factor in military readiness.
This bill also takes care of many other critical needs of the
Department including the base closure construction and clean-up
requirements, critically needed medical facilities, major new
homeporting facilities and other operational upgrades. I'm pleased to
see the report includes funding for both a hospital and a clinic badly
needed at Fort Bragg, as well as completing an important land
acquisition there.
It is an excellent bill and I urge all Members to support this
bipartisan conference report.
Mr. HEFNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, this is a very good bill. We are happy with the end
product that we have here. I would just like to take this time to tell
the gentlewoman from Nevada [Mrs. Vucanovich], the chairman, that we
are going to miss her in this body and congratulate her and the staff
on a job well done on this military construction bill. It is a very
good bill. It enhances the quality of life for our military personnel.
Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman
from Maryland [Mr. Hoyer].
Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me this
time.
Mr. Speaker, I want to rise as well and express my admiration and
respect for the gentlewoman from Nevada [Mrs. Vucanovich], the chairman
of this subcommittee. She has done an outstanding job both as a member
of the Subcommittee on Military Construction of the Committee on
Appropriations, and as chairman of that subcommittee. I had the
privilege of serving with her as a member of that subcommittee for a
number of years. Her leaving the House will be a loss not only to the
House, but to the men and women of the Armed Services for whom she has
done a great deal in terms of quality of life and in terms of assuring
ourselves that from a military infrastructure standpoint we have
facilities that are adequate not only to protect the quality of life
for our men and women in the Armed Services, but also to protect our
readiness.
I wanted to rise, Mr. Speaker, and pay tribute to her. This will be
probably the last time, at least in terms of a sole bill, and hopefully
this bill is going to be signed relatively soon, that she will be
presenting this legislation. As one who has had the opportunity to work
with her, she has been a credit to this institution and a credit to her
State and a credit to our country.
I also want to say, of course, that the gentleman from North
Carolina, Bill Hefner, the ranking member, who has been the chairman of
this committee, worked very closely with the gentlewoman from Nevada
[Mrs. Vucanovich] himself, is someone who has been a leader on behalf
of the quality of life of our men and women in the Armed Services. I
rise in strong support of this legislation and congratulate both the
chairman and the ranking member on their leadership in this effort.
Mr. BLILEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 3517,
the military construction appropriation conference report. I want to
especially commend chairwoman Vucanovich for the good work, and to let
her know that this House will sorely miss her.
Contained in the conference report is funding which will allow the
army to finish the planning and design work, and to purchase the land
for the construction of a new national ground intelligence center
(NGIC) in Charlottesville, VA.
The NGIC's mission is to produce scientific, technical and general
military intelligence on foreign ground forces. The NGIC currently
occupies six geographically separate buildings in Charlottesville. By
all accounts, these facilities are woefully inadequate to fulfill the
NGIC's vital mission. In 1986, an army corps of engineers facility
requirement review concluded that the Charlottesville facilities ``are
grossly inadequate in virtually every parameter measured.''
There are critical management inefficiencies and costs associated
with operating an intelligence organization spread out over six
locations. In addition, the main building in downtown Charlottesville
has serious structural and environmental safety shortcomings, as well
as electric power and mechanical deficiencies.
For many years, the army has been working to build a suitable
facility to house the NGIC. A number of studies--including the BRACC--
have determined that relocation of the NGIC outside of Charlottesville
is neither operationally nor economically feasible.
Once again, I applaud chairman Vucanovich for her leadership is
helping to give the NGIC the facility that it so urgently needs.
Mr. FAZIO of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the
Military Construction Appropriations Conference Report for fiscal year
1997. I would like to thank the chairwoman of this committee, Barbara
Vucanovich, who has once again moved this bill swiftly through the
Appropriations Committee and the conference committee, and I am sad to
say will be doing it for the last time. I want to wish her well and
would like to personally thank her for the service that she has
provided to this important subcommittee and this institution. I would
also like to thank the ranking member of the Subcommittee, Bill Hefner,
for his help and assistance in bringing this legislation to the floor.
This bill provides nearly $10 billion in fiscal year 1997 for
military construction, family housing and military base closures. This
bill continues this House's commitment to funding initiatives that
upgrade the quality of life for the men and women of the armed forces
and their families.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to highlight a few important projects in
the bill that are important to the Air Force bases in my district.
The first project is the ongoing renovation of the dormitories at
Travis AFB. This bill provides funding for one dormitory scheduled for
construction this year, and funding to speed up construction of a
second dorm at Travis. Additionally, this bill includes $8.63 million
for the construction of 70 multi-family housing units for enlisted
personnel stationed at Travis. This project goes a long way to improve
Travis' housing situation. The construction of the dormitories are part
of a base-wide project to upgrade and improve base housing in order to
meet Air Force requirements.
This bill also provides funds to replace Travis' underground fueling
system. The system was designed to provide a quick and efficient way to
refuel two jets at one time. Travis currently relies on an underground
system from the 1950's, which often fails because of electrical shorts
which occur after rainstorms. The new fuel system is safer and more
efficient than the fuel trucks on the runway. It will also put an end
to the occasional leaks which are so bad for the environment.
These upgrades are a clear sign that Travis is, and will remain,
vital to Air Mobility Command's mission.
Mr. Speaker, this bill also provides for three projects at Beale AFB:
the closure of Landfill No. 2, the CARS Deployable Ground Station
Support Facility and 56 units of family housing.
Funding for the closure of Landfill No. 2 will allow the base to
comply with California standards governing landfills. Currently, Beale
is out of compliance with California law.
The bill also will provide for the construction of a new home for the
Contingency Airborne Reconnaissance System [CARS] Deployable Ground
Station [DGS]. The DGS is an important mission that provides Air Force
commanders with a satellite downlink that provides critical information
from the battlefield. The current facility is stationed in mobile
trailers and is unable to adequately support this mission. Failure to
provide adequate support for this function would significantly degrade
CARS operational capability to provide theater commanders worldwide
with dynamic, responsive intelligence support for battlefield
management and execution.
Finally, funding is provided for 56 family housing units on base.
Funding for the 56 units of family housing at Beale is the second phase
of a multi-year plan to eventually replace 1,700 family housing units
on base. The new housing will significantly improve the quality of life
for those stationed on base. Current housing facilities are substandard
and are in need of being replaced.
[[Page H9801]]
Mr. Speaker, each of the initiatives I have outlined will help
maintain Travis AFB and Beale AFB as critical defense assets and as
integral parts of their respective communities. The projects that I
have indicated are important to the ongoing missions at each base.
In closing, I want to reiterate my support for this important bill
that provides for the quality of life for our troops and is vitally
important to maintaining military readiness.
Mr. HEFNER. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
Mrs. VUCANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the kind words from the
gentleman from Maryland. It has been a great honor to serve this body
and to carry this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Hayworth). Without objection, the
previous question is ordered on the conference report.
There was no objection.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the conference report.
Pursuant to the provisions of clause 7 of rule XV, the yeas and nays
are ordered.
Pursuant to clause 5, rule I, further proceedings on this question
are postponed until the end of consideration of the conference report
on the bill, H.R. 3845.
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