[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 29 (Thursday, February 15, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E365]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     INTRODUCTION OF THE RECONSTRUCTION AND STABILIZATION CIVILIAN 
                             MANAGEMENT ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. SAM FARR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, February 15, 2007

  Mr. FARR. Madam Speaker, today, Mr. Saxton and I are pleased to 
introduce the bill, Reconstruction and Stabilization Civilian 
Management Act.
  In his State of the Union speech, the President called on Congress to 
support a civilian response corps which ``would function much like our 
military reserve. It would ease the burden on the Armed Forces by 
allowing us to hire civilians with critical skills to serve on missions 
abroad when America needs them. It would give people across America who 
do not wear the uniform a chance to serve in the defining struggle of 
our time.''
  The Reconstruction and Stabilization Civilian Management Act would 
authorize a civilian response corps. Why is this authorization 
necessary? Since the end of the Cold War, the U.S. has been engaged in 
a stabilization or reconstruction operation once every 18-24 months. By 
default, the services have taken on the task of nation building, and 
OSD Directive 3000.05 makes stabilization and reconstruction operations 
a core competency of the military.
  While our military personnel have done an excellent job for which 
they have not been trained, filling the void should be the 
responsibility of the State Department. In order for our operations to 
be successful, the State Department must fill this void, and can do so 
by creating a comparable civilian force to take over once the military 
has stabilized a war-torn country.
  Combating failed states requires a complex combination of political, 
diplomatic, development assistance and military actions, as well as the 
ability to respond quickly in the immediate aftermath of crisis. The 
military plays an extremely important role in stabilizing a country, 
but civilians play an equally important role and have comparative 
advantage in helping to develop civil society--judicial systems, law 
enforcement, health care, economic development, trade promotion and 
other essential sectors to stabilize a country.
  The Reconstruction and Stabilization Civilian Management Act 
establishes the legislative framework for authorizing this integral 
civilian capacity by:
  Authorizing the establishment of the State Department Office of the 
Coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization, S/CRS;
  Authorizing the establishment of a 250-person Civilian Response Corps 
with both Active-Duty and Reserve components. The corps would be 
rapidly deployed with the military for both initial assessments and 
operational purposes. They would be the first civilian team on the 
ground in post-conflict situations, well in advance of the 
establishment of an embassy.
  Establishes personnel exchange programs with other relevant Federal 
agencies that can help a failed state develop government and civil 
society infrastructure.
  Importantly, the bill promotes a stabilization and reconstruction 
curriculum and the utilization of already existing programs like the 
Center for Stabilization and Reconstruction Studies at the Naval 
Postgraduate School.
  I urge my colleagues to cosponsor this important piece of legislation 
that would greatly assist in improving the capacity of our Government 
to respond to some of the most important and pressing security threats 
of our time.

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