[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 102 (Thursday, July 9, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1711]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2010

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                               speech of

                         HON. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 24, 2009

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2647) to 
     authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2010 for military 
     activities of the Department of Defense, to prescribe 
     military personnel strengths for fiscal year 2010, and for 
     other purpose:

  Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of the National Defense 
Authorization Act of 2010. This important piece of legislation 
authorizes $680 billion for training, equipment, healthcare, and for 
important quality of life improvements for our troops and their 
families.
  The rising cost of goods and services and rising unemployment is 
taking an especially serious toll on our men and women in uniform and 
their families. As military commanders demand more time in theater for 
active duty personnel and rely more on the contribution of reservists, 
many of whom leave higher-paying jobs to be activated, demands on the 
limited financial resources of military families increase. The National 
Defense Authorization Act of 2010 was crafted with the concerns and 
urgent needs of these dedicated public servants and their families in 
mind.
  The legislation authorizes $135 billion for personnel needs and $27 
billion for healthcare. It raises the basic pay of our service members 
at a time when a pay-raise is dearly needed and the bill helps fund re-
enlistment bonuses for active-duty members and reservists. To enable 
service members to spend more time with their families between tours, 
the bill increases the maximum leave days that a service member can 
accumulate and carry over from one year to the next. And, to ensure 
that our service members have a safe and secure home to return to, the 
bill contains $2 billion for the construction and renovation of new and 
existing family military housing.
  I am pleased to report to my constituents who have concerns about 
traffic congestion as the region prepares for the move of Walter Reed 
Hospital to Bethesda, that the bill instructs the Department of Defense 
to use all available resources to implement the Defense Access Road 
Program near the National Naval Medical Center.
  The provisions and funds authorized by this act will help our men and 
women in uniform serving in the field, and help give them more peace of 
mind that their families back home are being cared for in their 
absence. I encourage my colleagues to join me in supporting the bill.
  Today, there was also a vote on an amendment to this legislation 
offered by my colleague Massachusetts Representative James McGovern, 
which would require the Department of Defense to report an exit 
strategy for military forces in Afghanistan by no later than December 
31st of this year. While I do not oppose the intent of my colleague's 
amendment, I did oppose the amendment on the grounds that President 
Obama has already laid out his strategy for Afghanistan in a speech 
delivered in March 2009. Like President Obama, I want to bring our 
troops home as soon as possible consistent with our national security 
needs.
  As the President emphasized in his speech, Afghanistan is where the 
plot to attack the United States on September 11th, 2001 was developed 
and put into motion. It is of vital importance to U.S. national 
security that we do what is necessary to eliminate the threat posed to 
the American people from al Qaeda.
  Madam speaker, I urge that we support the National Defense Act of 
2010.

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