Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2019

Floor Speech

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Mrs. TORRES. Mr. Chair, I rise to offer my amendment No. 20 to division C of the Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill for Military Construction and Veterans Affairs.

This amendment is meant to address an issue we have in Ontario, California. However, I expect many of the Members of this body have experienced it in their own districts at some point.

In the Rules Committee hearing last night, I referred to this amendment as giving the Secretary of Defense the ability to finish the job, and that is precisely what we should expect from our service branches when they close military bases in our districts during BRAC rounds.

Ontario International Airport was the Ontario Air National Guard Station, which was established in 1949. This facility remained in operation for decades, assisting training and support for the Korean, Vietnam, and countless other wars and conflicts.

In 1997, the facility was closed as part of the latest Base Realignment and Closure process. This meant our Armed Services moved out. But instead of the airport being able to use the newly vacant land, the old site has sat largely unchanged for 20 years due to the environmental hazards of demolition.

When military bases are closed, it can be devastating to our local communities. At the very least, we should expect our service branches to leave our communities in as good or better shape than they found them.

In Ontario, California, old Air Force facilities have been left standing at the Ontario International Airport. These abandoned buildings have been overtaken by nature and look like the remains of a lost civilization, with trees and animals roaming free at the remaining site. This valuable but currently unusable space is hindering the growth of the Ontario Airport, and communities around Ontario depend on the airport.

My amendment would simply direct the Secretary to make available funds from the existing BRAC funding made available in this legislation to remove these old facilities.

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Mrs. TORRES. Mr. Chairman, the underlying bill has funding for BRAC closures. Before we proceed with any new closures, let's finish the job on the old closures.

Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes,'' and I yield back the balance of my time.

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