National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022
Floor Speech
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Madam Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 667, I offer amendments en bloc.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Madam Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer).
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Cohen).
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone).
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Correa).
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Auchincloss).
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Chu).
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Madam Speaker, I am prepared to close at this time.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Madam Speaker, I too urge support of the amendments en bloc, and I yield back the balance of my time.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, first of all, I want to get the numbers clear here. The budget proposed by President Biden was $753 billion, and by supporting this amendment, we support President Biden's budget of $753 billion, which was a $12 billion increase over last year's budget.
Last year's budget--the last budget from the Trump administration-- only increased the defense budget that year by $3 billion. So a $3 billion increase last year was perfectly acceptable to my Republican colleagues in the House and Senate under President Trump. A $12 billion increase this year is not. So the numbers are just being dramatically presented here as some kind of cut when it is actually a bigger increase than Trump did in his last year in the White House.
Let me make it clear: I see the threats, and I do agree more with my Republican colleagues on that point. I don't support the previous amendment that does the $75 billion cut because I understand the threat environment and I know that we need to modernize to meet that threat environment.
But the other thing I see is decades of waste and wasteful expenditures on programs like the F-35 and the Ford-class carrier.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, we spent money in a very imprudent way. We have got to instill discipline at the Pentagon so we get value for the dollars that we spend. Simply giving them another $25 billion does not do that, and $753 billion is enough. It is even better if we actually start spending it wisely, intelligently, and effectively. That doesn't happen. I am a little short. Can you just give me a little more money?
I always love the Winston Churchill quote: ``Gentlemen, we have run out of money; now we have to think.''
That is the type of discipline we need at the Pentagon, not just to give them a blank check every time they ask. The President's budget is sufficient to meet our needs.
Mr. Speaker, I urge support for the amendment.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 667, I offer amendments en bloc.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. 207 printed in part C of House Report 117-125 be modified in the form I have placed at the desk.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Jackson Lee).
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman, and I thank the ranking member for his support, longtime friends.
Let me quickly indicate that as I have embraced the NDAA over the years, it has always been my focus to deal with the military personnel and to make us the best, the strongest, and the most well respected and appreciated.
I want to thank this committee and the Rules Committee for allowing my amendments Nos. 191, 192, 193, 194, 195, 196, 197, and 198. Many of them speak for themselves.
Let me clearly say that I have worked year after year as a breast cancer survivor to ensure that triple-negative breast cancer, which is one of the most deadly forms of cancer--that women in the military have the services that they need.
Let me just share with you that triple-negative breast cancer has a survival rate of 5 years. The key to beating this cancer is early detection. There is $10 million to enhance research and to help these women. In addition, I have asked for $2 million for post-traumatic stress disorder. I even, under then-Colonel Murtha, organized a center in my district.
But the most important point for supporting this amendment is that it still exists--Operation Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom, 11 to 20 out of 100; Gulf war, 12 out of 100; Vietnam war, 30 out of 100. It is still needed, and we appreciate this amendment.
I also want to thank you for recognizing that we are going into space. My amendment says that we should have a bill that studies the risks proposed by man-made space debris in lower orbit, including recommendations and remediation of such risks. It is extremely important.
Finally, I want to speak to a very important amendment dealing with the longstanding history of African Americans in the United States military, to create a task force that respects the fact that Crispus Attucks, a runaway slave who escaped--during the Boston Massacre to the present day--an escaped slave who fought in the Revolutionary War with George Washington.
This story is a long-story story. The United States Army and others have a very long history. This task force will determine the impact of slavery and the impact of our soldiers from the very early years, who happened to be ex-slaves fighting all the way through the many different wars.
I believe we will find that those who are descendants of enslaved Africans have fought in wars from the very beginning. It is an important story. It should be told. I am very pleased that this particular amendment is included.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Jackson Lee).
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I will just conclude that this task force, which will be a very significant historical study, will be very much appreciated.
But let me quickly say that having worked with our various nominees to the military academies, one in particular was an individual who stuttered. By the time he finished, they said he could not have his command. They never assessed him in the academy while he was there.
I believe this is an important assessment, to assess that vital $250,000 student, so that when he graduates, he will have a command even if he is a stutterer because he made it into the academy; he was successful academically; and he should be allowed to serve his country.
I thank you for considering my amendments and for them to stay in to become law.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of my Amendments in the En Bloc Amendment No. 2 to H.R. 4350, the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2022, which incorporates Jackson Lee Amendments Nos. 191, 192, 193, 194, 195, 196, 197, and 198.
I thank the Rules Committee for making these amendments in order.
I also thank Chairman Smith of the House Armed Services Committee and his staff for working with me and my staff to include the Jackson Lee Amendments in this En Bloc, and for his great work in shepherding the bill to the floor.
The amendments included in En Bloc No. 2 are as follows:
1. Jackson Lee Amendment designated as No. 191--Provides authorization for a $10 million increase in funding for increased collaboration with NIH to combat Triple Negative Breast Cancer.
2. Jackson Lee Amendment designated as No. 192--Provides authorization for $2.5 million increase in funding to combat posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
3. Jackson Lee Amendment designated as No. 193--Directs the Secretary of Defense to promulgate regulations to ensure that candidates granted admission to attend a military academy undergo screening for speech disorders and be provided the results of the screening test and a list of warfare unrestricted line (URL) Officer positions and occupation specialists that require successful performance on the speech test. Academy students shall have the option of undergoing speech therapy to reduce speech disorders or impediments.
4. Jackson Lee Amendment designated as No. 194 recognizes that Black men and women have played an integral role in the defense of the nation from the bravery of Crispus Attucks, an escaped slave, during the Boston Massacre to the present day, and seeks to determine how to address the historical and current barriers to their participation and equal treatment in the Armed Services.
5. Jackson Lee Amendment designated as No. 195--Requires report on Maternity Mortality Rates for military members and their dependents.
6. Jackson Lee Amendment designated as No. 196--Requires a report to be submitted to Congress within 240 days following enactment on the risks posed by debris in low earth orbit and to make recommendations on remediation of risks and outline plans to reduce the incident of space debris.
7. Jackson Lee Amendment designated as No. 197--Requires the Secretary of Defense to report to Congress programs and procedures employed to ensure students studying abroad through Department of Defense National Security Education Programs are trained to recognize, resist, and report against recruitment efforts by agents of foreign governments.
8. Jackson Lee Amendment designated as No. 198--Directs the Secretary to submit to Congress within 180 days a report on the recognition of African Americans who have served in the Armed Forces in DOD naming practices and conventions for military installations, infrastructure, vessels, and weapon systems.
Jackson Lee Amendment 191 provides authorization for a $10 million increase in funding for increased collaboration with NIH to combat Triple Negative Breast Cancer.
As a Member of Congress, a mother, a sister, a spouse, and a breast cancer survivor, I feel a special responsibility to do all I can to ensure every American can win in the fight against all types of breast cancer but especially triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). What is triple negative breast cancer?
The term triple negative breast cancer refers to the fact that this form of breast cancer will test negative, which means that each of the tests will return negative results for the presence of breast cancer for three types of breast cancer tests:
Estrogen receptor;
Progesterone receptor; and
Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 or the HER2 test will be negative.
In addition, triple-negative breast cancer:
Tends to be more aggressive than other types of breast cancer;
Five-year survival rates also tend to be lower for triple-negative breast cancer; and
Triple Negative Breast Cancer tends to be higher grade than other types of breast cancer.
Studies have shown that triple-negative breast cancer is more likely to spread beyond the breast and more likely to recur (come back) after treatment.
For example, a study of more than 1,600 women in Canada published in 2007 found that women with triple-negative breast cancer were at higher risk of having the cancer recur outside the breast--but only for the first 3 years.
As years go by, the risks of the triple-negative breast cancer recurring become similar to those risk levels for other types of breast cancer.
The key to beating this cancer is not just early detection--but detection period.
A 2007 study of more than 50,000 women with all stages of breast cancer found that 77 percent of women with triple-negative breast cancer survived at least 5 years, versus 93 percent of women with other types of breast cancer.
Another study of more than 1,600 women published in 2007 found that women with triple-negative breast cancer had a higher risk of death within 5 years of diagnosis, but not after that time period.
The recurrence and survival figures in these and other studies are averages for all women with triple-negative breast cancer.
Factors such as the grade and stage of the breast cancer will influence an individual woman's prognosis.
About 15-20 percent of breast cancers are triple negative.
Triple Negative tumors tend to occur more often in younger women and African-American women.
In studies of U.S. and British women, triple negative breast cancer appears to be more common among black women (especially before menopause) compared to white women.
Triple negative breast cancer may also be more common among Hispanic women compared to white women.
Although the reasons for racial/ethnic differences in rates of triple negative breast cancer are not clear, lifestyle factors may play a role.
For example, some findings show African-American women tend to have lower rates of breastfeeding compared to other women, which may increase the chances of having triple negative breast cancer.
For these individuals and the tens of thousands of survivors and their daughters this amendment is needed.
Jackson Lee Amendment 192 provides authorization for $2.5 million increase in funding to combat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
PTSD was first brought to public attention in relation to war veterans, but it can result from a variety of traumatic incidents, such as torture, being kidnapped or held captive, bombings, or natural disasters such as floods or earthquakes.
People with PTSD may startle easily, become emotionally numb (especially in relation to people with whom they used to be close), lose interest in things they used to enjoy, have trouble feeling affectionate, be irritable, become more aggressive, or even become violent.
They avoid situations that remind them of the original incident, and anniversaries of the incident are often very difficult.
Most people with PTSD repeatedly relive the trauma in their thoughts during the day and in nightmares when they sleep. These are called flashbacks. A person having a flashback may lose touch with reality and believe that the traumatic incident is happening all over again.
My amendment recognizes that these soldiers are, first and foremost, human. They carry their experiences with them.
Ask a veteran of Vietnam, Iraq, or Afghanistan about the frequency of nightmares they experience, and one will realize that serving in the Armed Forces leaves a lasting impression, whether good or bad.
According to the National Center for PTSD, the number of Veterans with PTSD varies by service era:
Operations Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Enduring Freedom (OEF): About 11- 20 out of every 100 Veterans (or between 11-20 percent) who served in OIF or OEF have PTSD in a given year.
Gulf War (Desert Storm): About 12 out of every 100 Gulf War Veterans (or 12 percent) have PTSD in a given year.
Vietnam War: It is estimated that about 30 out of every 100 (or 30 percent) of Vietnam Veterans have had PTSD in their lifetime.
Another cause of PTSD in the military can be military sexual trauma (MST). This is any sexual harassment or sexual assault that occurs while you are in the military.
MST can happen to both men and women and can occur during peacetime, training, or war.
Among Veterans who use VA health care, about:
23 out of 100 women (or 23 percent) reported sexual assault when in the military.
55 out of 100 women (or 55 percent) and 38 out of 100 men (or 38 percent) have experienced sexual harassment when in the military.
My amendment will help ensure that ``no soldier is left behind'' by addressing the urgent need for more outreach toward hard-to-reach veterans suffering from PTSD, especially those who are homeless or reside in underserved urban and rural areas of our country.
Jackson Lee Amendment
Black Americans became pilots, nurses, Marines, and West Point graduates, but it was not until President Harry S. Truman issued an executive order in 1948 that the armed services were integrated; and even then, some units refused to do so for several more years.
In 1777, when George Washington faced a dearth of white soldiers willing to fight on behalf of the colonies, he allowed Black men to fight in the continental army and during the harsh winter of 1778 the Rhode Island Assembly, therefore, passed a law in 1778 allowing ``every able-bodied negro, mulatto, or Indian man slave in this state to enlist.''
100 black soldiers signed up in exchange for their freedom.
During the Civil War, around 179,000 Black men served in the Union army, either in the Army, Navy, or non-combat positions and more than 40,000 gave the last full measure of devotion to their country.
Over 125,000 Black soldiers served overseas in the segregated military during World War II, but the U.S. military remained segregated.
When Black veterans came home, many found it difficult to get housing or jobs because White veterans were given preference.
The racial inequality and mistreatment of Black men and women that has historically permeated our military continues to this day, with more than 750 complaints of discrimination by race or ethnicity from service members in the fiscal year 2020 alone.
But discrimination doesn't exist just within the military rank-and- file, as in that same fiscal year, civilians working in the financial, technical, and support sectors of the Army, Air Force; and Navy also filed 900 complaints of racial discrimination and over 350 complaints of discrimination by skin color, data from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission shows.
According to a report by the Defense Department's Diversity and Inclusion Board, while the enlisted ranks of the active and reserve military were ``slightly more racially and ethnically diverse than its U.S. civilian counterparts,'' the opposite was true for the officer corps.
With the rise and normalization of white supremacist expression during the Trump administration, the concept of restorative justice has gained more urgency, garnering the attention of mainstream commentators, and illustrating the need for a national reckoning.
We owe it to those brave men and women who have proven time and time again to be an integral part of our military to examine the Armed Services' history of discrimination and to determine the necessary steps to repair the harm caused by these inequities.
Jackson Lee Amendment No. 96 directs that the Secretary of DoD provide a report 240 days from enactment of this bill on the risks posed by man-made space debris in low-earth orbit, including recommendations on remediation of such risks, and outlines of plans to reduce the incident of space debris.
Space debris encompasses both natural and artificial particles.
This Jackson Lee Amendment would address the risk of man-made space debris.
Man-made objects in Earth's orbit that may no longer serve a useful function can include nonfunctional spacecraft, abandoned launch vehicle stages, mission-related debris and fragmentation debris.
Space debris travels at speeds up to 17,500 miles per hour is fast enough for a small piece of man-made debris to damage a satellite or a spacecraft.
There are more than 20,000 pieces of debris larger than a softball orbiting the Earth.
There are 500,000 pieces of debris the size of a marble or larger.
There are many millions of pieces of debris that are so small they can't be tracked.
NASA tracks more than 500,000 pieces of man-made space debris in Earth's orbit.
This amendment seeks a report from the Secretary of Defense on the risks posed by man-made space debris, solutions for reducing risks and strategies for reducing the incidence of more man-made space debris being introduced into space.
I urge all members to vote for En Bloc Amendment No. 2 and the underlying legislation, H.R. 4350, the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2022
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Kelly).
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Manning).
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I urge support of the amendments en bloc, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Miss GONZALEZ-COLON. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of en bloc package number two for the National Defense Authorization Act of 2022.
This bill includes three amendments that were submitted by my office and will directly benefit the people of Puerto Rico and our Nation's security.
Amendment 162 requires the Secretary of Defense to enter into an agreement with the National Academy of Sciences for the purpose of investigating the health effects on the island Municipality of Vieques that may have been caused by toxic waste left after nearly 70 years of live fire training.
This waste includes heavy metals like lead, cancer-causing fuel chemicals, and even depleted uranium. In some locations, areas are so contaminated that it is not safe for workers to collect samples.
While there are numerous studies from different government agencies on this topic, including from the Centers for Disease Control and Government Accountability Office, much work remains to be done to further understand the consequences from this practice.
I am proud to say that this legislation now builds upon existing research for this important topic.
Amendment number 163 prohibits the Secretary of Defense from retiring the Landing Craft ships used by Puerto Rico's Army National Guard until such time as an adequate replacement is provided.
These ships delivered critical food, water, and other materials to Puerto Rico's noncontiguous islands of Vieques and Culebra, as well as the US Virgin Islands, following the aftermath of Hurricane Maria.
The landing craft ships were scheduled to be retired this year, however the adopted amendment prohibits this decommissioning until replacement equipment arrives to Puerto Rico.
My third and last amendment, number 164, requires the Secretary of the Army to allocate a Modular Small Arms Range to Puerto Rico.
Currently, Puerto Rico only has a single firearms range for Department of Defense personnel.
This creates numerous scheduling conflicts and decreases mission readiness.
Puerto Rico's own Fort Buchanan has the capacity to support a Modular Small Arms Range. My office has met with both Army leaders who support this request.
Let me close by noting that H.R. 4350 includes funding over 12 million dollars in funding for Fort Allen and 10 million for the Ramey Unit School, under the energy resilience and conservation program. Finally, H.R. 4350 includes 14 million under military construction for Fort Buchanan in Puerto Rico. I am appreciative of the Armed Service committees work and I look forward to seeing these projects to completion.
I encourage my colleagues to vote in favor of en bloc number two.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Ocasio-Cortez).
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I concur in the remarks of the ranking member. I urge support for the en bloc, and I yield back the balance of my time.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 667, I offer amendments en bloc.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I also support the en bloc. This will be the last chance for me to speak before we conclude the amendment process, so I do just want to make a final pitch for the underlying piece of legislation.
I think the amendment process has gone just fine. The underlying bill is incredibly well put together in the manner we have described, has bipartisan support, reflects a lot of the ideas and priorities of Members of Congress from both sides of the aisle as well, and from even outside the committee.
I think we have an excellent piece of legislation that will help meet the national security needs of our country, and I urge support for the bill in the final passage process, which will happen at some point tomorrow after we vote on, I don't know, 18-20 amendments, something like that. We will be here awhile.
Don't forget what brought us here in the first place. The need to pass the National Defense Authorization Act and maintain our commitment to put the men and women who serve in the military in the best possible position to carry out the missions that we give them.
Mr. Speaker, I urge support for final passage of the bill and urge support for this en bloc amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, in the spirit of transparency and accountability my amendment directs the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to probe whether the Department of Defense ever weaponized ticks with Lyme disease or any other dangerous pathogen.
Two similar amendments I have offered--one for an investigation by the Inspector General and another by the GAO--previously passed the House but did not make it through the Senate. I offer it again as the investigation and research may help uncover decades-old information and possibly provide some answers for those that suffer from Lyme. Americans deserve the truth.
For years, books and articles have been written credibly asserting that significant research at Fort Detrick, Plum Island, and elsewhere was conducted to turn ticks into bioweapons.
In her book, ``Bitten: The Secret History of Lyme Disease and Biological Weapons,'' Kris Newby includes interviews with Dr. Willy Burgdorfer, the researcher who is credited with discovering Lyme disease. It turns out that Dr. Burgdorfer was a bioweapons specialist. The interviews, combined with access to Dr. Burgdorfer's files, reveal that he and other bioweapons specialists stuffed ticks with pathogens in a quest to cause severe disability, disease, and death.
Mr. Speaker, Lyme disease and other tick-borne diseases are exploding in the United States. According to the December 2020 report of the Health & Human Services' Tick-Borne Disease Working Group--a federal advisory committee created by language included in the 21st Century Cures Act, which I fought for--Lyme disease is the most common tick- borne disease with an estimated 300,000 new cases diagnosed each year. A figure that many researchers, and Lyme-literate doctors, believe is underreported and could be upwards of 476,000 cases each year.
I also might add that this threat is very real for our servicemembers as they train in the field, especially at Fort Dix in my district where the geographic area has an increased prevalence of Lyme. To stop the spread of these horrific tickborne diseases, we must first understand their origins and how they came to be so pervasive.
Mr. Speaker, my amendment tasks the GAO to ask the hard questions about DOD's bioweapons research on ticks from 1950 to 1977. What were the parameters of the program if there was one? Who ordered it? Was there any accidental release anywhere or at any time of any of the diseased ticks? And the most important question, can any of this information that might be derived from that study, that audit, help current day researchers find a way to mitigate these diseases?
10 to 20 percent of Americans with Lyme suffer with chronic Lyme disease. They have a right to know whether any of this is true, and if any old research documents could be applied by current-day scientists to finding a better diagnostic or treatment for Lyme disease--something that's desperately needed.
If the investigation concludes our government's bioweapons program did not contribute to the proliferation of Lyme, we tum the page. And if it did, hopefully this investigation and research will contribute to a cure.
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