National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022

Floor Speech

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Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding and for the hard work that went into preparing this NDAA.

I rise today in support of one amendment in particular included in this en bloc package, which would add the bipartisan Alexander Lofgren Veterans and Parks Act or the VIP Act to the bill.

The VIP Act would provide free lifetime passes to our national parks and public lands for veterans and Gold Star family members and free annual passes for active duty military members.

I am a proud cosponsor of both the amendment and identical legislation which passed the House earlier this year with an amazing 420 in favor to zero against vote with over 150 bipartisan cosponsors. Senator Sinema and Senator Boozman from my home State of Arkansas are leading the bipartisan Senate companion of this legislation.

In addition to its broad support here in Congress, the VIP Act has also been endorsed by over 60 organizations representing a diverse coalition of conservation, recreation, and veterans' groups.

In just the past month, as we have watched the horrible situation unfolding in Afghanistan, the country has awoken again to the sacrifice and heroism displayed by our brave men and women in uniform. These men and women often return home carrying both visible and invisible wounds from their time in combat.

During the Biden administration's botched evacuation of Afghanistan, the VA's crisis hotline had a 9 percent uptick in calls. Despite the fact that suicide rates among veterans were the lowest in 12 years, an average of 17 veterans per day still died by suicide in 2019.

That is what makes this amendment so vital now more than ever. Our outdoors can be a place of healing and hope for our veterans, particularly wounded or paralyzed veterans who turn to nature for solace and comfort.

Financial barriers should not be a factor for our veterans as they try to access the majestic and iconic parts of our country that they fought so hard to defend. Our veterans, active duty military, and Gold Star families deserve permanent, free access that can never be taken away from them.

While we can never fully repay the debt we owe to our veterans and Gold Star families, this amendment is a small gesture to symbolize their sacrifices were not in vain, and that they we will never forget their bravery and heroism.

That is why I am also a strong supporter of an amendment that passed in an earlier en bloc passage to locate the Global War on Terrorism Memorial on the National Mall here in Washington, D.C.

Our Nation's patriots who selflessly fought to defend this Nation in the wake of terror attacks against our homeland deserve nothing less than a lasting tribute in our Nation's capitol in a place of prominence on the National Mall.

I strongly support the amendment and would urge the eventual NDAA conferees to ensure it stays in the final text and will fight to make sure that it does.

Before I conclude, I would be remiss if I didn't mention several wildfire-related amendments.

I believe that better pay and benefits for our wildland firefighters is both well-deserved and well-earned, but we must address both the short- and long-term issues facing our firefighters and Federal lands; which means addressing the catastrophic forest health crisis through better management.

Nearly six million acres have burned this year, and States like California and Oregon saw some of the largest fires in their State's history. Fire seasons are getting longer and more intense because of our lack of forest management, which in turn puts a heavy physical, mental, and emotional strain on our wildland firefighters.

I would like to extend an invitation to my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to work on this issue together so that we stop putting our firefighters in impossible situations year after year.

I urge my colleagues to support the Miller-Meeks, Gallego, Westerman, and Grijalva amendment.

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