Designation of Defense Access Roads Around Travis and Beale Air Force Bases and Sierra Army Depot

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. GARAMENDI. Mr. Speaker, today I reintroduce legislation that would designate vital roads around Travis and Beale Air Force Bases and Sierra Army Depot in northern California, under the Defense Access Road Program. I thank my colleague Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R-CA01), who represents the neighboring Congressional district, for being the bill's original cosponsor.

Military installations play important roles in communities around the country, but also pose unique challenges by increasing traffic and subjecting civilian roadways to harsh use from heavy military equipment. In California, Travis and Beale Air Force Bases and Sierra Army Depot were built with infrastructure to support the size of the communities and the bases at the time. Over the decades, both the civilian and military populations have outgrown the current roads providing base access to the gates.

The Defense Access Road Program exists to support communities in precisely this situation, enabling the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) and service branches to pay for maintenance, upkeep, or upgrades of roads surrounding military installations. This ensures communities hosting bases have the infrastructure needed to support national security and civilian use. Certain roads surrounding Travis and Beale Air Force Bases are currently designated under the Defense Access Road Program. My legislation would designate the remaining access roads for each base under the program. It is necessary for the DOD to provide for maintenance and repairs as DOD use of the access roads continues and increases, to reduce the financial burden on the State.

As the Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness, I continue to work on proactive investments to support national security while also ensuring that communities around our military bases have the support they need. I plan to make these Defense Access Road designations a major priority for the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2024.

Travis and Beale Air Force Bases and Sierra Army Depot and the surrounding areas must have the world-class infrastructure needed to carry out their mission. The legislation I reintroduce today would ensure just that.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source