Servicemember Quality of Life Improvement and National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman and associate myself with his opening remarks about this wrongheaded proposed amendment.

We debated this last year. It failed on this floor with 278 ``no'' votes to 193 ``yes'' votes. Twenty-five Republicans voted ``no,'' but here we are again.

Our friend from Arizona apparently thinks he knows more than our Department of Defense because they are not asking for this. Nevertheless, he thinks they should have it.

Since the enactment of the Endangered Species Act over 50 years ago, the ESA has provided the framework for the U.S. Government's policy on endangered species. All agencies of the Federal Government, including Defense, should conserve threatened endangered species. It works just fine with the Department of Defense.

This amendment undermines that commitment by amending the ESA to simply exclude an entire sector of our economy, the Department of Defense, from any requirements under the ESA.

There is zero evidence that the ESA is negatively impacting military activities. In fact, the Department of Defense has a long history of working successfully to bring back endangered species from the brink of extinction. In fact, according to DOD, protecting military lands for endangered species is a critical piece of military readiness and training.

For example, wildlife conservation on Army installations helps preserve rare natural landscapes necessary for the Army's training. They are preserving some of the best habitats we have for endangered species, and they have integrated endangered species into their training scenarios, treating endangered species and their habitat as things that cannot be damaged or destroyed during conflict, such as they would with churches or schools.

The Army celebrates its role and leadership in recovering species, and this amendment significantly undermines that success.

On the Barry M. Goldwater Range, which our friend from Arizona mentioned, the Marine Corps, Army, National Guard, Air Force, Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Arizona Game and Fish Department are all partnering to support military training missions and recover the Sonoran pronghorn antelope. We don't have to choose between the two.

Look, some in Congress just want to blow up the ESA completely. Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to see this amendment for what it is. Vote ``no.''

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source