Aces Act of 2025

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of S. 201, the ACES Act of 2025, offered by Senator Mark Kelly.

Mr. Speaker, I will start by thanking all of those who helped to get this bill to this point. Among others, I am deeply appreciative of the Military Aviator Coalition for Health and their leadership in advocating for this issue.

I also thank my colleagues across the aisle, especially Representative Pfluger, the lead sponsor of the House version of this bill, for acknowledging the urgent need to address the alarming rates of aviator cancers.

Mr. Speaker, this isn't a partisan issue. It is about doing right by those who served.

Sadly, since we passed the House version of the bill, we have lost more aviators to cancer.

The urgency here is undeniable. We simply cannot afford to wait any longer. It is abundantly clear that we must investigate and pinpoint what is driving the illnesses among this population and develop a long- term strategy for early detection and treatment before a cancer has reached stage III or stage IV, before it is too late.

Members of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs have often spoken of the incredible legacy of the Nation's military aviators, true experts who dedicate their lives to serving and protecting our country. We also heard heartbreaking stories of what happens when they come home, often looking healthy, only to be blindsided by a late-stage cancer diagnosis and a bleak outlook.

In fact, just a few short days ago, at a roundtable I hosted, we heard directly from veterans, caregivers, and survivors about the profound toll that this takes. We are talking about individuals in peak physical condition who are running marathons, lifting weights, and acing physical readiness tests, only to be stopped in their tracks by cancer. This is a story that is tragically far too common in the aviation community and the broader veteran population, as well.

We accomplished a monumental task in the 117th Congress with the Honoring our PACT Act, but we must continue to fight for military aviators and countless others who have been exposed to a litany of toxins and hazards during their service.

The ACES Act is a step in the right direction. It is not the fix-all. It is not the end of the journey. It is a start of one, just like the Honoring our PACT Act was.

I will say that I am heartened by the consensus that we have reached on this bill on the need to research aviator cancers. I am hopeful that we can work in lockstep on behalf of our veterans as we continue to advocate for every one of them. For example, this bill deals principally with fixed-wing aviators. I am hopeful that we will similarly rally around legislation for rotary-wing aircraft pilots.

I am genuinely hopeful that, upon completing this study, we will be significantly closer to understanding the root causes of aviator cancers. More importantly, we will be able to provide our Nation's veterans with comprehensive care, the preventative and palliative care that they earned and deserve.

Mr. Speaker, I look forward to getting this and other critical exposure legislation through this body and signed into law. I hope my colleagues will continue to rally around our efforts.

Mr. Speaker, that is why I support this legislation and encourage my colleagues to do the same.

I ask all of my colleagues to join me in passing S. 201. I thank Representative Pfluger for this legislation. I am very honored and pleased to be able to support it, and I ask all of my colleagues to do the same.

Before I yield back, I do want to say that there are many more of our veterans who have been exposed to some toxic substances, whether it is radiation or something that is going on with our pilots.

We have learned recently of the Area 51 veterans who served at the Nevada Test Site and who obviously show signs collectively of exposure to radiation and bear the medical consequences of that.

We have ample evidence, for example, that our naval servicemembers who serve on speedboats and have been exposed to intense vibrations may have medical consequences that merit our attention. We know that exposure to overblast may cause serious traumatic brain injury.

Mr. Speaker, in the spirit of this legislation, which I can wholly support, I believe that we must do more. I ask the chairman if we might schedule a hearing for the more extensive examination into the many other types of exposures--environmental exposures, toxic exposures-- that our veterans have been and our servicemembers are being subjected to. Let us pay attention to those, as well. I humbly request such a hearing.

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