National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013

Floor Speech

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Ms. RICHARDSON. I thank the gentleman for allowing me to speak in support of the Young-Richardson amendment, No. 141, that we have before us. I would like to thank Chairman McKeon and also Ranking Member Smith and their staff for all of their hard work on this very important bill.

The Young-Richardson amendment calls for the expedited completion of the study of the Nation's strategic ports called for in the National Defense Authorization Act. As a representative of a district that serves the largest port complex in the Nation and the fifth largest in the world, it is important that we always remember that in times of war, the role of ports is to protect our forts.

This amendment directs the Department of Defense to provide a copy of the report to the GAO for additional review of the extent to which the facilities and infrastructure serving our strategic seaports meet the demands of the Department of Defense. The completion of this report is vital in its assessment of the structural integrity, the deficiencies and, most importantly, the report will identify potential funding sources to undertake these needed improvements.

I thank the House Armed Services Committee for including this Young-Richardson amendment in the en bloc, and I also applaud Mr. Young on his long-standing leadership.

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