Hearing of the Tactical Air and Land Forces Subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee - National Defense Authorization Act

Hearing

Rep. Michael Turner (OH), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces, made the following opening statement as prepared for delivery at the Subcommittee Markup of H.R. 4435, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015.

All Subcommittee Marks can be found on the Committee Repository; the committee is no longer providing paper copies of Marks. Additionally, a live video feed of the markup can be seen on theCommittee website.

"Today, the Subcommittee meets to markup H.R. 4435, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015. I want to thank the Ranking Member and all of the members of the subcommittee for their attendance and participation in the hearings and briefings that we have held this year. Our Subcommittee Members have been actively engaged on the important issues facing the subcommittee in a truly bipartisan manner.

"I'd like to express my sincere thanks to Ms. Sanchez, as well as to her staff, for their support and cooperation in putting this mark together. We are all aware that based on this current fiscal environment the military services are having to accept greater risk in modernization programs in the near-term.

"So we have tried to focus on every sector of the defense industrial base that was in the Subcommittee's jurisdiction, and have tried to minimize the level of risk being absorbed by both the military services and the defense industrial base.

"I would like to briefly review some of the highlights of the Mark.

The subcommittee's jurisdiction includes $55.7 billion in unclassified DOD procurement and research and development programs.

This mark strikes the appropriate balance between equipping our military to effectively carry out its mission, while also providing aggressive oversight to insure appropriate use of taxpayers' dollars.

This mark funds the priorities of the Members on both sides, as well as addresses some unfunded priorities of the Department of Defense.

In terms of funding, the subcommittee's recommendations to the Chairman's mark will include full funding of most major programs in our jurisdiction, while adjusting selected under-performing programs.

The mark and the subcommittee recommendations to the Chairman include:

Full support for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program which would include 34 new aircraft and continued test and development;

Support the President's request for the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV);

Advance the procurement and development of the most up-to-date body armor and personnel protection equipment systems, to include equipment specifically designed for female service members;

Support Marine Corps aviation recapitalization with full funding for 19 V-22 Osprey, 26 new H-1 series helicopters, and continued development of the CH-53K heavy lift helicopter.

Support the President's request for the Global Hawk unmanned aerial system, and other high altitude intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance platforms.

Support Army aviation modernization with funding for 197 new helicopters.

Provide for continued growth in unmanned aerial systems (UAS) capability, including 19 MQ-1C Gray Eagles for the Army and 12 MQ-9 Reapers for the Air Force.

"We have also recommended the Chairman include additional support for the following critical capabilities:

Abrams tank upgrades

Hercules improved recovery vehicles

Stryker combat vehicle improvements

body armor

tactical wheeled vehicles

Navy strike fighters

Gray Eagle unmanned aerial system modifications, and military service unfunded requirements

"And, in the subcommittee's continuing attempt to fund National Guard and Reserve Component required capabilities at the appropriate level, the Subcommittee has recommended that additional funds be authorized as part of a National Guard and Reserve equipment account in the Chairman's mark.

"In summary, the recommended mark will address capability shortfalls and capacity concerns. The mark anticipates and prevents the avoidable or unwanted loss of defense industrial base capacity. This will ensure we equip our warfighters with the most advanced systems possible in order to meet the requirements of the Commandant Commanders in a constrained fiscal environment."

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