Howard P. "Buck" McKeon National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Chair, I rise today in support of my amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) which requires a report to Congress on the prevalence of black mold in buildings located on military installations. Additionally, once the report is complete, buildings identified as containing black mold shall be added to the appropriate branch's construction priority list for building replacement or renovations. I would like to thank Mr. Nugent and Chairman McKeon and Ranking Member Smith for their support and agreeing to include my language in an en bloc amendment.

Taking care of our troops is one of our country's top priorities. After these brave men and women have put themselves in harm's way on the battlefield, it is essential that we ensure once they are back on base they are living and working in a safe nonhazardous environment. We must root out dangerous health hazards--like black mold--on military instillations to protect the health of military personnel on base.

One example of where this is an issue is at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida. MacDill is home to the 6th Air Mobility Wing and 39 Mission Teammates, including the United States Central Command, United States Special Operations Command. MacDill is home to over 13,000 military and civilian personnel and approximately 170,000 retirees live in the Tampa area and depend on the base for many necessary services. Black mold has been found on the first floor of the Mission Support Facility located on base. This building houses the mission support squadron and the ID services.

Employees working in the Mission Support Facility supply all employees--military, civilian and contractor--and veterans with their ID credentialing and they assist veterans with additional paperwork that will help them obtain the benefits they have earned during service. Imagine how many of our active duty personnel, military retirees and civilians have visited this facility over the years. The Defense Department must keep a critical eye out not only for this facility at MacDill, but on all bases so we can maintain a high standard for our military men and women.

In addition to being a health hazard, the mold in the Mission Support Facility takes up valuable workspace and is cordoned off. Base personnel are doing the best they can and they have found a way to ensure that no service member or their family member has suffered, but they should not have to.

As you may know, black mold thrives in indoor spaces where there is moisture and humidity. As any tourist or native Floridian, like me, can tell you, Florida is well known for its humidity. It likely is happening at other bases located in humid areas. If we do not maintain these facilities defense-wide, issues like black mold can lead to expensive and harmful consequences down the road. We have seen examples over the years of black mold being found in homes where military families live and the horrendous stories centered around mold that came out of Walter Reed less than 10 years ago. We need to make certain our servicemembers, veterans, their families and civilians live and work in a healthy environment and that is why I have introduced my amendment to NDAA.

I would like to thank my friend and fellow Tampa Bay member, Representative Rich Nugent, for his partnership on this amendment. His tireless dedication to the men and women serving in the Armed Forces at MacDill and around the globe are laudable. Active duty personnel and veterans throughout the Tampa Bay area are fortunate to have such a strong leader serving on the House Armed Services Committee and I am fortunate to call him a colleague.

Madam Chair, again, I would like to thank Mr. Nugent, Chairman McKeon and Ranking Member Smith for their hard work on this legislation and for including my amendment en bloc. Protecting the health of our servicesmembers and all individuals who work, live or visit any military instillations is imperative. I urge my colleagues to support my amendment.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source