Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2015

Floor Speech

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Mr. HUIZENGA of Michigan. Madam Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I rise today to offer an amendment that will ensure a fair and open bidding process to supply our men and women on the front lines one of the most indispensable pieces of equipment that they use every day: their boots, their footwear.

My amendment would prohibit the use of funds by the Defense Logistics Agency to implement the 2012 Small Business Administration's interim rule in regards to footwear, preventing the Defense Logistics Agency from bidding the contract as a small business set-aside.

When the SBA released this new rule back in 2012, there was significant concern that they did not go through the normal rulemaking and public comment processes, and, therefore, more specifically, did not perform due diligence on how the changes would actually affect the footwear industry and the military supply base, which the SBA has even acknowledged.

This rule dramatically changed the competitive landscape amongst companies supplying those Berry-compliant footwear to the U.S. military.

There are very few footwear manufacturers actually located in the United States, and even fewer that manufacturer Berry-compliant footwear for our troops. Any reduction in this industrial base calls for immediate action to rectify the unintended consequences resulting from the SBA's changes to the small business size standards categories governing domestic footwear manufacturing for the U.S. military.

Congress has addressed the rule's impacts on defense procurement in the House report to the fiscal year '14 National Defense Authorization, which expressed concern that the SBA did not follow the normal rulemaking and public comment procedures and has not subsequently addressed the issue with footwear manufacturers.

It then called on the Defense Logistics Agency to use its discretion to maintain the manufacturer base.

This amendment would essentially codify the report language, ensuring that all businesses capable of supplying high-quality footwear to the Defense Department still can.

This amendment promotes competition, and it promotes fairness and consistency in the defense procurement process. And most importantly, it ensures that our men and women in uniform have access, regardless of who makes it, to the best equipment available.

I urge my colleagues to support this vital amendment.

Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. HUIZENGA of Michigan. Madam Chair, I would agree with that, those sentiments of my colleague. We do need to make sure that we are maintaining a manufacturing base of not just large, not just medium size, but small companies as well.

I think, in this particular situation though, what we are trying to do is codify report language that identified a problem. The problem is that there is not a manufacturer that is going to be adequately able to supply that vital need of boots to our men and women in uniform, and that is why I put forward this amendment, and I urge passage of it as well.

Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

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