Kay Granger

Ms. GRANGER

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to the amendment, but I am not opposed to the amendment.

Ms. GRANGER

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, I agree that cybersecurity is a very important national security issue. The scholarship program will help in attracting and retaining a cyber workforce. I appreciate the gentleman's dedication the issue. Mr. Chairman, I am prepared to accept the amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, I claim time in opposition, but I am not opposed to the amendment.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chair, improvised explosive devices continue to be used by terrorists against our forces, which is why the bill includes $150 million for technologies to combat terrorism, including investments to counter improvised explosives. The additional funds will be helpful to develop technologies to help protect our troops. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the gentleman's dedication to this issue, and I also thank him for his previous service in the Army as an explosive ordnance disposal technician. Mr. Chairman, I am prepared to accept the amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, I claim the time in opposition, but I am not opposed to the amendment.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, in closing, I support efforts to bring innovation and new capabilities to the warfighter. However, the DIUx unit appears more focused on building its own program office rather than delivering capability. I do not believe additional funding for DIUx is justified at this time. I urge my colleagues to vote against this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, I am a strong supporter of innovation and bringing fresh ideas to the department. I support efforts that will deliver promising new technologies and provide our troops with a technological edge to prevail. However, I don't support efforts aimed at building empires under the guise of innovation. The amendment seeks to reverse a justified reduction made by the committee to the Defense Innovation Unit-Experimental, DIUx. For fiscal year 2019, DIUx proposed to double its budget compared to last year without sufficient justification. This proposed increase was aimed at doubling the size of the program office, along with significant increases for office space and a generous travel budget. I need to better understand how DIUx will fit into the department's new research and engineering organization and how it will maximize innovation for the warfighter before increasing funds for DIUx. I urge my colleagues to vote against this amendment. I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Visclosky), my ranking member.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, this bill includes $130 million for the peer-reviewed breast cancer research program. I believe this research is very worthwhile. I do not have any objection to the gentlewoman's amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition, but I am not opposed to the amendment.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the gentleman's concern to provide adequate funding for the Fisher House Foundation. The Fisher House Foundation is a nonprofit organization that provides temporary lodging for military family members when confronted with the illness or hospitalization of their servicemember. The bill already includes $5 million for the department to grant to the Fisher House Foundation and allows each service to transfer up to $11 million for Fisher House operations. I am pleased to accept the amendment to provide additional funding for the Fisher House, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, I claim time in opposition, but I am not opposed to the amendment.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chair, I appreciate the gentlewoman's concerns. The Department is currently funding several research projects related to the potential health effects of open-air burn pits and burn pit exposure, such as pulmonary fibrosis, lung and respiratory issues, and metals toxicology. I believe this research is important. I don't have any objection to this amendment. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition to the amendment, even though I am not opposed to it.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman for his amendment. I have no objections and am prepared to accept it. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition to the amendment, even though I am not opposed to it.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for his concern. This amendment would increase funding in the defense health program account, aiming to improve coordination between the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs, as both agencies study the effects of toxic exposure to burn pits. It is important to both Departments to be aware of what the other has done in this important area of research, therefore, I am prepared to accept the amendment. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, I claim the time in opposition, but I am not opposed to the amendment.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, this amendment provides a modest increase in the training budget for the Special Operations Command. Like my colleague, I want to make sure that our soldiers are able to deal with any contingency that may confront them. Our Special Forces deploy to some of the most austere and unique environments in the world. We should do all that we can to ensure their success. Mr. Chairman, I ask my colleagues to support this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, I claim the time in opposition, but I don't oppose the amendment.

Ms. GRANGER

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, I claim time in opposition to the amendment, but I am not opposed to the amendment.

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for his concern for our servicemen and -women. The bill already includes $130 million for the Peer Reviewed Breast Cancer Research Program. Funding for this important program is designed to end breast cancer by funding innovative, high-impact research through a partnership of scientists and consumers. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the gentleman's concern. I accept his amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. GRANGER

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 6157, and that I may include tabular material on the same.

Ms. GRANGER

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chair, I am pleased to bring the Defense Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2019 to the House floor for consideration. Congress' number one responsibility is to provide for the defense of this Nation. It is this bill that fulfills that most fundamental constitutional duty. Last year, General Dunford, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said: ``The U.S. military's competitive advantage against potential adversaries is eroding. Over the last decade, sustained operational commitments, budgetary instability, and advances by our adversaries have threatened our ability to project power and we have lost our advantage in key warfighting areas.'' My approach to funding this bill is based on that statement. The priorities funded in this bill not only stop the erosion, but also enable our military to restore and increase the competitive advantage. This is all possible because of the bipartisan budget agreement which has allowed us to provide the necessary resources. The fiscal year 2018 Defense Appropriation Act took the first step in rebuilding our military by addressing the toll taken on readiness, and began to make investments to improve our competitive advantage. Building on the gains we made in 2018 and guided by the new National Defense Strategy, the bill before you is the next critical step to enable Secretary Mattis to build a more lethal, resilient, and rapidly innovating joint force that can defeat the adversaries we face today and those we will face in the future. The bill also supports the Secretary's efforts to work by, with, and through our allies and partners to help share the burden while protecting America's interests around the world. This bill reflects the advice the subcommittee received in hearings, briefings, and meetings with Secretary Mattis, Chairman Dunford, the leadership of the military services, the Intelligence Committee, and other national security experts. The bill provides a total of $675 billion to the Department for fiscal year 2019. This is $19 billion above the fiscal year 2018 level and is consistent with total funding level in the House-passed authorization bill. The bill provides full funding to address military personnel needs, including: full funding for an additional 16,400 active, guard and reserve soldiers, sailors and airmen. And full funding for the 2.6 percent pay raise for our troops. The bill provides critical funding to repair and improve our military readiness, including $1 billion over the request for training and equipping our troops, including the National Guard and Reserve, and for training, equipment, maintenance and spare parts, and base operations. It includes $21 billion for depot maintenance to get our planes and ships back in working order. For procurement, the bill provides adequate funding to modernize the force. Major investments include: increased funds for Strykers, Abrams tanks, Humvees, and other ground mobility vehicles. And to maintain air superiority, we provide increases for key platforms such as the Joint Strike Fighter, Apaches, Lakotas, Ospreys, Black Hawks, and C-130s. We maintain our commitment to the National Guard and Reserve components, providing $1.3 billion over the request, specifically for their equipment needs. For shipbuilding, we fund 12 Navy ships, 2 more than requested. To ensure our technological edge against our adversaries, $95 billion is included for research and development. We keep our commitment to take care of our servicemembers and their families by providing over $34 billion for defense health programs, including $752 million over the request for medical research. To address growing concerns on and around our military bases, we include over $1.2 billion to address environmental remediation and restoration. For ongoing global war on terrorism operations, the bill provides funding for additional intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance for the warfighter, and $250 million for Ukraine. Given the serious challenges and significant resources at stake, the committee continues to exercise strong oversight over the Department to ensure that our constituents' tax dollars are being spent wisely. Mr. Chair, I want to thank my ranking member and partner, Mr. Visclosky. His input has been invaluable. The bill before us is better because of his involvement. I also want to thank our full committee ranking member, Mrs. Lowey, for her support for this important work done in this bill. Most importantly, I want to thank my full committee chairman and the previous subcommittee chairman, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Frelinghuysen), for his leadership and his support. Sadly, this is the last Defense Appropriation bill that the chairman will manage in Congress. Throughout his service, he has shown an unwavering commitment to the needs of our military and intelligence communities. I will miss his wise counsel and steadfast commitment to the members of our military services. I want to thank all Members for their participation and input as we put together this bill. The subcommittee received over 6,600 requests from Members. The bill incorporates their ideas and recommendations, and I thank them for their continued support. I would like to personally thank our hardworking staff for helping make this bill possible. On our majority staff: Jennifer Miller, Walter Hearne, Brooke Boyer, B. G. Wright, Allison Deters, Collin Lee, Matt Bower, Jackie Ripke, Hayden Milberg, Bill Adkins, Sherry Young, and Barry Walker. On our minority staff: Becky Leggieri, Jennifer Chartrand, and Chris Bigelow. On my personal staff: Johnnie Kaberle, Jon Fay, and Spencer Freebairn. In closing, Mr. Chairman, the Defense Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2019 is a great bill that takes the next critical step in rebuilding our military. Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time. [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TH260618.001 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TH260618.002 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TH260618.003 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TH260618.004 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TH260618.005 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TH260618.006 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TH260618.007 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TH260618.008